Principal Mechanical Engineer
Company: Millbank Holdings Ltd Salary: £57.50 to £62.50 an hour Hours: Full-time Location: Manchester, MANCHESTER Job type: Contract Posting date: 17 Oct 2026 Closing date: 15 Nov 2026
Key Questions
- Do you have extensive mechanical and hydraulic design experience across water and wastewater projects, including leading design delivery, reviewing and approving technical deliverables, and coordinating multidisciplinary engineering teams?
- Are you a Chartered Mechanical Engineer with extensive water sector design experience, and can you demonstrate your ability to lead technical delivery, manage subcontract M&E design teams, and mentor junior engineers? Please also confirm your availability for a 12-month+ contract in Manchester, working 3 days per week in the office, and your eligibility to work Outside IR35.
Opportunity
An exciting opportunity has arisen to join a growing engineering consultancy within the water and wastewater sector, with the business looking to strengthen its team with an experienced Principal Mechanical Engineer. This is an opportunity to play a key role in delivering complex multidisciplinary engineering projects, taking ownership of mechanical design solutions and influencing technical standards across the business.
The ideal candidate
The ideal candidate will be a mechanically biased Chartered Engineer with extensive water industry experience, strong hydraulic design expertise and a proven ability to lead design delivery, coordinate multidisciplinary teams and mentor junior engineers.
The Role
As a Principal Mechanical Engineer, you will provide technical leadership across projects, taking ownership of mechanical design delivery and supporting multidisciplinary coordination.
Responsibilities
- Lead the development of practical, efficient and buildable mechanical design solutions
- Review and approve design deliverables, calculations, reports and specifications
- Provide technical guidance and oversight across projects and support tender submissions
- Act as Design Lead on projects where required, ensuring coordination across disciplines
- Direct and mentor engineers, CAD technicians and graduates
- Prepare scopes for, and review outputs from, subcontract M&E design teams
- Liaise with equipment suppliers and manufacturers to support design development
- Ensure designs comply with relevant technical standards, professional guidance and client requirements
- Manage and record design changes within project documentation
- Support resource planning and estimating design effort
- Attend and lead design reviews, client meetings and technical discussions
About You
We are looking for a highly capable mechanical engineer with strong experience in the water sector and a track record of delivering robust engineering solutions.
It’s essential that you have
- Extensive mechanical design experience within the water industry (typically 8–12+ years)
- Strong experience in hydraulic design
- Strong IT and digital design capability
- Experience working within multidisciplinary engineering teams
- Ability to lead design delivery and support junior engineers
- Full UK driving licence and access to a vehicle
It’s desirable that you
- Experience with electrical and control systems
- Experience across clean water and wastewater projects
- Awareness of construction methods and materials
- Knowledge of engineering drawing practices.
Why Join our client?
They’re a growing engineering consultancy where experienced engineers have real influence over projects, technical standards and team development.
In this role, you will:
- Take ownership of complex mechanical design solutions
- Play a key role in mentoring and developing engineers
- Influence technical standards and engineering approaches
- Work on a range of challenging water sector projects
- Our Manchester office offers free parking, excellent transport links and access to a fully equipped gym with changing facilities, alongside a collaborative and supportive environment.
Qualifications & experience
- Degree or HND in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline
Millbank Holdings Ltd is an equal opportunities employer committed to creating an inclusive and diverse workforce. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified individuals, regardless of background, and encourage candidates from underrepresented groups to apply.
We are proud to be a member of the Disability Confident Scheme, and we are committed to ensuring an accessible and supportive recruitment process for everyone. If you require any adjustments at any stage, please let us know and we’ll do our best to accommodate.
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