PCB Design Engineer

MERITUS Talent are working with a space start-up company for the recruitment of a Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Design Engineer to join the Berkshire offices on a full time permanent basis.

PCB Design Engineer - Permanent - Berkshire - On site - Salary up to £65,000 per annum DOE

Role:

You will design, lay out, prototype, and validate printed-circuit boards (PCBs) from concept through production, owning the entire board lifecycle and ensuring every design ships reliably and on time.

Responsibilities:

• Capture schematics and create multilayer PCB layouts that balance performance, manufacturability, cost, and reliability.
• Apply best-practice design rules for signal integrity, power integrity, high-speed digital, analog, and mixed-signal circuits.
• Select components based on electrical, mechanical, thermal, lifecycle, and cost considerations while maintaining high-quality CAD libraries.
• Perform stack-up, impedance, and basic signal-integrity analyses; run comprehensive DRC/DFM checks to achieve first-time-right designs.
• Generate manufacturing files (Gerbers/ODB++, pick-and-place, BOMs) with clear build notes, and document design decisions, test results, and revision history.
• Collaborate closely with electronics, firmware, mechanical, and manufacturing teams to define requirements, review designs, and integrate PCBs into complete products.
• Bonus: Oversee fabrication and assembly vendors, develop test plans, bring up prototypes, and debug issues using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and related lab equipment.

Fundamental Requirements

• Minimum 3 years of end-to-end PCB design and layout experience with production hardware in volume manufacturing.
• Expertise with at least one modern PCB CAD suite (e.g. Altium Designer) and familiarity with basic simulation tools for PI/SI analysis.
• Solid understanding of PCB stack-ups, controlled-impedance routing, differential pairs, power distribution, grounding, EMC/EMI mitigation, and DFM / DFA best practices.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, excellent organisational habits, and the initiative to drive designs from concept to production with minimal supervision.
• Bonus: Comfortable with soldering, rework, and laboratory instrumentation for board bring-up and failure analysis.

Benefits

• Pioneering Space Technology - You'll contribute to launching groundbreaking technology into space. Your work on our revolutionary air-breathing ion propulsion system will redefine satellite operations in ultra-low Earth orbits.
• Unmatched Ownership and Impact -You'll experience a level of ownership that's rare in the space industry. You will participate in the full lifecycle of satellite technology.
• Equity and Competitive Salary - You'll receive not just a competitive salary but also company ownership stakes. Your dedication and hard work are rewarded with a share in the technology you help build, ensuring you're a part of our collective success.
• Comprehensive Benefits Package -Including private health insurance with dental and optical coverage, annual healthcare check-ups etc.