Rowden

Edge computing for defence and security

Product Engineer

Design EngineeringUpdated on Nov 13

Full-timeBristol, UK£30k - £40k /yrHybrid

About the Job

Requirements

A degree in Mechanical Engineering, Product Design, or a related discipline, or equivalent practical experience.
A strong interest in product development and willingness to participate in all stages from concept to production.
A basic understanding of engineering principles and design processes.
An analytical mindset and desire to understand how things work and how they can be improved.
Comfort working with physical products and eagerness to work hands-on with prototypes, testing, and builds.
Good written and verbal communication skills for documenting work and collaborating across teams.
A proactive attitude and confidence to ask questions, seek feedback, and take ownership of tasks.
A self-starting attitude with eagerness to learn and grow.
Curiosity and enthusiasm for solving problems and improving products.
Strong attention to detail and a methodical approach to tasks.
Willingness to work hands-on and collaboratively across design, R&D, and manufacturing teams.
Flexibility and resilience in a fast-paced, evolving environment.
Eligibility for SC clearance.

Responsibilities

Assist in the design, development, and testing of new products, ensuring they align with customer and business needs.
Support application of the V-Model methodology by contributing to validation and verification processes at each stage of development.
Work with R&D, design, and manufacturing teams to enhance product functionality and manufacturability.
Conduct product analysis, troubleshoot issues, and contribute to continuous improvements in quality, reliability, and performance.
Develop and maintain technical documentation, including engineering requirements, specifications, and reports, ensuring traceability within the V-Model structure.
Assist in compliance assessments to ensure products comply with industry standards, safety regulations, and company guidelines.
Identify cost-reduction opportunities while maintaining product integrity, functionality, and regulatory compliance.
Create and update production and quality documentation to support efficient manufacturing and assembly processes.
Assist in verification and validation testing to confirm product performance before full-scale production.
Participate in and document early prototype builds, feeding lessons learned into full-scale production builds.
Support failure mode analysis and risk assessments to improve product robustness.
Contribute to product validation, troubleshooting, continuous improvement, slow builds, and production builds.
Contribute to documentation, testing, and manufacturability enhancements while applying the V-Model methodology.

Desired Qualifications

Familiarity with CAD tools such as SolidWorks, Creo, or similar.

We're building the UK's next generation engineering powerhouse, providing critical technology that strengthens national security and resilience.

We specialise in turning advances in sensing, AI, and communications into operational capability for the edge, where connectivity may be degraded or denied. Our work focuses on accelerating the deployment of technology, improving decision-making for frontline teams, and protecting people and critical assets in demanding environments.

Headquartered in Bristol, Rowden employs around 200 people and operates over 20,000 square feet of engineering and manufacturing facilities. We have a growing international footprint and are one of Europe's fastest-growing engineering businesses.

The role

We are looking for a Product Engineer to support the design, development, and optimisation of our products. Reporting to the Design Manager, you will play a key role in assisting with product validation, troubleshooting, and continuous improvement efforts, as well as participating in slow builds and production builds.

Working closely with R&D, design, and manufacturing teams, you will ensure that products meet performance, quality, and regulatory requirements. You will also contribute to documentation, testing, and manufacturability enhancements while applying the V-Model methodology to maintain structured design validation and verification.

This role would suit someone early in their product career, whether a recent graduate or changing career path - and offers an exciting opportunity to work in a tightknit team developing important, mission-driven products.

Candidates must be eligible for SC clearance.

More information about security clearance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels

As a Product Engineer at Rowden, you will be responsible for:

Assist in the design, development, and testing of new products, ensuring they align with customer and business needs.
Support the application of the V-Model methodology by contributing to validation and verification processes at each stage of development.
Work with R&D, design, and manufacturing teams to enhance product functionality and manufacturability.
Conduct product analysis, troubleshoot issues, and contribute to continuous improvements in quality, reliability, and performance.
Develop and maintain technical documentation, including engineering requirements, specifications, and reports, ensuring traceability within the V-Model structure.
Ensure products comply with industry standards, safety regulations, and company guidelines by assisting in compliance assessments.
Identify cost-reduction opportunities while maintaining product integrity, functionality, and regulatory compliance.
Create and update production and quality documentation to support efficient manufacturing and assembly processes.
Assist in verification and validation testing to confirm product performance before full-scale production.
Participate in and document early prototype builds, feeding lessons learned into full scale production builds.
Support failure mode analysis and risk assessments to improve product robustness.

We are looking for someone who is passionate about technology and who actively invests in their technical skills and abilities. You’ll gain loads of experience in this role but before you do, you should have:

A degree in Mechanical Engineering, Product Design, or a related discipline (or equivalent practical experience).
A strong interest in product development, with a willingness to get involved in all stages from concept to production.
Basic understanding of engineering principles and design processes.
Familiarity with CAD tools (e.g. SolidWorks, Creo, or similar) is a plus, but not required.
An analytical mindset with a desire to understand how things work and how they can be improved.
Comfortable working with physical products—eager to get hands-on with prototypes, testing, and builds.
Good written and verbal communication skills, especially for documenting work and collaborating across teams.
A proactive attitude and the confidence to ask questions, seek feedback, and take ownership of tasks.

About you

The ideal candidate will have a strong balance of technical skills and experience, and the behavioural competencies that we believe are key to success in the role are as follows:

A self-starting attitude with a genuine eagerness to learn and grow.
Curiosity and enthusiasm for solving problems and improving products.
Strong attention to detail and a methodical approach to tasks.
Willingness to work hands on and collaboratively across design, R&D, and manufacturing teams.
Flexibility and resilience in a fast-paced, evolving environment.

About the Company

Rowden

Edge computing for defence and security

Rowden Technologies designs and delivers mission-critical edge computing and distributed sensor systems for environments with limited or unreliable connectivity. It handles end-to-end design, integration, sovereign manufacturing, and long-term managed services to support defence, national security, and emergency services. Its products include Trove for frontline generative AI, Magos for cost-effective signal processing and communications production, and Dovetail for modular edge-system integration, enabling rapid, secure decision-making even in denied environments. The company differentiates itself by prioritizing edge solutions with low connectivity, acting as a prime systems integrator for large programmes, offering sovereign manufacturing and lifecycle support, and pursuing projects like automated ML deployment to UAS for AUKUS Pillar II to reduce dependence on traditional defence contractors.

Company size: 51-200
Company stage: Grant
Total funding: $33.7M
Headquarters: Filton, United Kingdom
Founded: 2017

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