R&D Technician - School of Engineering Grade 6

Job Description Position Details

School of Engineering

Location:

University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK
Full time starting salary is normally in the range £33,002 to £35,608 with potential progression once in post to £39,906
Grade: 6
Full Time, Permanent
Closing date: 20 th September 2026

The University of Birmingham is a global institution working within a diverse and vibrant City, offering an inspiring education to our students, and undertaking critically important research. We are a place of open, critical thinking, and the creation, sharing and dissemination of knowledge. Professional Services put students at the heart of all they do and enable an exceptional educational experience. They provide outstanding support to our researchers and help the University to grow its influence regionally, nationally, and globally.

They ensure the University’s resources are used wisely, manage and improve the infrastructure which sits at the heart of the institution, and support decisions to be made quickly and based on sound evidence. Our Birmingham Professional programme operates across the University, supporting colleagues to network and collaborate, offering opportunities to learn and develop, contributing to the delivery of the University’s objectives, and helping everyone to understand the broader context within which we work.

A full-time technician position is available at the School of Engineering of the University of Birmingham. The selected candidate supports electronic development, in particular, the radio frequency area, design and development of research projects and the design, development, manufacture and use of complex electronic equipment (from first principles) to enable such projects to be carried out successfully by academic and research staff and research students.

The post holder will ensure the research space is maintained in great condition, lead the health and safety aspects, and contribute to research impact, research culture, and research excellence, by taking initiatives in various activities.
Assistance to Technical Manager for Operations in duties across the School
Assistance to undergraduate students during final year projects.

• Supports the function of electronic and electrical development
• Maintain the lab to required specification including managing specialised equipment, advising correct procedures, and promoting good practices.
• Act as the health and safety lead for the research area in particular.
• Contribute to research excellence, including mechanical design and manufacturing of testing rigs and components for cutting-edge experiments, and carry out experiments with group members or internal/external collaborators testing with professional reports.
• Contribute to research, including organising public engagement, hosting visitors, maintaining positive relationships with collaborators or fostering new collaborations, etc.
• Contribute to positive research culture, including taking the initiative to organise group and lab activities.
• Supports the School by providing specialist skills to an area of research.
• Engages with the research group and collaborates with academics to support the realisation of experimental proposals.
• Represents Technical Services at research group and other academic meetings.
• Applies specialist skills and knowledge to support academics in the technical specification, design, and implementation of experimental solutions.
• Regularly reports to the Technical Services Management Team, advising on challenges, progress, and achievements.
• Retains supervisory and functional oversight of a specialist research space.
• Supervises the implementation of administrative management systems in the research space, monitoring access, training registers, and usage of the research space and equipment, and coordinating activities.
• Holds and in-depth knowledge of the research space and equipment, responding to queries, advising on use, and addressing issues, elevating as required.
• Maintains a research space asset register and supports academics in specification and procurement and leads in the installation, commissioning, and disposal of equipment.
• Leads…