NPI Manager (Engineering, Design, Technical)

About the role

We are seeking an experienced NPI Manager to lead the design and technical delivery of new products for a growing manufacturing business in Cheshire. You will own the end‑to‑end New Product Introduction process, ensuring projects are delivered on time, within budget and to specification.

Key responsibilities

• Lead the design project portfolio through the NPI process from concept to production release.
• Plan, resource and sequence design work across multiple concurrent projects.
• Chair design reviews and ensure compliance with regulatory, manufacturability and quality standards.
• Maintain engineering data governance – CAD, drawing, BOM standards and PDM/PLM structures.
• Manage the engineering change process (ECR/ECN) with impact assessment and controlled documentation.
• Support purchasing with technical specifications and design assessments of sourced components.
• Oversee design‑to‑production handover applying DFMA principles.
• Ensure health & safety standards are met within the Design Office.
• Develop the design team’s capabilities, tools and processes.

Required profile

• Proven track record in industrial manufacturing.
• Strong engineering design background, qualified mechanical engineer.
• Excellent leadership and hands‑on management experience of an NPI design team.

Required skills

• CAD and drawing management.
• PDM/PLM data structure administration.
• Bill of Materials (BOM) creation and control.
• Engineering Change Request (ECR) and Engineering Change Notice (ECN) processes.
• Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DFMA) principles.
• Design verification and validation techniques.
• Prototype support and testing.

What we offer

• Competitive salary of £65,000‑£75,000 per year.
• Additional benefits package.
• Opportunity to shape a growing engineering team.