Product Assurance Engineer

MERITUS are recruiting for Product Assurance Engineer to join our client in Bristol or Stevenage on an initial 12 month contract to work within the Defence industry. PLEASE NOTE - This is a Hybrid role with 1 day a week expected on site in Bristol.

PRODUCT ASSURANCE ENGINEER - INSIDE IR35 - £40-£50 PER HOUR - 12 MONTHS - BRISTOL - HYBRID - SINGLE STAGE INTERVIEW PROCESS

Key Responsibilities:

• 1. Leadership in Bid Work & Quality Planning (QP)
  • Lead quality assurance input into bid and proposal work, ensuring product assurance requirements are considered from the outset.
  • Develop and maintain Quality Plans (QP)aligned withAQAP 2105, tailoring them to the needs of each R&D project.
  • Work closely with engineering, programme management, and commercial teams to define achievable quality objectives and constraints during bidding.
  • Ensure that quality, compliance, and risk management strategies are embedded in the bid phase to mitigate potential project risks early.
  2. Risk-Based Product Assurance & Decision-Making
  • Champion a risk-based approach to product assurance, supporting R&D teams in making informed decisions about acceptable risks.
  • Facilitate risk identification workshops, employing methodologies such asFMEA, DFMEA.
  • Guide engineering teams in makingtrade-off decisions between innovation, compliance, and acceptable risk levels.
  • Ensure that risk management activities are properly documented and aligned with contractual and regulatory expectations.
  3. Design & Development Assurance
  • Ensure compliance with AQAP 2105, leading quality and assurance activities throughout the R&D lifecycle.
  • Conduct Design Assurance Reviews, ensuring requirements verification and validation against defence standards.
  • Drive independent quality assessments to challenge and validate design assumptions, safety margins, and performance criteria.
  • Support the definition and execution of verification and validation (V&V) plans, ensuring product reliability and functional integrity.
  4. Cross-Functional Engagement & Governance
  • Act as the primary quality interface between R&D, programme management, safety, regulatory compliance, and customers.
  • Provide independent assurance to senior stakeholders, ensuring that product development aligns with quality and risk expectations.
  • Ensurerobust configuration and change management processes to maintain product integrity and traceability throughout development.
  • Prepare and present product assurance reports, risk registers, and compliance evidence to internal stakeholders.
  5. Supplier & Customer Assurance
  • Engage with suppliers and subcontractors to ensure their deliverables align with the Quality Plan (QP) and risk expectations.
  • Support customer audits, contract reviews, and regulatory assessments, ensuring product assurance compliance.
  • Drive continuous improvement initiatives, enhancing risk management, assurance processes, and collaboration across teams.

Technical & Domain Expertise

• Defence Standards & Compliance - Strong understanding of AQAP 2105, DEF STANs, AS9100D, and other defence/quality assurance regulations.
• Product Assurance & Quality Planning (QP) - Experience developing and implementing Quality Plans (QP), ensuring alignment with contract requirements.
• Risk Management & Analysis - Expertise in risk assessment methodologies (e.g., FMEA, DFMEA) to drive informed decision-making.
• Verification & Validation (V&V) - Knowledge of test planning, qualification activities, and validation processes for defence-related R&D projects.
• Configuration & Change Management - Understanding of requirements traceability, configuration control, and impact assessment in complex R&D environments.

Leadership & Decision-Making

• Bid & Proposal Engagement - Ability to define quality assurance strategies during bid work, influencing teams to balance innovation, compliance, and risk.
• Risk-Based Decision Making - Ability to guide engineering teams in making trade-offs between acceptable risks, technical feasibility, and compliance.
• Stakeholder Management - Strong skills in influencing senior leadership, engineers, programme managers, and regulatory bodies.
• Supplier & Customer Assurance - Ability to assess supplier quality, review technical documentation, and represent product assurance in customer engagements.

Problem-Solving & Continuous Improvement

• Root Cause Analysis (RCA) & CAPA - Strong analytical skills to drive problem investigations and corrective/preventive actions (CAPA).
• Process Improvement - Ability to implement lessons learned and best practices in product assurance, ensuring ongoing improvement.
• Adaptability & Critical Thinking - Comfortable navigating uncertainty in R&D, making evidence-based recommendations to reduce risk.