Lead Systems Architect

Location: Glasgow, United Kingdom

Thales people architect solutions that are relied upon to deliver operational advantage at every decisive moment throughout the mission. Defence and armed forces customers rely on us to deliver the full range of defensive systems for land, sea, and air. From early warning, to threat neutralisation, our platforms cover all levels from very short-range systems, to extended protection across the entire battle-space including Airspace Mobility Solutions, Vehicles and Tactical Systems and Missile Defence, Optronics, and Radar.

Together we offer fantastic opportunities for committed employees to learn and develop their career with us. At Thales UK, we research, develop, and supply technology and services that impact the lives of millions of people each day to make life better, and keep us safer. We innovate across five major industries; Aerospace, Defence, Ground Transportation, Security and Space. Your health and well-being matters to us and that’s why we offer you the flexibility to do what’s important to you; whether that’s part time hours, job sharing, home working, or the ability to flex your start and finish times. Where possible, we support a working pattern that suits your lifestyle and helps you reach your ambitions.

An opportunity has arisen for an experienced Systems Architect with significant vehicle expertise to deliver the role of Vehicle Systems Architect in support of our Vehicle Optronics and Sensors Group.

The role is based in Glasgow, but may be required to work at other Thales locations. Depending on the specific projects the role may require periods of time to be spent at Customer sites and/or integration facilities.

Primary Purpose of the Role:

The successful candidate will be a talented Systems Architect with experience of conceptual and detailed design, Integration and delivery, coupled with a proven capability of delivering mission system programmes.

Key Responsibilities and Tasks:

The successful candidate will be responsible for defining and recommending candidate architectures for the corresponding level (solution or solution element) to satisfy stakeholder expectations according to the standards and re-use policies, the technology roadmap and the business strategy. The candidate will be responsible for establishing the solution architecture by making trade-offs between stakeholder expectations, technical and technological solutions and costs, risks and schedule, document the associated artefacts and approve the resulting lower-level specifications (internal or external).

You will be responsible for planning work, using systems thinking to analyse problems, managing, writing and verifying technical requirements, producing technical reports and specifications, performing systems analyses, meeting milestones and working as part of a multi-disciplinary team to deliver successful programmes.

Typical Tasks include:

• Applying a systems thinking approach to architecture design for the lifecycle of the product. Ideally using methods similar to those recommended by INCOSE.
• Deriving and modelling the solution architecture using ARCADIA Architectural Framework, ideally using Model Based System Engineering approaches.
• Identifying methods to test and validate the architecture.
• Detailing the design and documenting design decisions and rationale.
• Developing the system design in accordance with the system architecture and requirements.
• Perform system modelling using system engineering tools.
• Manage technical requirements flow-down and implementation from customer to sub-systems.
• Support development and performing of system verification methods to demonstrate compliance with the customer’s needs.
• Working within the scope of the Company’s Processes and the System Engineering Management Plan.
• Working within the engineering team to accomplish engineering activities to time, budget and quality.
• Contributing to and writing Engineering Plans, Technical Specifications, interface Documents, Test Plans and Technical Reports.
• Ensuring that design certification for contract requirements and appropriate legislation, including product safety, is performed correctly.
• Supporting engineering reviews and prepare associated technical documentation.

Skills

• An understanding of the fundamentals of Systems Engineering methodologies around Design, Verification, Validation, Qualification and Acceptance.
• Experience deriving system capabilities, functionalities and behaviours, ideally using Model Based Systems Engineering & SysML approaches.
• Understanding of the different actors involved in projects with the ability to contextualise and change the perspective (political, economic, social, technical, environmental, legal...).
• Self-motivated and capable of working alone & with teams.
• Proven experience in product design in an engineering or research environment.
• Must have good communication skills.
• Experience producing documentation with clarity and precision.
• Be prepared to challenge other’s views and willing to accept constructive feedback.
• IBM DOORS or an equivalent requirements management tool.
• Enterprise Architect / Capella / Rhapsody or similar MBSE tool.
• MATLAB or an equivalent simulation/modelling tool (Desirable).
• Knowledge of analogue and digital circuit design (Desirable).
• Expertise in Lan Systems and Armoured Fighting Vehicle domains (Desirable).
• Knowledge and experience of open vehicle architectures (Desirable).