OPERATIONAL QUALITY ASSURANCE ENGINEER
- QA Engineer | Aerospace | Spacecraft Production | Inspection
- Initial 6-Month Contract (Likely Extension)
- £32 per hour (via Umbrella)
- On-site – Stevenage
- BPSS Clearance Required
- Potential Shift / On-Call Work
ABOUT THE CLIENT
Our client operates within the space and defence sector, delivering highly specialised spacecraft manufacturing and engineering programmes. Their Quality Assurance team plays a critical role in ensuring customer requirements are met across manufacturing, assembly, integration, and testing, maintaining the highest standards in a complex and safety-critical environment.
THE QA ENGINEER ROLE
As an Operational QA Engineer, you will be fully responsible for managing quality across spacecraft production work areas, ensuring compliance with strict standards and driving a strong quality-first culture. You will play a key role in inspection, non-conformance management, and continuous improvement, working closely with engineering and production teams to maintain product integrity and performance.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
- Perform critical inspections and witness key production operations
- Lead the prevention and management of non-conformances
- Drive cost of non-quality reduction initiatives
- Conduct quality surveillance across production areas
- Manage and track open actions and build reconciliations
- Support root cause analysis (PPS) and internal review boards (IRB)
- Review and improve quality processes, documentation, and procedures
- Carry out process audits where required
- Review production work instructions and ensure technical integrity
- Collaborate with manufacturing teams to resolve quality issues
ESSENTIAL SKILLS
- Recognised engineering apprenticeship and/or relevant qualification
- Minimum 3 years’ experience in Production, Quality, or Engineering within Aerospace or Defence
- Strong understanding of Quality Assurance / Product Assurance principles
- Solid hardware inspection experience
- Excellent communication skills – able to influence and drive quality improvements
- Strong teamwork and stakeholder engagement skills
- Willingness to work shifts, on-call, or off-site when required
DESIRABLE EXPERIENCE
- Knowledge of space quality standards
- Lean / Continuous Improvement qualifications
- ESA experience or qualifications
- Experience with 3D drawings (Catia, 3DX)
- Knowledge of composites / carbon materials
TO BE CONSIDERED
Please either apply via this advert or email your CV directly to ryan.baker@searchability.com. For further information, please call 07719 051875. By applying for this role, you give express consent for us to process and submit (subject to required skills) your application to our client in conjunction with this vacancy only.