Senior Mechanical Design Engineer - Water Industry

RPS; City of Edinburgh; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading engineering consultancy in the UK seeks a Senior Mechanical Design Engineer to join their Water Consultancy team. This role involves managing projects in the water industry, producing technical outputs, mentoring junior engineers, and ensuring compliance with regulations. A degree in mechanical engineering and significant experience in the water sector are essential. The position offers a hybrid work environment and emphasizes professional development.

Benefits

Personal development plan

Flexible working options

Supportive company culture

Qualifications

• Degree-level qualification in mechanical engineering or closely related subject.
• Chartered engineer status or nearing chartership.
• Significant water industry experience and familiarity with design tools.

Responsibilities

• Balance workload across various projects within long-term frameworks.
• Act as a mentor and provide technical governance.
• Prepare mechanical design deliverables including reports and specifications.

Skills

Technical understanding of mechanical engineering principles

Water industry experience

Proficiency in pump selection

Familiarity with AutoCAD

Communication skills

Education

Degree in mechanical engineering

Postgraduate qualifications

Tools

AutoCAD

Job description

Senior Mechanical Design Engineer - Water Industry

We are currently in the market to recruit a Senior Mechanical Design Engineer to join our dynamic and growing Water Consultancy team operating across the UK. You’ll work on exciting AMP8 and AMP9 projects, ensuring exceptional water services in a collaborative environment.

RPS and Tetra Tech are actively engaged in several long‑term wastewater programmes across the UK water industry, helping our clients address major pollution and flooding challenges. As part of these programmes our wastewater consulting team undertakes a broad range of projects, including urban drainage and water quality modelling studies, WINEP, SOAF, DWMPs and catchment investment planning, and the development of engineering solutions from feasibility through to outline and detailed design.

About the Team

RPS Water Consulting is a team of engineers, designers, modellers, and data analysts providing asset management and operational strategy development, to our water industry clients to support business planning and delivery. This is an evolving industry, providing challenges and opportunities that require innovation, dedication and teamwork to help us meet our clients’ needs.

About You

• Experienced in liaising with the client to understand their needs, interpret data, and develop a project plan.
• Experienced in producing technical outputs such as technical specifications, schedules, reports, sizing and designing pumping systems and aeration systems, with familiarity in collaborative planning reviews.
• Can provide engineering inputs and design outputs in collaboration with other disciplines, producing general arrangement drawings, 3D models, 2D plans, sections and piping & instrumentation diagrams.
• Strong communication skills and ability to deliver technical presentations to clients, design engineers, and participate in workshops, safety reviews, HAZOPs and ALMs.
• Understanding of water and wastewater treatment processes, with experience assessing existing site infrastructure to develop and deliver mechanical design.
• Committed to making a meaningful impact on millions of lives across the UK, collaborating with leading minds and large water companies.

Your Responsibilities

• Balance workload across a variety of projects within large long‑term frameworks with water companies and contractors across the UK.
• Seek to achieve positive outcomes for projects and the community.
• Work closely with senior and principal engineers and stakeholders to support project delivery.
• Act as a mentor, guide less experienced members, provide technical governance and oversight.
• Interpret and produce technical drawings, ideally through AutoCAD and/or Inventor.
• Undertake asset condition surveys and prepare reports and recommendations.
• Contribute to the production of process and instrumentation diagrams (P&IDs).
• Prepare mechanical design deliverables: calculations, reports, specifications, datasheets, drawings, schedules, and procurement documentation.
• Support compliance with Designer duties under CDM, including design risk assessments.
• Ensure quality assurance systems and high standards are maintained.
• Act as a project manager, package manager or design team leader as required.

Skills, Knowledge and Experience

• Technical understanding of mechanical engineering principles.
• Significant water industry experience.
• Proficiency in pump selection, pumping system design, use of P&IDs, production of specifications, reports and technical documentation.
• Compliance with Construction, Design & Management (CDM) Regulations and safety design.
• Experience with various contract procurement methods, ideally NEC.
• Ability to manage work according to time, cost, and quality criteria.
• Support to junior staff technical and personal development.
• Willingness to travel to operational and construction sites; able to observe and inspect mechanical equipment.
• Familiarity with design tools such as AutoCAD is an advantage but not essential.

Qualifications

• Degree‑level qualification in mechanical engineering or a closely related subject, ideally IMechE‑accredited.
• Postgraduate qualifications are an advantage.
• Chartered engineer status or working towards and nearing chartership.

What’s in it for you

A personal development plan and a transparent career pathway put you in the driving seat of your career. You’ll be encouraged to bring different ideas and perspectives, with a supportive and inclusive culture that values wellbeing. Flexible working options and a hybrid workplace support a work‑life balance. RPS, a Tetra Tech company, offers a global platform and the chance to solve complex problems worldwide.