Principal Mechanical Engineer

Principal Mechanical Engineer Location: Manchester Contract Type: Permanent Salary: £75,000 - £80,000 Sector: Water (Clean & Wastewater) | Mechanical Design Key Responsibilities

• Lead practical, efficient, and buildable mechanical design solutions for water sector projects.
• Review and approve calculations, reports, specifications, and deliverables.
• Act as Design Lead and coordinate across disciplines.
• Direct and mentor engineers, CAD technicians, and graduates.
• Scope and review work from subcontract M&E design teams.
• Work with suppliers and manufacturers to develop designs.
• Ensure compliance with technical standards and client requirements.
• Support tenders, resource planning, and design effort estimates.
• Lead design reviews, client meetings, and technical discussions. Requirements
• Extensive mechanical design experience in the water industry (typically 8-12+ years).
• Strong hydraulic design experience.
• Degree or HND in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline.
• Chartered Engineer status preferred.
• Strong IT and digital design capability.
• Proven ability to lead design delivery and support junior engineers.
• Experience across clean water and wastewater, plus electrical and control systems, beneficial.
• Full UK driving licence and access to a vehicle.