Reed
Mechanical Design Engineer | Robotics & Autonomous Systems
Location: Birmingham
Salary: up to £45K
Full time | Permanent
Design hardware that operates where failure isn’t an option
Are you a Mechanical Design Engineer working on drones, UAVs, robotics or advanced electromechanical products — and starting to feel boxed in by incremental upgrades or overly siloed roles?
This is an opportunity to take full ownership of real, mission-critical hardware, from concept through to manufacture, in a fast-moving engineering team building autonomous inspection systems for extreme environments.
What You’ll Be Working On
You’ll be designing field-deployable robotic hardware that must survive:
- Harsh weather and corrosive environments
- Confined, high-risk industrial spaces
- High consequence failure scenarios
Your role spans the entire product lifecycle:
- Concept design, prototyping and validation
- Detailed mechanical design and DFM-ready drawings
- BOM / CBOM ownership and engineering change control
- Close collaboration with electronics and software engineers
This is a hands-on, high-impact role — your designs won’t sit on a shelf.
This Role Is Ideal For Engineers With Experience In:
- Drones / UAVs / robotics / autonomous systems
- Lightweight structures and complex assemblies
- Electromechanical products with tight tolerances
- Designing for reliability, serviceability and manufacture
- Products that leave the lab and go into the real world
What You’ll Bring
- 2+ years’ experience in a mechanical engineering role
- Strong SolidWorks capability
- Proven mechanical design experience on physical products (portfolio required)
- Good DFM discipline and documentation practices
- Experience owning BOMs and engineering changes
- Enough electronics/software awareness to design intelligently alongside other disciplines
Nice To Have (Not Essential)
- Taking products from R&D into manufacture
- Experience with harsh environments (IP ratings, corrosion, impact)
- Background in aerospace, defence, energy or advanced robotics
- Cable management, tethered systems or deployable mechanisms
To apply for this job please visit www.reed.co.uk.
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