Apprentice Research & Design Product Development Engineer

Summary

If you have a passion for design, problem solving and creating technical drawings, this is the apprenticeship for you. The Team provides original design solutions for harsh environment electrical connectors. You will be working with 2D/3D Computer Aided Design packages generating production drawings, product specifications and testing requirements.

Wage

£18,000 a year

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Training course

Engineering design technician (level 3)

Hours

Monday - Thursday 08:20 - 17:00 (1/2hr lunch), Friday - 08:00 - 13:00 (flexible working options available)

37 hours 30 minutes a week

Start date

Monday 25 August 2025

Duration

3 years 6 months

Positions available

1

Work

Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.

What you'll do at work

Main Responsibilities and Tasks:

The Product Development Engineering team provide original design solutions for harsh environment electrical connectors.

Main responsibilities include:

Provide design solutions to meet customer requirements
To be responsible for product development, and qualification from market definition through to production and release
Generate all required product documentation including, but not limited to, Solid Model, 2D/3D production drawings, product specifications and testing requirements
To ensure that new products are ‘designed for manufacture’, facilitating manufacturing optimisation or product quality improvements, working closely with other departments
Must be able to work with minimal supervision, manage time effectively and prioritise own workload
Carry out any other reasonable tasks as directed by the business from time to time

Where you'll work

4 Stanier Road
Hastings
St Leonards on Sea
TN38 9RP

Training

Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.

College or training organisation

SIGTA LIMITED

Your training course

Engineering design technician (level 3)

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What you'll learn

Course contents

Apply health and safety procedures and safe systems of work in compliance with regulations and standards.
Work in accordance with the design process, company management systems, policies and procedures.
Review and interpret technical information and requirements from different sources such as specifications, engineering drawings, concepts, stakeholders.
Identify and assess factors that affect designs such as materials, application, location, risk and environment.
Select materials and parts.
Propose and evaluate ideas for sustainable engineering concepts to solve engineering challenges.
Develop solutions that can be manufactured or built, and proven, operated and maintained during their operational life and decommissioned or recycled at the end of their operational life.
Provide feedback on engineering designs.
Apply quality assurance procedures to engineering drawings or models, including own designs and those of peers.
Communicate with others verbally for example, colleagues and stakeholders.
Produce written documents, schedules and reports.
Identify, organise and use resources to complete tasks with consideration for cost, quality, safety, security and environmental impact.
Identify inaccuracies or discrepancies in drawings and specifications and propose solutions.
Incorporate changes to an existing design as a result of any modifications made during the as-built implementation.
Create concepts for system layouts and associated components.
Read, interpret and establish design intent.
Determine the correct tolerances for components of the design.
Follow equality, diversity and inclusion procedures.
Perform simple calculations to use in design drawings.
Use measuring techniques for reverse engineering.
Option 1. Produce general arrangements of electrical power.
Option 1. Produce detailed drawings of electrical power components such as wires connection, voltage, capacity, main switches.
Option 1. Identify cable types and application.
Option 1. Use digital tools such as CAD and BIM to produce electrical power project deliverables such as output drawings and electrical designs.
Option 2. Produce general arrangements of control and instrumentation designs.
Option 2. Produce detailed drawings of control and instrumentation components such as cable numbers, wire colours, junction block numbers and panel identification.
Option 2. Identify different cable types and appropriate application.
Option 2. Use digital tools such as CAD to produce control and instrumentation project deliverables.
Option 3. Produce general arrangements of mechanical designs.
Option 3. Produce detailed drawings of mechanical components such as part dimensions, shape and manufacture.
Option 3. Use digital tools such as CAD to produce mechanical project deliverables.
Option 4. Produce general arrangements of piping design.
Option 4. Produce detailed drawings of piping components such as pipework, ducts and fittings and including supports and skids.
Option 4. Use digital tools such as CAD or Plant Design Management Systems to produce piping design project deliverables.
Option 5. Produce general arrangements of structures showing multiple materials such as steel, concrete, masonry, timber.
Option 5. Produce detailed drawings for multiple materials such as steel, concrete, timber or masonry.
Option 5. Use digital tools such as CAD and BIM to produce structural project deliverables.
Apply health and safety procedures and safe systems of work in compliance with regulations and standards.
Work in accordance with the design process, company management systems, policies and procedures.
Review and interpret technical information and requirements from different sources such as specifications, engineering drawings, concepts, stakeholders.
Identify and assess factors that affect designs such as materials, application, location, risk and environment.
Select materials and parts.
Propose and evaluate ideas for sustainable engineering concepts to solve engineering challenges.
Develop solutions that can be manufactured or built, and proven, operated and maintained during their operational life and decommissioned or recycled at the end of their operational life.
Provide feedback on engineering designs.
Apply quality assurance procedures to engineering drawings or models, including own designs and those of peers.
Communicate with others verbally for example, colleagues and stakeholders.
Produce written documents, schedules and reports.
Identify, organise and use resources to complete tasks with consideration for cost, quality, safety, security and environmental impact.
Identify inaccuracies or discrepancies in drawings and specifications and propose solutions.
Incorporate changes to an existing design as a result of any modifications made during the as-built implementation.
Create concepts for system layouts and associated components.
Read, interpret and establish design intent.
Determine the correct tolerances for components of the design.
Follow equality, diversity and inclusion procedures.
Perform simple calculations to use in design drawings.
Use measuring techniques for reverse engineering.

Your training plan

Engineering Design Technician Level 3.

Requirements

Essential qualifications

GCSE in:

English (grade 4/5 C or above)
Maths (grade 5)

Let the company know about other relevant qualifications and industry experience you have. They can adjust the apprenticeship to reflect what you already know.

Skills

Communication skills
Attention to detail
Problem solving skills
Number skills
Analytical skills
Logical
Team working
Creative
Committed
Motivated

Other requirements

As with all apprenticeships, this requires a long-term commitment – there will be assignments and logbook entries to complete. This is a fantastic opportunity to work with a top company, whilst you work towards nationally recognised qualifications.

About this company

Solutions that power electric vehicles, aircraft, digital factories, and smart homes. Innovation that enables life-saving medical care, sustainable communities, efficient utility networks, and the global communications infrastructure. For more than 75 years, we have partnered with customers to produce highly engineered connectivity and sensing products that make a connected world possible. Our focus on reliability and durability, our commitment to progress, and the unmatched range of our product portfolio enables companies large and small to turn ideas into technology that can transform how the world works and lives tomorrow.

Company benefits

Holidays - 25 days per calendar year Bonus plan - 4% of base salary (GIP) (Non contractual) Access to an Employee Assistance Programme, Peppy Health, Charles Cameron (Mortgage Advice) and Benefits Link (Smart Spend)

After this apprenticeship

To become a fully trained and qualified Research & Design Product Development Engineer.

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