Head of Research & Technology
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Entity
Safran is an international high-technology group, operating in the aviation (propulsion, equipment and interiors), defence and space markets. Its core purpose is to contribute to a safer, more sustainable world, where air transport is more environmentally friendly, comfortable and accessible. Safran has a global presence, with 92,000 employees and sales of 23.2 billion euros in 2023, and holds, alone or in partnership, world or regional leadership positions in its core markets. Safran undertakes research and development programs to maintain the environmental priorities of its R&T and innovation roadmap.
Safran is in the 1st place in the aerospace and defence industry in TIME magazine's "World's best companies 2023" ranking.
With over one million seats equipping the fleets of the major airlines, Safran Seats is one of the world's leading suppliers of seating for passengers, crews and helicopters thanks to innovative and high added-value solutions.
Reference
2024-147464
Position description
Domain
Research, design and development
Job field / Job profile
Passenger and crew experience - Passenger and crew experience
Job title
Head of Research & Technology
Employment type
Permanent
Professional category
Professional, Engineer & Manager
Part time / Full time
Full-time
Number of hours per week
37.5
Job description
Are you interested in working at the business end of Aerospace, where airline brand meets innovative passenger experience? Then your next opportunity could be with Safran Seats, an industry award winning, premium designer and manufacturer of First and Business Class seating and technology. Our passenger experience prides itself on innovation, customization, quality and industrial design.
At Safran Seats, we are unique within aerospace, as we interface with both the world's biggest airlines and airframers alike, with the largest seats portfolio of all seats suppliers. One day you could be liaising with one of the world's largest airframers, and the next, some of the biggest airline brands around the world!
In the UK, Safran Seats specialises solely in the First Class and Business Class seating markets for wide body aircraft, with industrial and engineering teams in Cwmbran and Newport, Wales and Brackley, England.
The purpose of the role is to lead the local R&T function to develop and support the R&T effort steered from the Safran Seats R&T roadmap;
Develop the public R&T funding granted by his geographic area public authorities and support the contacts with
local Government institutions; Foster participative innovation within Safran Seats France/GB/USA.
Key responsibilities:
• Be accountable for the responsibilities of the R&T thematic global leads which are in his team.
• Support his team in the execution of the R&T projects they are entrusted with:
- Assist all R&T thematic global leads in their missions locally
- Provide adequate resources from his team or assist the allocation of resources from other
functions (esp. Engineering), or from third parties to execute the agreed scope of work while
meeting the agreed budget of the said project
• Be responsible for the execution efficiency of the projects executed by the core R&T team he manages
• Manage his local core team, in particular:
- Assess their performance objectives in coordination with the relevant R&T thematic global
leads
- Provide coaching and tutoring and be responsible for the competencies and professional
development of its members.
• Strategic planning of engineering research projects in line with Technology Roadmaps.
• Act as the Primary Point of Contact for global R&T initiatives.
• Generate external financial support to maintain long term research activity.
• Seek to create research partnerships with Universities and Technology based enterprises.
• Support the creation of RFQ data to support innovative product development and the release of data to
support technology implementation at project launch.
• Promote Engineering capabilities through publications in International journals.
• Attend conferences and exhibitions to collect and assess technical information.
• Liaise with business functions to support research activities.
• Disciplined - Following methods and decisions diligently in order to improve performance.
Travel specifictity
Occasional travel will be required nationally and internationally.
Additional description
Our in-house design studio co-creates the most innovative experiences in the sky with our airline customers and partners. Our dedicated engineering, production and in-service support facilities are integral to delivering a high-end quality product that we keep flying throughout the life of programme. We are fully supported by a wide team of support functions, from HR to Finance, to Business Development and Planning and Logistics, our team is built to give Safran Seats an end-to-end capability in house in the UK.
We focus on:
Our people
These are our four People Fundamentals that underpin everything we do at Safran:
• We believe in and fostering the conditions for diversity and inclusion to thrive
• We develop our colleagues skills and build opportunities so you can shape our future
• We create a trustworthy work place to support you, as you dare to act and innovate
• We encourage collaboration and mutual support between you and your colleagues
So you'll be supported every step of the way!
Sustainability
Our people are at the heart of our success, as we work together to achieve our mission: contributing to a safer and more sustainable aviation. We are tackling the biggest challenges in aerospace, with a commitment to work to decarbonise the industry by 2050.
Global Mobility
As part of the Safran Group, across our businesses we are market leaders in aerospace, defence and space; there is always potential for future mobility in the UK and internationally.
Candidate skills & requirements
Have strong knowledge in System, Electronics
Architecture, Electronics Boxes and Software. They
will be exposed in Strategy to feed the Future and
speed-up the Integration of Innovations
Essential
Knowledge in Materials such as composite, plastics
and metal is desirable with the approach to adapting
and learning new technologies Essential
Have strong management and organisational skills,
with budgetary experience Essential
Be qualified to Honours Degree or equivalent level in
an engineering or scientific field. Essential
No candidate will meet every single desired qualification. If your experience looks a little different from what we've identified and you think you can bring value to the role, we'd love to hear from you!
Our employees are at the heart of our success, as we work together for our sustainable future. There are four People Fundamentals that underpin life at Safran:
• We believe in and promote diversity and inclusion as key values across our business
• We develop our colleagues skills and build opportunities so you can shape our future
• We create a trustworthy work place to support you, as you dare to act and innovate
• We encourage collaboration and mutual support for you and your colleagues
As a valued member of our team, these are just a few of the benefits you'll receive:
• 25 days holiday + UK Bank Holidays
• Benefits Programme, with a number of schemes such as cycle to work, technology savings, retail discounts
• Career Progressions opportunities such as company sponsorship and further training courses
• Family friendly policies including maternity, paternity, adoptive parents, shared parental leave, parental leave and flexible working
• Equality & Diversity initiatives with internal groups for workplace engagement and involvement
• STEM engagement with schools, colleges and universities and Charitable activities for all
Position location
Job location
Europe, UK, Wales
City (-ies)
Llantarnam Industrial Park, Llantarnam NP44 3HQ Cwmbran