Quality Improvement Engineer - Contract

Are you passionate about driving quality excellence, solving complex problems, and making a real impact in a high-technology manufacturing environment?

At Oxford Instruments Plasma Technology, we are looking for a Quality Improvement Engineer to join our team in Severn Beach, Bristol. This is an exciting 6-month contract opportunity, with the potential to extend or convert to a permanent position. This is an exciting opportunity to play a key role in improving products, processes, and supplier performance while supporting the development of technologies that help shape the future of healthcare, clean energy, advanced electronics, and quantum computing.

Whether you are an experienced Quality Engineer seeking your next challenge or a quality professional looking to apply your expertise in a world-class engineering environment, this role offers the chance to influence quality performance across the entire business.

Why Join Oxford Instruments?

At Oxford Instruments Plasma Technology, we develop cutting-edge process solutions that enable our customers to research and manufacture advanced materials and semiconductors. Our technologies are helping drive innovation in areas such as:

• Medical devices and diagnostics
• Electric vehicles and clean energy
• Semiconductor manufacturing
• Quantum computing
• Advanced scientific research

You'll be joining a collaborative and forward-thinking team where continuous improvement is at the heart of everything we do.

The Opportunity

As a Quality Improvement Engineer, you will be responsible for supporting and enhancing our Quality Management System while driving continuous improvement initiatives across manufacturing, engineering, supply chain and supplier operations.

This is a highly visible role where you'll work closely with internal stakeholders and external suppliers to identify root causes, implement corrective actions, improve quality performance, and ensure compliance with ISO 9001 standards.

What You'll Be Doing

Drive Quality Excellence

• Maintain and improve our ISO 9001:2015 compliant Quality Management System.
• Support document control, process governance, and management review activities.
• Ensure quality processes remain robust, effective, and audit-ready.

Lead Audits & Compliance Activities

• Plan and conduct internal audits across operational and business processes.
• Support supplier assessments and audits.
• Drive corrective actions through to successful completion and verification.

Improve Supplier Quality

• Manage Supplier Corrective Action Requests (SCARs).
• Partner with suppliers to investigate issues, drive improvements, and prevent recurrence.
• Monitor supplier performance and influence long-term quality improvements.

Solve Complex Quality Challenges

• Lead root cause investigations using 8D, 5 Why, Fishbone and other structured problem-solving techniques.
• Implement effective containment, corrective and preventive actions.
• Ensure sustainable solutions are delivered and embedded.

Support Manufacturing Operations

• Provide daily quality support to production teams.
• Investigate non-conformances and manufacturing quality concerns.
• Drive Right First Time (RFT) initiatives and defect reduction programmes.

Support New Product Introduction

• Review and approve First Article Inspection Reports (FAIRs).
• Support engineering changes and product introduction activities.
• Ensure manufacturing and inspection requirements are achieved.

Deliver Insight Through Data

• Analyse quality performance metrics and identify improvement opportunities.
• Develop and maintain Power BI dashboards and KPI reporting.
• Support reporting for supplier performance, SCARs, Cost of Quality and operational quality metrics.

Manage Quality Systems & Documentation

• Maintain quality records and documentation within SharePoint and related systems.
• Support document governance, migration activities and compliance requirements.
• Utilise ERP systems to manage quality-related reporting and transactions.

What We're Looking For

Essential Experience

• Working knowledge of ISO 9001:2015.
• Experience maintaining Quality Management Systems.
• Internal auditing experience or qualification.
• Strong problem-solving skills using tools such as 8D, Root Cause Analysis, and 5 Why.
• Supplier quality and corrective action experience.
• Experience supporting manufacturing or production environments.
• Strong Microsoft Office and SharePoint skills.
• Experience working with ERP systems (JDE E1 preferred).
• Excellent analytical and data interpretation abilities.
• Strong communication skills and stakeholder management experience.

Desirable Experience

• Power BI dashboard creation and reporting.
• Lead Auditor qualification.
• Experience within semiconductor, scientific equipment, or high-technology manufacturing environments.
• Knowledge of FAI/FAIR requirements and APQP tools.

What Will Make You Successful?

We're looking for someone who is:

• Detail-oriented and quality-driven
• A natural problem solver
• Analytical and data-focused
• Collaborative and influential
• Customer-focused
• Organised and able to manage multiple priorities
• Passionate about continuous improvement

The Impact You'll Make

This role sits at the heart of our quality function and will be instrumental in supporting key initiatives around:

• ISO 9001 compliance
• Supplier quality improvement
• SharePoint and document control enhancement
• SCAR and corrective action management
• FAI activities
• Power BI reporting and data analysis
• Production quality support

If you enjoy improving processes, influencing change, and delivering measurable business improvements, we'd love to hear from you.

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All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or disability. We encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and would ask you to get in touch if you are concerned about any barriers you feel you may be facing in your application process with us.

Note to recruitment agencies: Oxford Instruments operates a Preferred Supplier List, and we do not accept unsolicited agency CVs. Please do not forward candidate details in response to this advert, or to any Oxford Instruments employees or other company locations. Oxford Instruments is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited CVs.