Overview
Engineering Supervisor (Mechanical) – Strand, London, WC2R 2LS
About us:
At King’s College London, our Engineering Team plays a critical role in ensuring our facilities are safe, efficient and well maintained to ensure our vibrant community is able to learn, innovate and shape the future. We’re looking for a skilled and dedicated Engineering Supervisor (Mechanical) to join our team.
About the role:
The Engineering Supervisor is a key member of the Campus Engineering Operations Team, responsible for the effective supervision and coordination of engineering staff and maintenance activities across the campus estate. The role is a combination of hands on and hands off duties.
This role ensures the safe, efficient, and compliant delivery of both planned and reactive maintenance services, with a strong focus on operational excellence, team development, and customer satisfaction.
The postholder will lead by example, promoting a culture of ownership and accountability within the team, empowering staff to take responsibility for their work, contribute to continuous improvement, and uphold the highest standards of safety, compliance, and service delivery.
The Engineering Supervisor also acts as a key liaison with contractors and stakeholders, ensuring all engineering operations align with statutory requirements, University policies, and service level agreements.
The role will ensure completion of all mandated Health & Safety training, including eLearning modules, within required timeframes to maintain compliance with statutory and organisational standards.
- Lead Familiarisation with Critical Systems: Take ownership of developing and maintaining a thorough understanding of all business-critical systems across the estate. Ensure the team is trained and prepared to operate and recover these systems effectively in both routine and emergency scenarios.
- Supervise Planned Maintenance Activities: Oversee the delivery of the planned preventative maintenance (PPM) programme, ensuring all tasks are completed in compliance with statutory regulations, industry standards, and University policies. The role is blend of hands on and hands off work depending on operational needs.
- Manage and Optimise Work Scheduling: Regularly review and update site-specific maintenance schedules to reflect operational priorities. Reprogramme tasks as needed to ensure efficient resource use and service continuity.
- Coordinate Reactive Maintenance Response: Supervise the allocation and completion of reactive maintenance tasks, ensuring service level agreements (SLAs) are consistently met and that issues are resolved promptly and professionally.
- CAFM System: Maintain accurate records of maintenance activities, inspections, and statutory compliance checks using the university’s CAFM (Computer-Aided Facilities Management) system.
- Stakeholder Management: Proactively engage with various campus stakeholders such as Campus Operations and Project Teams.
- Support Team Development and Performance: Assist in the personal and professional development of team members by providing guidance, demonstrating, mentoring, and identifying training needs. Promote a culture of continuous improvement and accountability. Conduct monthly toolbox talks with the team in line with schedules.
- Maintain Safe Systems of Work: Ensure all maintenance activities are carried out under a robust Safe Systems of Work framework, including the management of permits to work and adherence to health, safety, and environmental standards.
- Authorised Person and Competent Person Duties: Carry out authorised person duties and competent person duties within your specific trade following formal KCL appointment.
- Oversee Contractor Activities: Liaise with, monitor, and supervise all external contractors working on site. Ensure their activities are compliant with safety regulations, scope of work, and University expectations.
- Manage Supplier Engagement and Inventory: Liaise with suppliers to raise orders, manage deliveries, and ensure sufficient stock levels are maintained to support uninterrupted operations.
- Support Water Management Compliance: Assist in the organisation and completion of water hygiene tasks, ensuring compliance with relevant legislation and University protocols.
- Lead Fault Diagnosis and Emergency Response: Take responsibility for managing and conducting fault-finding activities across all buildings. Respond effectively to emergencies and breakdowns, ensuring swift resolution and minimal disruption.
- Adapt to Varied Working Environments: Be prepared to work across multiple buildings and environments, including occasional working at height, in confined spaces, and being on the tools as and when required based on business needs.
- Provide Out-of-Hours Support When Required: Be available to attend site outside of normal working hours when necessary to support critical maintenance procedures or specialist contractor activities as part of the Operational Engineering call out rota.
- Ensure Compliance with All Standards: Deliver all services in line with statutory, client-specific, and University environmental, health, safety, and quality standards.
- Promote a Customer-Focused Service Culture: Always deliver a high standard of customer service. Represent the Estates team professionally and participate in training and development initiatives such as “Fit for King’s” to support service excellence.
- HR Management: Support HR investigations and managerial duties relating to HR matters as and when required.
In addition to working in a dynamic environment, King’s College London offers many benefits including:
- A comprehensive range of technical training and personal development to help you thrive and progress
- A generous annual leave allowance to support a healthy work-life balance
- Competitive pension schemes plus access to exclusive discounts on shopping etc
- A wide range of health and wellbeing benefits
The above list of responsibilities may not be exhaustive, and the post holder will be required to undertake such tasks and responsibilities as may reasonably be expected within the scope and grading of the post.
This is a full time post (35 hours per week), and you will be offered an indefinite contract
About you:
To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:
Essential criteria
- Mechanical qualification with three years’ experience such as NVQ Level 2 Cert in Basic Plumbing / C&Gs Cert in Plumbing and/or Heating and Ventilation and experience
- IOSH Managing Safely or equivalent
- Excellent computer skills using Microsoft Office and particularly Microsoft Excel
- Proven supervisory experience
- Excellent communication skills, both oral and written
Desirable criteria
- Level 2 Diploma in Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heat Pump Systems
- City & Guilds Level 2 Award in FGas and ODS Regulations: Category I (2079-11)
- Pressure Systems Authorised Person
- Leadership and Management Level 3
- Managing and Operating Steam Plant (BOAS qualification)
Downloading a copy of our Job Description
Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the page. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.
At King’s, we believe that the diversity of our community and a culture that is welcoming, open, inclusive and collaborative, are great strengths of the university.
The Equality Act of 2010 protects the rights of our students and staff and provides a framework to fulfil our duties to eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and in addition, to advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between those who share a protected characteristic and those who do not. At times, this will include balancing rights and beliefs that can feel in tension.
We are committed to free speech and to academic freedom, believing that our foundational purpose as a university, is to create spaces where a wide range of ideas, including ideas that are controversial, can be discussed and debated, and where members of our community can express lawful views without fear of intimidation, harassment or discrimination.
When engaging in the robust exchange of ideas, we ask that our community is mindful of our Dignity at King’s guidance.
We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the person specification section of the job description. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is evolving rapidly, and we recognise its growing role in professional work. Applicants may use AI tools to support preparation of their application, for example to research the role or structure written responses. However, applications must reflect the applicant’s own work and experience. AI tools should not be used during interviews or assessment activities unless this has been agreed in advance as a reasonable adjustment. Further guidance on the use of AI in recruitment can be found here.
We reserve the right to close adverts early due to the volume of applications we receive. While the closing date may change, all adverts will close at 23:59 to allow sufficient time for applications to be submitted on that day.
We encourage you to apply at the earliest opportunity to avoid disappointment as once we have closed a vacancy you will be unable to submit your application.
To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’ pages.
IMPORTANT: Before applying for this role, please make sure you have the right to work in the country where the role is based. Unless it clearly stipulates within in the job advert above that the hiring company is looking to or able to sponsor applicants it is deemed that the hiring employer will only consider applications from those able to comply with and work in the country where the role is based.
