Job Description:

Principal Fire Engineer – Healthcare - Fully Remote

Location: Fully remote – anywhere in the UK
Salary: Up to £100,000
Bonus: Up to 20%
Employment type: Permanent, full-time
Working arrangement: Home based with travel to client sites

An experienced Principal Fire Engineer is required to lead the technical delivery of complex fire engineering projects across the UK.

This is a fully remote, home based position that can be based anywhere in the country. The role will involve national travel to client sites when required.

The workload is primarily within healthcare, hospitals and complex operational estates, alongside selected high rise residential projects. Applicants must therefore possess strong knowledge of Healthcare Technical Memoranda, particularly the HTM 05 fire safety guidance, and be comfortable applying fire engineering principles within live, occupied and highly regulated buildings.

This is a technical building fire engineering position combining fire strategy development, design review, site inspection, construction stage assurance and client advice. The successful Principal Fire Engineer must be confident attending sites, inspecting completed and ongoing works, identifying non compliant installations and challenging contractors where work does not meet the fire strategy, specification, relevant standards or regulatory requirements.

The position would suit an established Principal Fire Engineer or an experienced Senior Fire Engineer ready to assume greater technical leadership, project ownership and client responsibility.

Principal Fire Engineer responsibilities

• Lead the development and delivery of fire strategies for new and existing buildings.
• Provide specialist fire engineering advice across healthcare and high rise residential projects.
• Apply HTM 05 guidance to healthcare buildings and operational hospital environments.
• Undertake fire engineering assessments, design reviews and technical appraisals.
• Develop practical and proportionate fire engineered solutions.
• Review architectural, mechanical, electrical and fire safety design information.
• Assess designs against Building Regulations, Approved Document B, British Standards and relevant fire safety legislation.
• Review fire strategies, technical reports, calculations, drawings and specifications.
• Provide technical assurance throughout design, construction and completion.
• Attend sites to inspect fire safety measures and assess installation quality.
• Review compartmentation, fire stopping, fire doors, fire dampers, penetrations and other passive fire protection measures where relevant to the fire strategy.
• Identify defects, departures from the approved design and non compliant installations.
• Challenge contractors, consultants and project teams where installations or proposed solutions are unsuitable.
• Produce clear inspection reports, technical advice and remedial recommendations.
• Support projects through Building Control, regulatory review and approval.
• Advise healthcare estates teams, project managers, designers, contractors and other stakeholders.
• Attend design team, progress, technical and client meetings.
• Manage several concurrent fire engineering projects.
• Review and technically assure work produced by other fire engineers.
• Mentor and support less experienced engineers.
• Contribute to the development of technical standards, checking procedures and consistent delivery processes.
• Maintain strong client relationships and support repeat business.
• Assist with fee proposals, project scopes and commercial management where required.
• Maintain accurate project records and professional documentation.

Healthcare and HTM responsibilities

A significant proportion of the work is undertaken within hospitals and other complex healthcare environments. Applicants should be able to demonstrate experience of:

• Healthcare fire safety and fire engineering.
• NHS hospitals, healthcare estates or similarly complex operational buildings.
• HTM 05-01 and the wider HTM 05 fire safety guidance.
• Fire strategies for occupied healthcare environments.
• Progressive horizontal evacuation and healthcare evacuation principles.
• Compartmentation and fire resisting construction within hospitals.
• Assessing fire safety measures in buildings containing vulnerable occupants.
• Balancing clinical, operational and fire safety requirements.
• Working with healthcare estates teams, Authorising Engineers, project teams and contractors.
• Reviewing refurbishment, alteration and remedial works within live healthcare environments.
• Inspecting installations and verifying that completed works meet the required fire strategy and specification.

Essential experience

Applicants should have:

• At least five to seven years’ relevant fire engineering experience.
• Current or recent experience as a Principal Fire Engineer, Senior Fire Engineer, Fire Safety Engineer or Fire Engineering Consultant.
• Substantial experience developing and reviewing fire strategies.
• Strong working knowledge of UK Building Regulations and Approved Document B.
• Strong knowledge of relevant British Standards and UK fire safety legislation.
• Demonstrable knowledge of HTM 05 fire safety guidance.
• Previous experience delivering fire engineering work within healthcare environments.
• Experience working on existing, occupied or operational buildings.
• Experience undertaking site inspections and construction stage fire safety reviews.
• The technical confidence to identify and challenge non compliant designs and installations.
• Experience advising clients, architects, contractors, design teams and regulatory stakeholders.
• The ability to produce clear, accurate and defensible technical reports.
• Strong engineering judgement and problem solving capability.
• The ability to manage projects independently within a fully remote working environment.
• Strong written, verbal and client facing communication skills.

Qualifications

Applicants should possess:

• A degree or equivalent qualification in Fire Engineering, Fire Safety Engineering or a closely related engineering discipline.
• Relevant professional membership or evidence of continued professional development.
• Chartered Engineer status, or clear progress toward achieving Chartership, would be advantageous.

Desirable experience

The following would be beneficial:

• High rise residential and higher risk building experience.
• Building Safety Act and higher risk building knowledge.
• Complex refurbishment and remediation projects.
• Construction stage fire engineering and site assurance.
• Passive fire protection inspection and technical review.
• Experience mentoring or technically reviewing other engineers.
• Commercial management, fee proposals and project scoping.
• Experience supporting projects through regulatory approval.

Important distinction

This is a building fire engineering consultancy position focused on fire strategies, technical design, engineering judgement, site assurance and regulatory compliance.

It is not solely a fire risk assessment, passive fire contracting, fire door surveying, installation management or operational Fire Safety Manager position.

Applicants must be able to demonstrate substantial technical fire engineering experience, including the preparation or detailed review of fire strategies.

Package and benefits

• Salary up to £100,000, dependent on experience.
• Performance related bonus of up to 20%.
• Fully remote and home based working.
• 10% employer pension contribution.
• Life assurance at four times salary.
• 28 days’ annual leave plus five designated bank holidays.
• Private medical healthcare following successful completion of probation.
• Business mileage reimbursement.
• Electric vehicle salary sacrifice scheme following probation.
• Company funded professional development and support toward Chartership.
• Employee Assistance Programme.
• Long term opportunity to influence technical delivery and support the growth of the fire engineering team.

Apply

This opportunity would suit an experienced Principal Fire Engineer or strong Senior Fire Engineer seeking a technically challenging, fully remote position with a substantial healthcare workload.

To apply, please submit an updated CV clearly detailing your fire strategy, healthcare, HTM, site-inspection and technical assurance experience.