Research Assistant in Digital Manufacturing

Job description:

Help build the "Smart Lab" of the future at the UK’s National Institute for Advanced Materials.

Are you a digital specialist looking to apply your skills to world-class manufacturing challenges? We have an exciting opportunity for a Research Assistant to join Royce at Sheffield and support the digital transformation of our research capabilities.

About Royce at Sheffield: 

The Henry Royce Institute is the UK's national centre for advanced materials research and innovation. At Sheffield, we lead on Advanced Metals Processing, managing over £43 million of unique facilities. We are not just a university lab; we are a powerhouse of innovation that accelerates materials from the discovery phase right through to industrial production.

Our facilities, including the Royce Translational Centre and Royce Discovery Centre, are equipped with industrial-grade equipment rarely found in a UK academic setting. We work with the biggest names in aerospace, nuclear, and energy to solve global challenges, from decarbonisation to sustainable manufacturing.

We are seeking someone who can help bridge the physical and the digital. You will work across our sites to help connect our advanced equipment, such as our Hot Rolling Mills, Vacuum Induction Melters, and Arc Melting Furnaces, into a cohesive digital network.

Our goal is to create a "connected laboratory" where sensors from different platforms talk to one another. You will help build the dashboards and Digital Twins that allow our researchers to visualise complex processes in real-time, unlocking new insights into material behaviour.

What We Are Looking For 

We need someone who is comfortable working at the intersection of hardware and software. You will ideally have:

• A qualification in engineering, computer science, or a related field.
• Practical experience building data dashboards to visualise technical data.
• The ability to connect physical IoT sensors to digital networks and experience with scripting languages like Matlab, Python or SQL.
• A proactive approach to problem-solving and a willingness to learn how heavy manufacturing equipment operates.

Why Join Us?

• World-Class Environment: You will work with the best equipment in the country, in a facility with a global reputation for excellence.
• The University of Sheffield: You will be joining a world top-100 Russell Group university, renowned for its friendly, inclusive community. Sheffield is one of the UK’s greenest and most affordable cities, offering a fantastic quality of life alongside your career.
• Impact: Your work will directly support research into greener, stronger, and lighter materials that shape our future.
• Benefits: 38 days annual leave (including bank holidays and closure days), a generous pension scheme, and a supportive, inclusive community.

Next Steps 

If you are ready to digitise the future of manufacturing, apply today.

We build teams of people from different heritages and lifestyles from across the world, whose talent and contributions complement each other to greatest effect. We believe diversity in all its forms delivers greater impact through research, teaching and student experience.

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