Full job description 5627
Technical & Product Manager | Fire & Acoustic-Rated Doorsets
South of England


Run the technical engine of a market-leading fire-door manufacturer, and build a team that never depends on one person.
Our client is a leading UK manufacturer of bespoke fire- and acoustic-rated timber doorsets and other timber products. With revenue of over £40m and a plan for continued double-digit growth in revenue and profit, it is at an exciting stage of its evolution, and it sees its people as the heart of its success.
Reporting to the Technical & Product Director, you’ll turn technical strategy into day-to-day reality. You’ll run the governance system, deliver the product-level work of the BS-to-EN transition and lead a team of ten through real change, with them rather than to them.


AT A GLANCE
*Reports to: Technical & Product Director
*Team: 10, across technicians, the drawing team and field service engineers
*Location: On site, South of England


YOUR MISSION
Run the technical governance system day to day, so that every product, document and technical decision is accurate, controlled, traceable and audit-ready at all times. Working to the strategy and standards set by the Technical & Product Director, you’ll build and operate the core processes, which are document control, change control and internal audit. You’ll give Commercial, Production and customers fast, reliable technical support, and build the team’s product and certification knowledge into systems and people, not any one individual.


WHAT YOU’LL RUN
*Document control: implement and run it across all technical documentation, including specifications, drawings, guidance and technical files, so everything is current, controlled and traceable.
*Change control: operate product and process change control, assessing every change against evidence, certification and manufacturability.
*Audit-ready, always: run the internal technical audit programme across all active products, keep technical files and certification evidence audit-ready, and coordinate certification audits and test programmes.
*BS-to-EN transition: deliver the product-level workstreams to the programme plan.
*Technical enquiries: run the enquiry service for Commercial, Production and customers, including gateway and regulator-driven requests, to agreed response times, applying approved evidence to every decision.
*Supplier assurance: own supplier technical compliance, component compatibility and evidence requirements.
*Technical risk: maintain the technical risk register, and escalate risks and incidents with root-cause analysis.
*Regulation: monitor regulatory developments and brief the Technical & Product Director.


WHAT YOU’LL LEAD
*Your team: lead ten people day to day across delivery, product engineering, testing and certification. Set clear objectives, balance workload, hold regular one-to-ones, agree development plans and recognise good work.
*Change, done well: introduce new systems and processes with the team, not to it. Involve people in designing document control, change control and audit, and pace change so the team can absorb it.
*Knowledge that lasts: capture product and certification know-how in controlled documents and training, crediting and involving the people who hold it. Cross-train so that critical knowledge is held by more than one person.
*Keeping your people: know what each person needs in order to stay, and act early on any risk of losing them.


HOW THE ROLE FITS WITH THE DIRECTOR
The Technical & Product Director sets strategy and standards, holds final technical authority and owns external relationships. You run, maintain and improve the governance system day to day. You decide within approved evidence and delegated limits, and recommend or escalate everything else.
*Document control and audit: the Director sets the standard; you implement and run the system and the audit cycle.
*Change control: the Director approves significant changes; you run the process and approve minor ones.
*Certification and testing: the Director owns the programme, budget and certification-body relationships; you maintain technical files and coordinate tests and audits.
*BS-to-EN and evidence: the Director leads the programme and designs the evidence system; you deliver the product-level workstreams and run the enquiry service.
*Risk: the Director reports technical risk to the leadership team and board; you maintain the register and escalate.
*Suppliers: the Director sets the requirements; you own supplier compliance and component evidence.
*Regulation: the Director interprets regulation and represents the business externally; you monitor developments and brief.
*Team: the Director sets the structure; you line-manage, develop and keep the team, and agree retention and succession plans together.


WHAT YOU’LL BRING
*Strong experience in technical governance, product stewardship or technical leadership in a production environment.
*A background in fire doors or other regulated construction products, with working knowledge of fire door testing and certification, technical files and certification-body requirements.
*Hands-on experience of implementing and running document control or a quality management system, such as ISO 9001.
*A good understanding of product liability, compliance risk, change control and technical documentation.
*Experience of managing multi-disciplinary technical teams, and of coaching and developing people, including people new to formal systems and processes.
*A track record of leading an existing team through significant change in systems and processes, while keeping the team intact.
*A degree or equivalent experience in Mechanical Engineering, Product Design Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering or a related discipline.
*Desirable: supplier technical assurance or component validation experience.








THE PACKAGE
*Competitive basic salary
*Health cash plan, including an employee assistance programme
*Pension and life cover
*25 days’ holiday
*EV car scheme
*Based on site in the South of England