Ferguson Marine (Port Glasgow) Limited
Principal Electrical Engineer
Port Glasgow
Posted about 13 hours ago
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Principal Electrical Engineer
The Principal Electrical Engineer acts as the shipyard technical authority and discipline lead for electrical, automation, control, navigation/communication and integration-related systems across assigned vessel projects.
The role is accountable for ensuring that electrical design outputs, including those produced by external design houses and equipment vendors, are compliant, safe, buildable, cost-controlled and aligned with customer, Class, Flag and shipyard production requirements.
The role provides senior leadership across design, production, procurement, testing, commissioning, harbour trials, sea trials and handover, ensuring that electrical systems are fully integrated with mechanical, piping, outfit, HVAC, structural and safety disciplines.
Key Responsibilities:
- Act as the shipyard technical authority for electrical, automation, control, navigation, communication, alarm, monitoring and integrated platform systems across assigned projects and programmes.
- Own electrical engineering strategy, discipline standards, resource planning, technical governance and performance for the shipyard electrical engineering function.
- Review, challenge and approve outsourced electrical design outputs for compliance, safety, buildability, maintainability, material availability and fitness for shipyard production.
- Lead electrical input into design gate reviews, design maturity reviews, constructability reviews and production readiness reviews before release to build.
- Ensure compliance with applicable Classification Society rules, Flag State requirements, SOLAS, IMO requirements, IEC/marine electrical standards, customer specifications and shipyard QA procedures.
- Act as the primary technical interface with Class, Flag, client representatives, design houses and major vendors for electrical and automation matters.
- Lead review of single line diagrams, load balance, short-circuit/coordination studies, cable schedules, cable routing, penetration/MCT arrangements, electrical equipment layouts, schematics, termination details and interface control documents.
- Ensure electrical integration with mechanical, piping, HVAC, safety, outfit, structural and production disciplines, including space reservation, access, maintainability and installation sequence.
- Provide senior support to production during cable pulling, termination, equipment installation, setting-to-work, fault finding and commissioning, resolving technical queries, non-conformances and design clarifications.
- Control electrical technical risk during build, including late design change, vendor information delay, equipment substitution, cable route congestion, EMC/earthing risk, heat load, access/maintenance restrictions and safety-critical system interfaces.
- Assess and approve the electrical impact of design changes, concessions, deviations and production modifications, including cost, schedule, safety, Class/Flag and commissioning impact.
- Support procurement with technical specifications, vendor document review, bid evaluation, long-lead equipment identification, FAT requirements and technical acceptance of major electrical equipment.
- Define and support FAT, HAT, SAT, harbour trial and sea trial requirements for electrical, automation and safety-critical systems.
- Ensure test packs, inspection records, commissioning procedures, punch lists, as-built drawings and handover documentation are complete, controlled and acceptable to the client, Class and Flag as applicable.
- Capture lessons learned from production, commissioning and vessel delivery and feed them back into design standards and future project planning to reduce rework.
- Manage electrical engineering budgets, manhour planning, workload priorities, technical deliverables, engineering KPIs and resource utilisation.
- Lead recruitment, mentoring, competence development and performance management of the shipyard electrical engineering team.
- Maintain a capable electrical engineering function aligned with project demands, safety expectations, delivery milestones and shipyard priorities.
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Required Qualifications & Experience:
- Degree, HND or HNC in Electrical Engineering, Marine Electrical Engineering, Marine Engineering (Electrical) or a related discipline.
- Significant senior-level experience in a shipyard, marine new-build, vessel retrofit, offshore, naval, ferry, commercial vessel or complex industrial build environment.
- Strong practical understanding of marine electrical systems, including generation, main and emergency distribution, switchboards, transformers, UPS, batteries, shore supply, propulsion drives, motors, automation, PMS, alarm/monitoring, navigation/communication and safety-critical systems.
- Proven experience supporting vessel build, electrical installation, integration, testing, commissioning, harbour trials, sea trials and delivery.
- Working knowledge of marine regulatory frameworks, including Classification Society rules, Flag State requirements, SOLAS, IMO and relevant IEC/marine electrical standards.
- Ability to review and interpret electrical schematics, single line diagrams, load studies, cable schedules, termination drawings, equipment layouts, system diagrams, specifications and vendor documentation.
- Experience managing outsourced design houses, vendor deliverables, technical queries, design reviews and Class/Flag comments through to close-out.
- Experience leading engineering teams, setting priorities, managing technical resources and supporting production under live shipyard delivery pressure.
- Strong communication, leadership, stakeholder-management, commercial awareness and decision-making skills.
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Desirable Skills:
- Chartered Engineer status or active progression toward professional registration.
- Experience with Lloyds Register, DNV, ABS, BV or equivalent Class approval processes and surveyor engagement during build.
- Experience with ferries, passenger vessels, naval/support vessels, offshore vessels, LNG/methanol-ready vessels or hybrid/electric propulsion systems.
- Experience using or reviewing outputs from AVEVA Marine, Ship Constructor, AutoCAD Electrical, EPLAN or other ship design / electrical CAD tools.
- Exposure to procurement support, vendor technical bid evaluation, equipment FAT, SAT and commissioning acceptance.
- Knowledge of hazardous areas, battery systems, shore charging, alternative fuel interfaces, integrated automation systems, cybersecurity for control systems or condition monitoring would be beneficial.
- Ability to build discipline procedures, checklists, design review templates and lessons-learned processes for a growing shipyard engineering function.
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Skills
Electrical Engineering
Marine Automation
Technical Governance
Shipyard Production
Regulatory Compliance
System Integration
Project Management
Vendor Management
Commissioning
Sea Trials
Resource Planning
Stakeholder Management
Technical Risk Control
Budget Management
Mentoring
Design Review