Senior Development Designer
Location: Northern Home Counties
Salary: Competitive, dependent on experience
Our client is a respected fabrication and manufacturing business with a strong reputation for delivering innovative, high-quality solutions across diverse sectors. Their design department sits at the heart of the operation, taking projects from initial concept right through to full manufacturing drawings. Working with an impressive client base and handling everything in-house, they pride themselves on their technical expertise, collaborative approach, and ability to deliver cost-effective solutions that meet exacting standards. As they continue to grow, they're now seeking an experienced design professional to strengthen their technical team.
The Senior Development Designer will play a crucial role within the design department, taking ownership of projects from concept through to production-ready manufacturing drawings. You'll produce layouts and general assembly drawings from design intent suitable for client presentations, create quotation and full production drawings including DXF files for CNC machinery programming, and manage projects independently by attending client meetings and liaising throughout the design process. The Senior Development Designer will also be responsible for managing junior team members, ensuring their work meets required standards, overseeing sub-contractors on outsourced projects, and maintaining the parts library and numbering system. You'll provide holiday cover for design department planning, attend supplier meetings, and work closely with estimating, creative, and factory departments to ensure projects run smoothly and efficiently from quote through to delivery.
The ideal candidate for this Senior Development Designer position will have proven experience in design and development within a manufacturing environment, with strong technical drawing skills and proficiency in producing CNC-ready files. You'll demonstrate excellent project management abilities with experience managing client relationships, leading projects independently, and mentoring junior designers. A flexible, collaborative approach is essential, along with strong communication skills to liaise effectively with clients, suppliers, and internal departments. You'll be detail-oriented with the ability to produce cost-effective design solutions, manage multiple projects simultaneously, and maintain high standards under pressure while ensuring deadlines are consistently met.
If you're an experienced design professional looking to take on a senior role with a well-established manufacturer, we'd love to hear from you. Please submit your CV along with examples of your technical drawing work and a brief cover letter outlining your relevant experience.