Senior Quality Engineer

Senior Quality Engineer
Aerospace Manufacturing | Office-Based | Cardiff
This is not a “sit back and maintain the QMS” type of role.
This Senior Quality Engineer position is for someone who understands that quality in aerospace is about protecting approvals, safeguarding airworthiness, and ensuring the business never drifts from compliance.
If you are a Quality Engineer who can see beyond audits and paperwork — and understand the commercial, regulatory and cultural impact of compliance — this could be the step up you’ve been looking for.
The Bigger Responsibility
As a Senior Quality Engineer, your core focus will be maintaining and strengthening regulatory approvals within a highly regulated aerospace manufacturing environment.
You will take ownership across key compliance areas including:
* Safety Management Systems (SMS) & Airworthiness
* Quality Management Systems (QMS – AS9100 aligned)
* Environmental Management Systems (EMS)
* Health & Safety leadership and safe-by-design culture
The priority is clear: ensure regulatory integrity remains robust, controlled and never at risk.
You will act as an independent voice within the business — representing regulatory expectations, customer requirements and compliance obligations at leadership level.
What You’ll Be Doing
As Senior Quality Engineer, you will:
* Oversee and strengthen compliance frameworks across the organisation
* Lead and support internal and external audits, including design organisation auditing
* Interpret regulatory updates and translate them into practical business actions
* Review and challenge risk, ensuring potential exposure is identified early
* Support capability studies, FAIRs, airworthiness documentation and structured root cause investigations
* Provide oversight to Quality Engineers, Quality Administration and configuration management functions
* Represent compliance within senior site leadership discussions
* Support customer and accreditation interactions with clarity and confidence
* Contribute to continuous improvement of systems, standards and internal governance
* Promote and lead a culture of safety, integrity and accountability
This Senior Quality Engineer role is about orchestration — aligning people, processes and regulatory expectations — not simply managing tasks.
The Type of Senior Quality Engineer Who Will Thrive
This role suits a Senior Quality Engineer who is naturally composed, thoughtful and confident in their own judgment. You don’t need a title to lead — you lead through clarity, consistency and credibility. You are comfortable asking difficult questions, challenging assumptions and holding the line when standards are at risk.
You understand that deviation happens in any business, but you approach it logically rather than emotionally. You want to understand why something happened before deciding how to correct it. You are risk-aware, detail-driven and independent enough to represent the regulator and the customer fairly — even when that means pushing back internally.
You are also someone who can step into senior conversations without hesitation. You don’t shrink in leadership settings, and you’re able to translate complex regulatory language into practical actions the business can follow.
Environment
You’ll be operating within a highly regulated aerospace manufacturing environment supplying global OEM and business aviation markets. The products are safety-critical and the expectations are high, which means the compliance culture must be strong, consistent and visible.
The role is primarily office-based but closely connected to operational teams, engineering and production. You’ll be part of a wider international group structure, with occasional travel including periodic visits to overseas sites. It’s an environment where governance matters, detail matters and reputation matters — and where the Senior Quality Engineer plays a central role in protecting all three.
Why This Senior Quality Engineer Role Stands Out
What makes this Senior Quality Engineer role different is the level of influence it carries. You are not simply maintaining a system — you are shaping how compliance is interpreted, embedded and lived within the organisation.
You will be involved in strategic discussions, influencing long-term direction and ensuring regulatory expectations are aligned with business objectives. It offers exposure beyond traditional quality engineering, while still remaining grounded in strong technical and regulatory foundations.
There is real scope here to grow into broader responsibility over time, supported by an experienced compliance leader and a structured environment. For a Senior Quality Engineer who wants to step into deeper compliance ownership without losing their engineering roots, this is a rare opportunity.
This Senior Quality Engineer role is not about maintaining the status quo.
It’s about ensuring the business remains compliant, resilient and respected — today and in the future.
If you’re a Quality Engineer ready to operate at a higher level — without losing your technical grounding — this could be your next move