Chief Engineer (Substation HV Plant)

Balfour; Leeds; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading engineering firm in the UK is seeking a Chief Engineer (Substation HV Plant) to provide technical leadership and ensure compliance with quality standards. The ideal candidate will have a degree in engineering, chartered status preferred, and extensive experience in technical design within the power industry. This full-time role offers flexible working arrangements and a variety of benefits, including generous leave policies and pension plans.

Benefits

Smart working flexibility

25 days paid annual leave

Family-friendly policies

Qualifications

• Degree level education or equivalent with formal training in engineering.
• Chartered Engineer preferred with professional body membership.
• Strong, proven experience of the management of design works.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership and guidance across the discipline.
• Support the team in understanding client requirements.
• Ensure quality and standards compliance of all deliverables.

Skills

Degree level education or equivalent

Chartered Engineer preferred

Strong postgraduate experience in engineering

IT literate (Microsoft Word, Excel)

Experience of technical design

Experience in the power industry

Education

Degree in Engineering

Tools

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

Job description

Join to apply for the Chief Engineer (Substation HV Plant) role at Balfour Beatty plc

About The Role

Balfour Beatty Power T&D is looking for an experienced Primary Engineer to step into the pivotal role of Chief Engineer (Substation HV Plant). This is an exciting opportunity for a professional with UK transmission expertise and in‑depth knowledge of SSE and/or National Grid technical specifications and procedures.

Key Accountabilities

• Provide technical leadership and guidance across the discipline.
• Ensure the quality and standards compliance of all deliverables.
• Support the growth and competencies of our talented team.
• Ensure competencies of the technical staff working within the discipline.
• Contribute towards the strategic direction for the discipline.
• Drive a culture of innovation and value engineering within the discipline.

Key Responsibilities

• Support the team in understanding client requirements, including those not captured in the contract, and the ability to influence contact specifications.
• Closely collaborate with other Chief Engineers and Design Delivery Managers and promote collaboration between Designers and Technicians.
• Assist in analysis of test failures and subsequent development of mitigations or solutions.
• Work in close collaboration with the discipline Design Delivery Manager to ensure that the team’s technical competencies and expertise are developed and maintained.
• Lead on any technical challenges affecting tender development and live projects and in doing so provide support to the relevant Design Delivery Manager.
• Support the Lead Designer during tender development, particularly regarding risks and opportunities.
• Propose and support development of technical innovations.
• Support changes in process and technology proposed and undertaken by the Digital and Delivery teams.
• Contribute to the development and updating of the design aids and computer programmes and assist in the analysis of new design concepts.
• In conjunction with the lead project design engineer(s), help ensure that the discipline’s scope of work for each project is technically compliant with customer requirements, quality standards and safety by design principles.
• Ensure succession plans are in place for their own role, as well as supporting the Design Delivery Manager in doing so for any other key roles within the team (Principal Design Engineers, CDAE, Technical Experts, etc.).
• Proactively support the discipline activities whether they are standalone or part of multidisciplinary Contracts.
• Look to implement Engineering Excellence, Safety by Design and sustainability goals in everything we do.
• Ensure that Manuals and Technical Procedures provided for compliance with the appropriate Quality and Safety standards are maintained and applied.
• Look to join, influence and promote relevant Technical Bodies for the discipline.
• Support PDRs for discipline alongside the Design Delivery Manager.

Skills Required

• Degree level education or equivalent with formal training in engineering.
• Chartered Engineer preferred with professional body membership (e.g. ICE, IEEE or IStructE).
• Strong, proven post‑graduate experience in the engineering and design sector.
• Strong, proven experience of the management of design works.
• IT literate (Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel).
• Extensive experience of technical design.
• Experience of the power industry (preferred).
• Experience working with National Grid / SSE would be a benefit.

Benefits

• Smart working, giving you flexibility such as staggered start and finish times, with up to 40% remote working, where roles allow.
• 25 days paid annual leave (pro rata).
• Family‑friendly policies which include 28 weeks full pay for maternity/adoption leave and four weeks full pay for paternity/partners leave.
• Pension, share incentive plan, volunteering leave, recognition schemes and much more.

About Us

Balfour Beatty’s Power Transmission & Distribution teams work with regional, national and international electricity network owners and operators to provide technical engineering solutions across the full spectrum of the electricity grid, including overhead lines, cabling, substations and distribution networks.

From scoping and feasibility to design, construction and on‑going maintenance, our in‑house experts, flexible resources and industry‑leading innovations support customers in the development of some of the UK’s most ambitious power transmission and distribution projects.

Diversity and inclusion are essential components of any successful, happy workplace. Through our Value Everyone Diversity and Inclusion Strategy and Action Plan, we are growing our diverse workforce and developing our inclusive culture where everyone is able to thrive and reach their full potential, regardless of their identity or background.

We are a Gold Award holder in the Ministry of Defence Employer Recognition Scheme and actively encourage applications from Armed Forces personnel, veterans and reservists.

As a Disability Confident Employer, we are committed to working with people who have disabilities and long‑term health conditions to remove barriers for them in obtaining employment. We also offer applicants with a disability an interview if they meet the minimum requirements for the role.

Seniority level

• Director

Employment type

• Full‑time

Job function

• Engineering and Information Technology

Industries

• Construction