Safety Assurance Manager
Based at either Bristol, Cheadle, Crawley or Templecombe – Hybrid Working
Our Underwater Systems team is a world leader in the development of ship-wide engineering systems. The systems developed by Thales are central to the success of world-renowned vessels including the Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers.
We develop a wide array of systems from Communications, Command Information and Systems Integration through to newly developed Autonomous Systems, Sonar Expertise and the latest in Data Connectivity.
We are expanding our portfolio, teams and technology and are recruiting for a Safety Assurance Manager to support the Safety Authority in the delivery and assurance of compliant products through the provision of expertise on all aspects of safety management and safety engineering.
Primary Responsibilities:
The Safety Assurance function provides independent assurance and oversight of the activities conducted by the safety delivery teams such that financial and managerial pressures do not distort the safety assessment of engineering and operational activities or the reporting and investigation of safety issues. Key responsibilities include:
To support the Technical Director/Safety Authority through:
Demonstrate strong and active leadership for product safety, setting high standards across all areasPlanning, coordinating and assuring delivery of safe products and solutionsIndependent verification and validation of safety artefacts (outputs from the safety engineering activities)Provision of guidance to Safety Managers, Product Safety Engineers and the wider engineering communityInvestigate Safety OccurrencesEscalation of Safety concerns where appropriateEnsuring compliance to approved safety management plansAttending Project Safety Committee MeetingsSupport the SA in development, implementation and continuous improvement of the Safety & Environmental Management Systems and ProcessesProvide the consistent application of Engineering Governance to Product Safety and Environmental Engineering for through-life designOperate and improve processes and capabilities required to effectively manage the Design Intent through-lifeTo ensure that Product Safety activities are undertaken in line with all relevant project and corporate processes and any specific customer requirementsSupport the development and delivery of Product Safety across the Business UnitSupport the Technical Director and SA in the development and fostering of a positive Safety Culture throughout the organisationWork with the Maritime Operations Assurance manager to ensure that product safety decisions are propagated through to the operations environmentEnsure that safety issues are communicated to the Technical Director/Safety Authority and relevant StakeholdersImmediately raise any concerns regarding the safety of a product, or the application of policies and processes with the Safety Authority.Skills & Experienced Required
We are looking for an Expert in the development, maintenance and continuous improvement of Safety Management Systems (i.e. Safety Policy, Safety Management Plans, and Safety Procedures) within regulated environments – defence experience not required but advantageous You will have significant knowledge of and experience in all phases of Life Cycle Management, so as to enable a good understanding of adjacent phases and through life engineering issues
Engineering degree or equivalent ideally a Chartered Professional EngineerClear and demonstrable technical and managerial leadership within a product safety assurance environment, with excellent people management skills and the ability to influence and challenge others.Experience in the investigation of Safety Occurrences, including use of formal techniques such as Root Cause AnalysisFamiliar with Product Environmental Legislation and Regulation including that for SustainabilityKnowledgeable with respect to Product Safety related Legislation, Regulation and industry standards and ACOPsExpert in the use of formal hazard identification and assessment techniques and methods e.g. HAZOPS (Hazard and Operability studies, SWIFT (Structured What-If Technique), Bow-Tie, GSN, FTA/ETA (Fault/Event Tree Analysis, FMEA (Failure Mode and Effect Analysis) etc.Experienced in the implementation and delivery of Product Engineering activities and the development and management of safety programmesAbility to work professionally and constructively within a team environment providing advice and consultancy across the organisation, including at Thales UK and Thales Business Line level safety forums.Security Clearance statement
Due to the nature of the work that we do at Thales, many of our roles are subject to security restrictions. This role requires you to be a sole British National from birth and achieve Security Clearance (SC) without any caveats. It would be advantageous if currently held, however, if not currently held, it is a requirement that the successful applicant undergo, achieve, and maintain SC Clearance prior to commencing employment. Please visit the UKSV website for further guidance- United Kingdom Security Vetting - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
To be eligible for full SC, you generally need to have resided in the UK for the last 5 years. In some circumstances, a minimum of 3 years’ residence in the UK over the last 5 years may be accepted, with additional overseas checks.
What we can offer
We are committed to giving you opportunities to be your best. We believe in embracing the passion and potential of our people, and to achieve this we offer market leading training, development and experiences, along with the opportunity to be mentored and coached by some of the smartest minds in the industry. We hire from within as our first priority, so you’ll have a myriad of opportunities within our diverse, global organisation.
Our packages will include significant bonus, car allowance, a strong pension contribute, private healthcare, development focused targets and relocation support can be provided if required along with a variety of learning, development and career enhancement opportunities. Further support can be provided towards academic and membership attainments.
Thales is an equal opportunities employer and diversity and inclusion are integral to the success of Thales.
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In line with Thales' Baseline Security requirements, candidates will be asked to provide evidence of identity, eligibility to work in the UK and employment and/or education history for up to three years. Some vacancies may require full Security Clearance which can require further evidence to be provided. For further details of the evidence required to apply for Baseline and Security Clearance please refer to the Defence Business Services National Security Vetting (DBS NSV) Agency.
At Thales we provide CAREERS and not only jobs. With Thales employing 80,000 employees in 68 countries our mobility policy enables thousands of employees each year to develop their careers at home and abroad, in their existing areas of expertise or by branching out into new fields. Together we believe that embracing flexibility is a smarter way of working.
Thales UK is committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free recruitment process. We will provide reasonable adjustments and support to ensure neuro-diverse applicants or those with a disability or long-term condition can be their best during the recruitment process. To request an adjustment, if you need this job advert in an alternative format or if you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Resourcing Ops for mid to senior roles, or the Early Careers Team for graduate and apprentice roles.
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