Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen for dedicated, enthusiastic and self-motivated Mechanical Engineers to join the Christie Medical Physics and Engineering team here at The Christie. We are currently looking for two Mechanical Engineers to join our workshop.

Band 6 - £37,338 to progress to £44,962 as per NHS Agenda for Change pay scales. Candidates with less experience will be offered a Band 5 - £29,970 to progress to £36,483. Both roles will eligible for 12% Recruitment and Retention bonus which is reviewed annually.

Candidates should possess:

Practical abilities and the desire to work with your hands

High motivation and enthusiasm to work in the engineering maintenance environment

The ability to follow instructions and diagrams

The ability to work accurately and a good eye for detail

Good communication and problem-solving skills

Good numeracy and literacy abilities to work with data

The ability to work on your own initiative, but also be a good team worker

Main duties of the job

We are looking for a self-motivated and enthusiastic Mechanical Engineer who is keen to learn and develop their knowledge and skills. The individual should be flexible and adaptable.

The post holder is primarily concerned with the preventative maintenance of medical devices, plus the design, production and development of equipment within the Trust. The post holder liaises with clinical, scientific and engineering staff to identify faults and repair equipment, including working in clinical areas and working with equipment manufacturers as appropriate. Provides specialist repair and support to safety critical clinical equipment ensuring the equipment operates effectively and safely with a minimum of downtime.

Equipment covered incorporates- mechanical, surgical, hydraulic, electrical and high vacuum systems. The post holder also undertakes some of the design, development and manufacture of complex new and innovative items working to a high standard of precision and safety. Provides expert technical and technological support in the delivery of critical care.

About us

The Christie is one of Europe's leading cancer centres, treating over 60,000 patients a year. We are based in Manchester and serve a population of million across Greater Manchester & Cheshire, but as a national specialist around 15% patients are referred to us from other parts of the country. We provide radiotherapy through one of the largest radiotherapy departments in the world; chemotherapy on site and through 14 other hospitals; highly specialist surgery for complex and rare cancer; and a wide range of support and diagnostic services. We are also an international leader in research, with world first breakthroughs for over 100 years. We run one of the largest early clinical trial units in Europe with over 300 trials every year. Cancer research in Manchester, most of which is undertaken on the Christie site, has been officially ranked the best in the UK.

Job description

Job responsibilities

On completion of training, Duties and Responsibilities

General

Create prototypes / finished items using a wide range of engineering equipment and precision techniques.

Adapt existing equipment to meet changing requirements.

Work as part of multidisciplinary teams to support and develop the clinical radiotherapy service.

Provide specialist mechanical knowledge for preventative maintenance, servicing and fault finding.

Work within the framework of the ISO 9001(2015) Radiotherapy Quality System.

Requirement for working hours to minimize interruption to clinical service, including late shifts, bank holidays and weekends. This involves outside of normal agenda for change working hours

Participate in the extended shift system.

When trained, repair of safety critical complex medical equipment. In depth analysis and diagnostic skills required. Exercise judgement to determine the causes of faults in devices with multiple complex inter-related systems. Data analysis on complex medical equipment required to predict breakdown.

To participate in the quality control of the clinical equipment.

Will be expected to work at any of the Christie sites at short notice.

Will be based at any of the Christie sites and will be part of a rota on all Christie sites.

Participate on an on-call rota as required.

Support the ODN as required including travelling to ODN sites.

Technical Support for Clinical Equipment

Carry out repair, calibration and safety testing of highly complex clinical equipment. Makes decisions to take safety critical equipment out of clinical use.

The running up and preparation of equipment for clinical use and the closing down of equipment on completion of use.

To carry out and record approved modifications to clinical equipment.

To maintain proper records of all work carried out on the clinical equipment.

Performs regular high precision machine quality control checks, measurements and associated adjustments to fractional mm accuracy.

Will have to work on equipment whilst patient is in the treatment room, or on the treatment couch.

To ensure that all clinical equipment works to manufacturers specification.

To maintain specialist equipment technical records and reports for the organization.

Provides expert technical and technological support in the delivery of critical care.

Technical support for medical device peripherals

To provide specialist technical support to imaging systems, axis lasers and all peripherals used on clinical equipment throughout the hospital and its satellites.

To assist with technical support to radiotherapy CTsim as required.

The maintenance of all test, measurement and service instruments and equipment including dose measurement instruments.

To participate in the development and construction of instrumentation and equipment to support the service.

Will work on any equipment that supports treatment of patients within clinical departments.

Health and Safety

Will work daily in potentially hazardous situations with ionizing radiation, including high voltage electricity, heavy equipment and industrial gases with responsibility for safety of self and others.

Organizational

Prioritize and organize allocated work in accordance with section policies and competing service demands.

To assist with service visits by outside engineers and contractors.

Supervisory

Inform line manager or senior radiographer of the condition of linear accelerator or other equipment after repair or maintenance.

Supervise and take responsibility for the work of other technical staff/ engineers visiting the workshop.

Deputise for management during times of absence.

Teaching, training and research

Participate in professional development and training of own staff group and others.

Participate in the research and development work carried out by the radiation physics group.

Will be expected to follow project management arrangements to report on status of projects gantt charts etc.

Training of other professionals

Will be expected to keep abreast of technical developments. Enroll in Continuing Professional Development Programs. Attend suitable seminars and courses as part of personal development and to further the work of the department.

Participate in the IPEM training scheme, for self and others.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

HNC/HND/Degree level qualification in mechanical engineering. Or Equivalent experience

Desirable

Associate membership of professional body Professional Engineering qualifications with Engineering council

Experience

Essential

Broad based experience in mechanical engineering including manufacturing processes and equipment maintenance. Experience of the types of equipment used on the site manual centre lathes, milling machines.

Desirable

Healthcare industry experience

Skills

Essential

Fault diagnosis and rectification skills. Microsoft tools Access etc. Excellent interpersonal skills. Advanced manual dexterity for use of engineering equipment including hand and machine tools, analytical and judgement skills. Able to concentrate when frequently interrupted by phone calls and breakdown requests, emotionally Able to deal with occasionally distressing situations. Communicate with other professional staff

Desirable

Fault diagnosis skills on industrial equipment and systems. Computer literate, gas/electric welding/brazing. technical drawing/ Health and Safety training

Knowledge

Essential

Knowledge of advanced engineering from structured apprenticeship through to additional further qualifications at technical college or internal courses. QA Systems Health and safety knowledge and understanding.

Desirable

Hydraulic systems

Values

Essential

Adaptable Flexible Self motivated Diligent Ability to demonstrate the organisational values and behaviours

Other

Essential

Ability to demonstrate the organisational values and behaviours Must be prepared to work towards professional engineering qualifications eg EngTech / IEng / CEng Team player with a strong customer/patient focus Able to work unsocial hours. Able to attend training courses away from home. Work autonomously and to take initiatives Able to work in the Christie network Physically fit and able to work in areas with difficult access. Requirement for daily heavy lifting.