Associate/Principal Mechanical Engineer - Southern England

Location/s: Reading, London, Croydon, Brighton, Cambridge, Southampton; UK

Recruiter contact: Nicola Coyle

Mott MacDonald is a global engineering, management, and development consultancy with over 20,000 employees across more than 50 countries and 140+ offices.

We work across incredible global industries, delivering exciting work that is defining our future and making an important societal impact in the communities we serve. Our people power our performance – we succeed when they do. With countless opportunities to collaborate, learn, and grow, the possibilities for excellence are as varied as every individual.

Whether you want to grow as a subject matter expert or broaden your experience with roles across our international community, you're surrounded by global specialists who want to combine their expertise and champion you to be your best. As a proudly employee-owned business, we benefit our clients, our communities, and each other, investing in creating the right space for everyone to feel empowered, included, and valued. Whatever your ambition, Mott MacDonald is where people come to be brilliant.

About the business division

The Water Utilities Division is Mott MacDonald's centre of excellence for responding to the UK and Ireland's water and wastewater challenges. The work we do is at the forefront of ensuring safe water supplies for future generations, preventing urban flooding, and improving the health of our rivers and coastal environments. Our multi-disciplinary teams provide a variety of services throughout the full project life cycle, from advisory services and feasibility studies to outline and detailed design. Together, we deliver best-in-class solutions to our clients while offering diverse and technically stimulating opportunities to our people.

Overview of the role

Mott MacDonald is a market leader in the UK water sector, being a key supplier to major water companies and delivering a wide variety of engineering and advisory projects in support to the challenges faced by the sector. Our Water Consultancy Division has ambitious growth plans in line with AMP8 investment needs and we are proud of our strong reputation in the industry which is allowing us to expand our business. Having been appointed to a large UK water consultancy framework in 2024, we are looking for a Mechanical Discipline Lead to support the delivery of our water and wastewater programmes. Reporting to the Engineering Manager, you will be the figure head for the Mechanical Engineering discipline within the framework. You will have the opportunity to steer the technical direction of discipline related activities, working closely with our Client and our other discipline leads. You will own the technical quality of the deliverables created by engineers/consultants and manage technical problem solving. You will also be expected to hold a key relationship with equivalent discipline leads for the client, leveraging this to help resolve technical issues and blockers.

The scale of investment required in AMP8 is both a significant challenge but a major opportunity to provide a long-lasting legacy to our client and their region. It also requires new more efficient ways of delivering our services and for the successful candidate to demonstrate their ability to identify and implement innovations that maintain delivery to programme and commercial targets.

Key elements of the role will include taking a lead on and managing the following activities:

• Accountable for technical quality of the deliverables created by their discipline, including the competency of their discipline's staff and quality assurance processes
• Challenge of the client's technical standards and the acceptance of waivers and deviations, relevant to their discipline
• Ensures their discipline discharges its duties as a Designer under CDM
• Co-ordinates Mechanical resources across the framework alongside design managers and project technical leads
• Develops relationships and maintains regular communication with the relevant client technical stakeholders relevant to their discipline

The role is expected to develop and evolve in line with the framework requirements and the candidates' own skills and development areas. It also offers the opportunity to develop the next generation of talent within our business.

Candidate specification

Essential:

• Chartered Status (CEng) with a recognised Professional Institution
• Proven ability to lead a portfolio of technical projects, ensuring compliance with relevant quality assurance and technical standards and supporting the development of less experienced staff
• Demonstrable technical experience in infra and non-infra mechanical design
• Strong communication skills with experience in effective collaboration across internal multi-disciplinary teams with other technical disciplines
• A drive to be abreast of professional development and knowledge of current and emerging technical solutions
• Good understanding of designers'