Dependability, Reliability and Maintainability Engineer

  • Defence Equipment and Support
  • City, Bristol
  • Jan 21, 2026
Full time Government

Job Description

Organisation: Defence Equipment & Support
Salary: £46,400 per annum (plus generous benefits)
Grade: Professional II
Working Pattern: Full time, Part time, Job Share, Flexible Working
Contract Type: Permanent

At Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S), we supply and maintain vital equipment and services for the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force. Together, we deliver a vast range of essential defence programmes, and strive for what's next. Because it helps keep our military at the top of their game and our nation safe - for today, and tomorrow.

We offer 25+ days' holiday, flexible and hybrid working, enhanced parental leave schemes, shopping discounts, and an exceptional employer pension contribution of 28.97%, to help make work work for you.

For security reasons this role is open to sole UK nationals only. A 'sole UK national' refers to an individual who holds citizenship solely in the UK, without dual citizenship or nationality from another country. We're unable to offer visa sponsorship.

This role requires you to have lived in the UK for the last 5 years and obtain Security Check (SC) security clearance. Clearance must be obtained without any caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role you've been recruited for. If it isn't obtained, or is obtained but with caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role, any conditional offer made to you will be withdrawn. Obtaining SC security clearance can be a lengthy process, and we reserve the right to withdraw any conditional offer made if the necessary security clearance isn't obtained within 12 months.

Job description Are you passionate about the defence of the United Kingdom, with a good moral compass and a drive to protect people? Do you want to work in an environment where you can develop your skills and experience whilst working to support the UK's Armed Forces? Do you have experience working in a Reliability and Maintainability environment, and excited by the opportunity to work on military platforms and systems? If so, opportunities have arisen for Reliability Engineer to join us at Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S).

In joining one of our integrated teams of highly skilled professionals, you have an exciting opportunity to support the UK Armed Forces, working with military colleagues and industry on some of the most important and challenging work the UK Government is undertaking.

In this rare and unique opportunity, you will join the Task based Engineering Resource (TBER) team, in Support Chain Services, delivering Reliability & Maintainability (R&M) engineering services to DE&S customers across the Army, Navy and Royal Air Force, to ensure equipment and contracted services deliver value for money and meet R&M contractual requirements.

We champion flexible ways of working. Regular in-person attendance is required (this is expected to be approximately 60% of your working week) to promote the benefits of face-to-face collaboration alongside flexibility of hours to support work-life balance and business need. Initially, you may be expected to attend more frequently to familiarise yourselves with the site, the team, and your role.

What you'll be doing
  • Own the generation of Initial R&M Cases to support technical requirements, defining technical deliverables/artifacts and updating other documentation for multiple systems, including the considerations to in-service support and practicality of achieving desired levels of R&M.
  • Analyse dependability related data to identify areas for improvement or to demonstrate dependability performance levels.
  • Identify and analyse technical hazards /project impacts then contribute to the identification and evaluation of risk reduction measures, ensuring that these are adequately documented and managed.
  • Manage the review of the dependability aspects of a design ensuring that the R&M case demonstrates that the item under consideration will meet the user needs.
  • Collaborate and manage trade-offs with other sub-system teams and specialists, over technical requirements, and design compromises, to maximise successful system implementation and delivery.
  • Review Dependability performance, conduct root cause analysis to identify "design" weaknesses.
  • Manage and participate in assurance, audit, and reviews activity. Support the development of specialist elements of assurance tools such as GEAR and SSDT.
Person specification To be successful with your application, you'll need to show that you meet the following essential criteria:
  • You will have experience of providing R&M engineering services at a senior level and leading the delivery of successful R&M engineering outcome in multidisciplinary projects.
  • Knowledge and experience of project R&M programmes.
  • As a minimum be professionally registered as either: Incorporated Engineer (IEng) or, Registered Scientist (RSci) or, Chartered Mathematician (CMath) or, Advanced Data Science Professional or, Holds RQF Level 6 in related Mathematics subject, and an Associate Member (AM) of the Institute of Mathematics and its Application (IMA).
In addition to the responsibilities above, the following technical competences and behaviours will be assessed at interview:
  • Core Behaviour 1: Seeing the Big Picture
  • Core Behaviour 2: Leadership
  • Technical Competence: ECF_03 Supportable Technical Solutions Practitioner
Offered benefits
  • 25 days' annual leave +1 day a year up to 30 days, 8 bank holidays and a day off for the King's birthday
  • Flexible and hybrid working options
  • Market-leading average employer pension contribution of 28.97%
  • Annual performance-based bonus and recognition awards
  • Access to specialist training and funded qualifications
  • Support for progression
  • Huge range of discounts
  • Volunteering days
  • Enhanced parental leave schemes
Improving innovation and enriching our culture, diversity of thought is vital to our success. So whether you're looking for a new opportunity, a next step, or a helping hand as you return from a career break, bring your experiences and help deliver for the defence of tomorrow. Here you'll find a supportive, family-friendly organisation to be a part of - and if you need any assistance with your application, just let us know.

Further Information
  • Civil Service Recruitment Principles: Recruitment Principles - Civil Service Commission
  • Candidate Information Pack:
  • Terms and Conditions:
  • Civil Service Code: The Code - Civil Service Commission
Any personal data that you provide during the Recruitment process will be treated in accordance with the MOD Privacy Notice which can be accessed here.

Disability Confident: Please note as a Disability Confident Leader we want to ensure you receive any reasonable adjustments that you need throughout the recruitment process. If you do require any reasonable adjustments, you can let us know on your online application under the section 'Please indicate and give details of any reasonable adjustments you may require during the recruitment process.'

Conflicts of Interest: The Ministry of Defence requires all candidates who are successful at interview to declare any outside interests. These declarations will be discussed with successful candidates following the interview process and before a formal offer of employment is made, as some outside interests may not be compatible with MOD civilian roles. This will not, in the majority of cases, prevent employment in MOD, but it is a measure that must be taken to ensure that appropriate mitigations can be put in place to manage any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest from the first day of employment.

Selection Process Details Your application will go through the following stages of assessment:

  1. Pre-sift - We will check that you meet any essential or eligibility criteria that are listed in the Person Specification section of this advert. On your CV, please clearly show how you meet the essential criteria.
  2. Sift - Your CV will be assessed against the following categories, using a simple numerical scoring system: Key Achievements; Relevant Experience; Applied Knowledge and Skills. Please follow our guidance on CV writing for best chance of success.
  3. Interview - If you're invited to interview, you'll be assessed against the Sift categories listed above, as well as the Technical Competences and Behaviours listed in the Person Specification section of this advert.
Please Note: In the event of a tied score at interview, the Order of Merit will be distinguished based on the ranking of the assessed behaviours and competencies below:
  • 1st: Core Behaviour 1
  • 2nd: Core Behaviour 2
  • 3rd: Technical Competencies
  • 4th: CV Review
In the event of a further tie using the method above, we reserve the right to utilise the Lead criterion, and/or an additional assessment.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview.

If you feel that your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance you should contact department via email: . If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Recruitment Complaints - Civil Service Commission.

Offering at a lower level If you're not successful at interview . click apply for full job details