Mechanical Maintenance and Reliability Engineering·Updated on Nov 13·
Full-timePlymouth, UKNo salary listedIn-person
About the Job
Requirements
At least 7 years of experience in equipment engineering, maintenance leadership, or technical ownership within a thin-film manufacturing environment.
Strong hands-on background supporting film-related tools such as physical vapor deposition, chemical vapor deposition, atomic layer deposition, sputtering, evaporation, or similar deposition systems.
Demonstrated experience leading tool reliability, uptime improvement, and performance optimization initiatives.
Experience supporting tool installations, qualifications, upgrades, and process transfers in a production environment.
Strong understanding of how equipment performance impacts film quality, uniformity, yield, and overall module performance.
Strong technical leadership and ability to influence without direct authority.
High ownership mindset and accountability for equipment performance and module success.
Ability to engage confidently with engineers, technicians, management, and external partners.
Responsibilities
Serve as the module’s technical authority for thin-film equipment technologies, setting standards for performance, reliability, and continuous improvement, and serving as a subject matter expert and go-to resource for equipment-related technical leadership and guidance.
Act as the primary technical escalation point for tool owners and ensure timely, effective resolution of complex issues.
Partner with module tool owners to identify, prioritize, and deliver equipment improvements that enhance stability, capability, and productivity.
Provide technical review of program requirements to assess feasibility, robustness, and alignment with operational strategy.
Review and challenge tool owners’ capital expenditure proposals and peer-review continuous improvement plans to ensure strong technical justification and business value.
Champion and drive continuous improvement initiatives across the module to improve uptime, yield, and operational efficiency.
Collaborate with the Process Technical Lead on structured problem-solving, root cause analysis, and corrective actions.
Work with customers and stakeholders on project delivery, tool stability, and performance optimization initiatives.
Lead and support change management activities, including deviation change notices, engineering change notices, process change notices, process flows, process failure mode and effects analyses, and control plans, ensuring technical integrity and compliance.
Prepare and deliver clear, data-driven technical presentations to management and cross-functional stakeholders.
Provide coaching, mentoring, and technical development support to Tool Owners to foster capability growth within the team.
Define and align priorities for Engineers and Technicians, ensuring objectives are clear, measurable, and delivered effectively.
Collaborate across engineering functions to drive alignment, knowledge sharing, and adoption of best practices.
Contribute to objective setting and performance development for on-shift Equipment Engineers.
Desired Qualifications
Experience working in high-growth, fast-paced manufacturing environments is highly desirable.
The Equipment Technical Lead is responsible for providing technical leadership, ownership, and
continuous improvement of critical manufacturing equipment within a high-performance
production environment. This role ensures tool reliability, process stability, and equipment
readiness while driving improvements in uptime, safety, and performance. The position partners
closely with Process Engineering, Manufacturing, Facilities, and R&D teams to support production
scaling and new technology introduction.
Serve as the module’s technical authority for thin-film equipment technologies, setting standards for performance, reliability, and continuous improvement, while acting as a trusted subject matter expert and the recognised “go-to” resource for equipment-related technical leadership and guidance.
Act as the primary technical escalation point for tool owners, ensuring timely and effective resolution of complex issues.
Partner with module tool owners to identify, prioritise, and deliver equipment improvements that enhance stability, capability, and productivity.
Provide critical technical review of programme requirements, ensuring feasibility, robustness, and alignment with operational strategy.
Review and challenge tool owner CAPEX proposals and peer-review continuous improvement plans to ensure strong technical justification and business value.
Champion and drive continuous improvement initiatives across the module to improve uptime, yield, and operational efficiency.
Collaborate closely with the Process Technical Lead on structured problem-solving, root cause analysis, and corrective actions.
Work collaboratively with customers and stakeholders on project delivery, tool stability, and performance optimisation initiatives.
Lead and support change management activities, including DCNs, ECNs, PCNs, process flows, PFMEAs, and control plans, ensuring technical integrity and compliance.
Prepare and deliver clear, data-driven technical presentations to management and cross-functional stakeholders.
Provide coaching, mentoring, and technical development support to Tool Owners, fostering capability growth within the team.
Define and align priorities for Engineers and Technicians, ensuring objectives are clear, measurable, and delivered effectively.
Collaborate across engineering functions to drive alignment, knowledge sharing, and best-practice adoption.
Contribute to objective setting and performance development for on-shift Equipment Engineers.
7+ years experience in equipment engineering, maintenance leadership, or technical ownership within a thin-film manufacturing environment.
Strong hands-on background supporting film-related tools such as PVD, CVD, ALD, sputtering, evaporation, or similar deposition systems.
Demonstrated experience leading tool reliability, uptime improvement, and performance optimisation initiatives.