Graduate Project Engineer

Overview:

You will be supporting the project engineering team and manufacturing to deliver improvements to equipment and operations.

You will be working on a variety of projects that add value to the business and can make a real difference in every aspect of it, being given responsibility to drive business improvement.

You will be predominantly leading and managing Capital Expenditure projects, particularly involving manufacturing equipment. As well as this, you will be involved in energy saving projects, and data analysis of key factory process operations.

This role involves a balance of spending time in the factory – speaking to the team and evaluating current operations, as well as working in the office - holding discussions across departments, developing project specifications and business cases.

With this role, you will develop skills in project management, leadership and data analysis,. You will have exposure to wider business functions including product development, manufacturing, distribution, marketing and learn about how the business operates.

Who we are:

apetito is the UK’s leading food supplier to the health and social care sectors serving more than 1,300 care homes, health care and education settings.

Our meals are expertly crafted by our dietitians and chefs, and then frozen to lock in the goodness.

Wiltshire Farm Foods, our sister company, is the UK’s largest ready meal supplier cooking and delivering over 330 different delicious frozen ready meals across the UK.

This role is part of our 2 year graduate programme, during which you will have exposure to mentoring, leadership training and support to achieve your full potential.

You will have opportunity to present to the executive team on your work.

The aim of our programme is to train and develop graduates into future leadership roles.

Responsibilities:

Role and Responsibility:

• Manage Capital Investment projects from concept phase through to deployment.
• Contribute towards Energy saving initiatives to drive forward energy reduction.
• Investigate new technologies to contribute towards net-zero company commitment.
• Work across the business to identify key opportunities for downtime reduction.
• Contribute to defining clear KPIs for projects you work on
• Help us define how we bring innovation to apetito. From processes to tools, our aspiration is to continually improve the performance of the manufacturing facilities.
• Maintain accurate records, including writing specification documents and taking minutes in meetings
• Build and maintain effective, collaborative, working relationships

Past Projects worked on by Graduates include:

• Writing detailed project scopes and business cases
• Researching potential suppliers & equipment available on the market
• Managing structured tendering processes and evaluating quotations
• Organizing installation of new equipment and training for staff.

• Analysing quantity of food waste from inefficient equipment
• Researching alternative designs that minimise waste
• Developing equipment specifications and supplier selection
• Leading and coordinating the project for new equipment installation

• Identify areas for energy savings
• Conducting trials to compare temperature of food and surroundings
• Research available technologies
• Installation of ‘food mimicking’ temperature probe covers to optimise freezer temperatures

• Environmental permit applications
• Contact management
• Building design with architect support
• Installation and commissioning

As our factory runs 7 days a week, flexibility to support projects outside office hours, including evenings and weekend, will be required.

Qualifications/Personal Qualities:

Essential:

• Hold, or be studying towards, a degree in Engineering/Mathematics/Sciences related discipline with the expectation to receive a 2:2 or higher (graduating by August 2025).
• Organisational and time management skills
• Ability to make rational and logical decisions quickly
• Able to make and keep accurate records
• Strong attention to detail, including ability to manage data
• Team player, able to work with others to achieve shared objectives
• Able to collaborate with colleagues and stakeholders
• Confident to lead discussions and bring ideas together from different departments
• Passion for food manufacturing

Desirable:

• Project Management experience
• Confidence 2D CAD modelling
• Working in a food production environment
• Experience taking minutes in meetings
• Understanding of project life cycles

Personal Qualities:

We are looking for someone who is passionate to learn and develop in manufacturing, specifically in food, who will be looking to deliver the best quality products for our customers.

This role will require time to be spent on the shop floor to understand problems, so you need to be comfortable being “hands on” and talking to both the production operators and the management team.

This will ensure engagement and understanding of any projects which will be introduced.

The successful applicant will be a self-starter who would rather be too busy than not busy enough. If you find something which doesn’t feel right, you won’t ignore it, but will instead ask “why?” or “what can I do?”. You will need to be happy to speak to teams on the shop floor to better understand their problems and feed these up in order to resolve them.

The successful applicant will be able to work well in a team environment and have a structured approach to work. You will need to feel comfortable working with staff at all levels, and communicate effectively in meetings, presentations, and written reports.

Company Benefits:

• Competitive salary – accredited Living Wage employer
• 25 days holiday per year, plus bank holidays
• Option to purchase up to 5 additional days holiday per year
• Discretionary annual bonus scheme
• Pension scheme - employer matched contributions up to 4%
• Life assurance scheme worth at least 1x annual salary
• Subsidised canteen
• Free parking
• Free turkey or voucher at Christmas
• apetito perks scheme including salary sacrifice options and retail discounts

Our Values:

As a family-owned business, we take great pride in being a company that makes a real difference and is dedicated to creating outstanding meals to be proud of.

We develop a range of products designed to enhance health and well-being for all our customers.

We are driven by a passion for service and dedicated to feeding some of the UK’s most vulnerable people.

We proudly support British food and farming, focusing on using the best ethical and sustainable produce in alignment with our goal to reach Net Zero by 2040.

Learn more about apetito’s commitment to a more sustainable future.

We embrace inclusion, empowering individuals from diverse backgrounds.

Our commitment to making a real difference extends to customers, communities, and staff and we're on a mission to build an inclusive workplace where everyone reaches their full potential.