Product Design Engineer

Job Title: Product Design Engineer 

Location: Glasgow (Hybrid - 3 days on site)

Department: Engineering

Hours: Monday - Friday (40 hours p/w)

Who we are: 

At Safehinge Primera we have a clear purpose; 

Together we design for good. 

We help protect people through vulnerable times. 

We envisage, design and deliver innovative products, which dramatically improve peoples’ lives in challenging environments such as schools, hospitals and mental health facilities. Our designs make a positive difference. Over the years we have invested heavily in developing an award-winning range of lifesaving products for the education and demanding mental health sectors. 

Our products for mental health facilities solve the biggest patient suicide risks, and our products are unmatched globally. 

We’ve got a track record of success designing and delivering best in class products that improve lives. We have grown significantly in the last three years and our aim is to reach £30m of global revenue in the next three years and increase our impact; through profitable growth we can help more people through vulnerable times. 

We are a fast-growing company who continually set the bar high for ourselves. We’re committed to continuously raising the standard of the sectors in which we operate. We do this through hard work and commitment in a culture of collaboration, listening and understanding. Importantly we do this together, as a team. 

Role Summary

This is a busy, varied role within our Engineering team with a high level of autonomy and responsibility, centred on the design and engineering of our products. Reporting to the Head of Engineering, the role includes the strategic development, design iteration, and management of the business's product range, from initial concept through to market launch and ongoing lifecycle support. This is a key role in a critical part of our business where you will have the opportunity to make a real difference in the environments where our products are used, ensuring they are not only functional but also intuitive, empathetic, and aesthetically considered.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the design and development of new products and significant product enhancements, from ideation and concept generation through to detailed design and prototyping.
• Champion user-centric design methodologies throughout the product development lifecycle, ensuring a deep understanding of user needs, behaviours, and pain points within the mental health sector.
• Facilitate product and process improvement projects through iterative design and redesigns, focusing on enhancing user experience, manufacturability, and overall product quality.
• Conduct design research and analysis to inform product decisions, including competitor analysis, material exploration, and trend identification.
• Develop and refine product specifications, collaborating closely with cross-functional teams (e.g., engineering, operations, marketing) to translate user insights and business requirements into tangible design solutions.
• Ensure the product range is compliant with the latest regulations, such as fire and acoustics, to relevant British standards. This includes facilitating external testing with relevant bodies.
• Design and build test plans for products, specifically incorporating user testing and voice of the customer to validate design decisions.
• Create technical documentation and processes to be used by the wider business, external partners, and customers, ensuring clarity and user-friendliness in operating procedures, installation instructions, how-to guides, and operation and maintenance manuals.
• Support set up product manufacturing processes with external suppliers and support ongoing manufacturing activities, ensuring design intent is maintained through production.
• Resolve technical issues with products using a root cause analysis (RCA) approach, often informing design revisions.
• Main workflows include: User Research & Concept Generation, Product Design & Development, Design Validation & Testing, Documentation creation, Supporting product technical requests, and product configuration management.

What You’ll Bring

At Safehinge Primera, we look for people who will add to our organisation and align with our Purpose and Values. Your experience, skills, and competencies will include:

• Proven experience in designing and developing products, with a strong portfolio showcasing your design process and outcomes.
• Demonstrable expertise in user-centric design methodologies (e.g., design thinking, user research, rapid prototyping, usability testing) and their practical application in product development.
• A strong understanding of the end-to-end design process, from concept and ideation through to detailed engineering and manufacturing.
• Excellent knowledge of various manufacturing processes such as injection moulding, casting, sheet metal fabrication, machining, and extrusions, with an eye for design for manufacturability (DFM) and assembly (DFA).
• Proficiency in 3D CAD software (Solidworks strongly preferred), with the ability to create complex models and technical drawings that communicate design intent effectively.
• Comfortable creating and managing Bill of Materials, with an understanding of how design choices impact cost and complexity.
• Experience with design and process evaluation methods, including Failure Mode Effect Analysis (FMEA) or similar, applied to design risk assessment.
• Strong prototyping and fabrication skills, comfortable in a workshop environment to rapidly bring design concepts to life for testing and iteration.
• Experience with change management processes, including design approvals, with an emphasis on maintaining design integrity.
• Excellent visual, verbal, and written communication skills, with the ability to articulate design concepts and rationale clearly to diverse stakeholders.
• Proficiency in design tools beyond CAD, potentially including Adobe Creative Suite for presentation and technical documentation.
• Excellent IT skills.

What we’ll offer 

• Competitive salary 
• Discretionary profit share 
• Annual leave increases with length of service 
• EV/Cycle to Work Schemes 
• Employee Assistance Programme 
• Enhanced parental pay 
• Enhanced sick pay 
• Peer recognition programme 
• Discounted gift cards 
• The opportunity to develop and grow your career within a fast-growing SME 

This is a full-time role and travelling to customer sites may be required. Please note that we’ve detailed the key responsibilities and output required from the role. As we’re a dynamic and fast-moving organisation, this is not a definitive summary and responsibilities may well change and evolve over time. 

At Safehinge Primera, we’re more about team than title. We welcome applications from all sections of the community and people from all backgrounds. We're committed to building an inclusive workplace that promotes and values differences, where everyone from any background can do their best work. 

From time to time you may be required to attend live sites, if you are successful in this role, you will be required to complete Disclosure Scotland and DBS checks.

Application deadline: 10/08/26

Salary range: Up to 40k DOE