Research & Development Director

Research & Development Director

The Opportunity

A market-leading international engineering and manufacturing business is seeking an experienced Research & Development Director to lead the transformation of its global engineering and product development function.

Reporting directly to the Managing Director, this is a board-facing leadership role with responsibility for a team of approximately 27 engineers and an annual R&D budget of circa 12 million.

The successful candidate will drive engineering excellence, product portfolio optimisation, value engineering, cost reduction, manufacturing efficiency and targeted innovation, ensuring products remain commercially competitive while supporting future growth.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a high-performing Engineering and R&D function.
• Drive product reengineering, value engineering and cost optimisation programmes.
• Implement Design for Manufacture (DFM) and Design for Assembly (DFA) methodologies.
• Improve product quality, reliability, serviceability and manufacturability.
• Establish engineering governance, project management and stage-gate processes.
• Develop and deliver a long-term product roadmap aligned to business strategy.
• Lead targeted new product development and innovation initiatives.
• Collaborate closely with Operations, Manufacturing, Supply Chain and Commercial teams to improve business performance.

About You

You will have:

• Proven leadership experience within Engineering, R&D or Product Development.
• A strong track record of engineering transformation and organisational change.
• Experience delivering product reengineering, value engineering and cost reduction initiatives.
• Strong knowledge of DFM, DFA, product lifecycle management and engineering governance.
• Experience managing substantial engineering budgets and multidisciplinary teams.
• A commercially focused approach combined with strong technical credibility.

Experience within industrial instrumentation, engineered products, manufacturing technology or industrial equipment environments would be highly advantageous.

Why Apply?

This is a rare opportunity to shape the future of a highly respected engineering and manufacturing business. You will have significant influence over strategy, engineering investment, product development and operational performance while playing a key role in the company's long-term growth and success.

Please send your CV via the system as soon as possible