GE Aerospace Manufacturing Engineering – 12 Month Placement

Job Description Summary

In the 12-month Manufacturing Engineering Placement, you'll gain invaluable skills and experience covering all aspects of manufacturing engineering from production to Lean Six Sigma through research and development.

Job Description

About GE Aerospace

Are you ready to see your future take flight? At GE Aerospace, we are advancing aviation technologies for today and tomorrow. Your work will contribute to the production of advanced jet engines, components, and integrated systems that power commercial and military aircraft. You’ll be part of a team that embraces your drive, your curiosity, and your unique ideas and perspectives. Most importantly, you’ll share in our pride and purpose that affects the lives of millions around the world!

Manufacturing is key to our work at GE Aerospace. Consistently going above and beyond, our Manufacturing teams organize and direct the production of components and assemblies to the highest standards. If you want a hands-on opportunity to advance flight for future generations, this is the team for you.

Roles and Responsibilities

We have several placement roles within Manufacturing Engineering:

• Manufacturing Engineering – Power (Cheltenham) - you’ll be defining and controlling production processes, including the required tooling and equipment; validating design specifications and the implementation of new products, tools, and equipment on the shop floor; and driving accountability through regular operating rhythms to ensure manufacturing engineering activities support production needs. The role evaluates and enhances quality control processes, analyses and reports on production performance (including methods, schedules, downtime, cycle times, machine availability, and waste), and acts as a key stakeholder in the selection and approval of new equipment in line with best practices. It also ensures compliance with relevant policies and regulations, coordinates maintenance and repair activities to keep equipment operational, and identifies and leads improvement projects that deliver cost savings and reductions in direct labour time.

• Project Manufacturing Engineering (Cheltenham) - contribute to Manufacturing Engineering activities and projects, supported by structured technical training in areas such as Lean, Six Sigma, Statistical Process Control, problem solving, PFMEA, value stream mapping, process flow diagramming, root cause analysis, mechanical concepts, and materials behaviour. In line with our 2027 roadmap, they will participate in projects. You will also help develop Standard Operating Procedures and support local process improvement (Kaizen) initiatives. Throughout the placement, their learning and project involvement.

• NPI Manufacturing Engineering (Dowty) - you will gain hands‑on experience across the full spectrum of manufacturing engineering, from production and Lean Six Sigma to research and development. You will support activities such as engineering design, production planning, materials management, cost‑reduction projects, problem solving, and the introduction of new products and technologies, including 3D printing and advanced manufacturing methods. Typical responsibilities can include helping to introduce and prototype new technologies, tracking New Product Introduction projects and their impact on business growth, working closely with shop floor teams and other departments to coordinate production and logistics, collecting and analysing data on labour, process stability, and performance metrics, supporting yield improvement initiatives with metallic and composite manufacturing teams, designing tooling and prototypes using CAD/3D modelling software, standardising documentation to improve efficiency and sharing of best practices, and building a strong understanding of shop floor processes and how they interconnect.

You will be guided by structured goals and objectives and will have responsibility to deliver on inspiring projects supported by your People Leader and team around you. We will guide you throughout the year to ensure you make the best of your GE Aerospace experience. Your People Leader will offer coaching and mentoring, and you will be provided with the opportunity to connect with other placement students across the UK.

This Manufacturing Engineering team opportunity is offered in our Cheltenham and Gloucester (Dowty, a GE Aerospace company) sites, during the process we will ask you to share your location and team preferences.

Please identify the location that suits you best based on geography but also based on what the site does.

With over 1,700 employees, GE Aerospace based in Cheltenham is one of the largest sites outside the USA and a major contributor to the local economy.

Our heritage dates back to 1940 yet our technology is cutting-edge. Located in the heart of Gloucestershire, the Power Distribution & Controls (PD&C) site focuses on the design, development and manufacture of state-of-the-art aircraft power distribution and avionics systems for the global aviation industry. Our customers include all major aerospace manufacturers - covering commercial, business jet and military applications. The scale and complexity of engineering projects offer our employees unique opportunities to work on major international projects, developing critical aircraft systems that will be relied on by many people for decades to come.

At GE Aerospace we strive to be an employer of choice by offering internships, apprenticeships, mentoring and staff development programmes that create a workplace where everyone can be themselves and achieve their full potential. 

Innovation, a commitment to engineering excellence and leadership development places GE Aerospace based in Cheltenham as a pioneering force in building the future of flight. 

Dowty, a GE Aerospace company, is based in Gloucestershire. It is a world-leading supplier of electronically controlled, composite propeller systems for A wide range of civil and military applications, including commercial airliners and military airlifters to multi-role seaplanes and marine hovercraft.

Key programs include the Lockheed Martin C-130J, the De-Haviland, Dash 8-400 and the Leonardo C-27J.

Operated by a highly skilled workforce, Dowty’s’ in-house production expertise for composite blades includes application of resin transfer moulding processes, which have been continuously evolved and perfected since 1976; and the use of braiding machines that rapidly and accurately apply the blades’ fibre outer layers

If you are passionate about Manufacturing Engineering, we would like to hear from you.

This placement role is an intended pipeline for our Operations Management Leadership Programme (OMLP) which is based across many of our UK sites or our Manufacturing Engineering Leadership Programme (MEDP). Towards the end of the placement year, we will open graduate applications for our current placement students with an aim to secure a role prior to the end of their placement year.

Meaning, you can head back into your final year at university with a graduate job offer in hand. All you need to do is secure a 2,1 degree or above!

Qualifications/Requirements

• Currently studying an Engineering related bachelor’s or an integrated master’s degree including Manufacturing, Aerospace/Aeronautical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Automotive Engineering, Mechanical Design (Engineering), Materials Science & Engineering, Robotics and Mechatronics or General Engineering

• On course t to achieve a 2:1 degree or above

• 3D printing and CAD design is a plus

• To be in your penultimate year of study and returning to education post placement

Desired Characteristics

• Able to roll up your sleeves and get involved in projects

• Organised & able to work towards deadlines

• Inspired and curious to learn

• Strong verbal and written communication skills

• Able to take ownership for projects

• Analytical and problem-solving skills

• Proficient in Microsoft Office

• Able to work as part of a team

A placement at GE Aerospace is an opportunity to learn while doing. At GE Aerospace, you’ll work with business leaders in an atmosphere that will develop you, while doing work that makes an immediate impact.

Total Reward 

At GE Aerospace we understand the importance of Total Reward. Our flexible benefits plan, called FlexChoice, gives you freedom, choice, and flexibility in the way you receive your benefits, as well as giving you the opportunity to make savings where possible.   

As a new joiner to GE, we are pleased to be able to offer you the following as default in your benefit fund, which you then can tailor to meet your individual needs.  

• Non-contributory Pension             

• Life Assurance  

• Group income protection               

• Private medical cover       

• Holiday Hourly equivalent of 26 days, with flexible options to buy or sell  

Recruitment Process 

As part of our recruitment process, you will be required to submit an initial CV application. After this, the stages include a video interview, testing and MS Teams online interview. Our recruitment team will be in touch with you at every stage to keep you updated and understand what is next in the process.

If you require any adjustments to the process to enable you to be at your best, please email the team via UKEarly.Careers@geaerospace.com. 

Please note our applications will close on Saturday 31st October but may close earlier dependant on application volumes. We would encourage you to apply as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. 

Please only submit one application. If you submit multiple applications, we will progress the most suitable one. If in future you are deemed to be suitable for other opportunities, we will automatically consider you for these too.

Security Clearance

Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) clearance is required and must be maintained for this role. Please note that in the event that BPSS clearance cannot be obtained, you may not be eligible for the role and/or any offer of employment may be withdrawn on grounds of national security. Please see the link below for further details regarding the requirements for BPSS clearance: BPSS.

Right to Work 

Applications from job seekers who require sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. However, under the applicable UK immigration rules as may be in place from time to time, it may be that candidates who do not currently have the right to work in the UK may not be appointed to a post if a suitably qualified, experienced and skilled candidate who does not require sponsorship is available to take up the post.

Further, sponsorship is not available for our Early Careers opportunities. Our placement roles are pipeline for our graduate roles so you would need the permanent right to work to be eligible. For further information please visit the UK Visas and Immigration website.  

Whether we are manufacturing components for our engines, driving innovation in fuel and noise reduction, or unlocking new opportunities to grow and deliver more productivity, our GE Aerospace teams are dedicated and making a global impact. Join us and help move the aerospace industry forward.