Principal Design Engineer - Engines/Fuel Cells

Overview

Role: Principal Design Engineer - Engines/Fuel Cells

Location: Shoreham-By-Sea, UK or Prague, Czechia

Role ID: 2025-2743

Our vision is to create a safe and sustainable world.

Ricardo plc is a global strategic, environmental, and engineering consulting company. With over 100 years of engineering excellence and employing close to 3,000 employees in more than 20 countries, we provide exceptional levels of expertise in delivering leading-edge and innovative cross-sector sustainable products and solutions. Every day, we enable our customers to solve the most complex and dynamic challenges to help achieve a safe and sustainable world.

The Role

The Principal Design Engineer is responsible for the design of complex mechanical components across a range of sectors, including engines, vehicles, transmissions, and hybrid systems -  from light-duty petrol engines to off-highway transmissions.

Working closely with the Chief Designer, the Principal Design Engineer will take the lead on specific systems or complete product designs, as assigned. The role also supports the Engineering Manager in mentoring Design Engineers, helping to develop their skills and ensure adherence to departmental processes.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead mechanical design activities across concept, definitive, and detailed phases.

• Design major components such as cylinder heads, blocks, transmission casings, or suspension systems with minimal supervision.

• Produce 3D models, 2D drawings, tolerance stacks, stress calculations, and FMEAs.

• Develop specifications and ensure designs meet all technical, cost, and timing requirements.

• Generate detailed manufacturing and assembly drawings, BoMs, and manage design changes.

• Ensure fit, function, and integration of components within the overall system.

• Review and validate the work of other Design Engineers, ensuring quality and consistency.

• Create and manage component and system-level design plans, tracking progress against project schedules.

• Collaborate with manufacturing and process engineers to ensure designs are optimised for production.

• Prepare and present designs in internal and external reviews, identifying and managing technical risks.

• Liaise with customers, suppliers, and internal departments to support project delivery.

• Maintain up-to-date documentation and follow internal design management processes.

• Promote the use of best practices and tools, including CAD and Windchill.

• Mentor junior engineers, support training delivery, and contribute to continuous improvement initiatives.

• Identify innovation opportunities and contribute to R&D planning.

• Lead or support project roles such as Chief Designer or Chief Engineer as needed.

• Provide input into proposals and represent the Engineering Manager when required.

Key Competencies and Experience

• Extensive experience in mechanical design engineering across automotive, industrial, or defence sectors.

• Specialisation in at least one core area of mechanical design.

• Strong 3D CAD skills (e.g. CREO, CATIA) and experience with GD&T and technical drawing standards.

• Proven ability to lead small teams (4+) and manage component/system delivery.

• Skilled in producing specifications, design documentation, and technical reports.

Skills and Behaviours

• Clear communicator with strong organisational and problem-solving skills.

• Collaborative leader with a proactive approach to mentoring and team development.

• Detail-oriented with a drive for continuous improvement and innovation.

• Comfortable liaising with clients and stakeholders across functions.

Working here

You will be warmly welcomed into our workplace where every voice matters. We are diverse thinkers and doers, coming together to create a culture of inclusion. We will support you to find your place.

We will encourage you to use your passion and expertise to make a positive impact through the projects you work on.  Your knowledge and desire to bring about change will be invaluable in helping deliver innovative solutions that support communities across the globe in becoming safer and more sustainable.

Work life balance 

We offer flexible approaches to work, whether that is working from home, being in the office, or as a hybrid worker. We're happy to discuss flexible working arrangements. Wellbeing is at the core to our culture, allowing employees to flourish and to achieve their full potential.

Benefits

We want you to know how much you are valued. Your remuneration and benefits package will reflect that. You will receive a range of benefits which include support for your physical and mental health. 

Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion statement

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer, we believe in each person's potential, and we'll help you reach yours. We have an ambitious diversity, equality, and inclusion approach as explained here. We value diversity; recognising that a more diverse workforce creates a richer and more varied working environment. Diversity also drives innovation, by allowing us to offer our clients the best consultancy service that we can. As part of our commitment to engage positively and pro-actively with all our employees and to ensure an inclusive culture, we are a recognised as a 'disability confident' employer.

Next steps

Once you have submitted your application a member of our Recruitment Team will be in touch. Please be aware that the timing can vary dependent on the volume of applications that we receive for each role and in some cases, we may start to review applications prior to the closing date.

Ricardo is a Disability confident employer please advise the recruitment team via recruit@ricardo.com if you require any adjustments to support you throughout the recruitment process.

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