Principal Naval Architect

Senior / Principal Naval Architect

• Location: Fareham (Hybrid Working Available)
• Employment Type: Permanent, Full-time
• Salary: £60,000 - £80,000 Base Salary + Benefits

We are currently expanding our Naval Architecture capability and seeking experienced Senior and Principal Naval Architects (5+ years' experience) to join a forward-thinking Marine team.
This is an excellent opportunity to contribute to a diverse project portfolio including Crew Transfer Vessels, Service Operations Vessels, ferries, patrol boats, workboats, and landing craft.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead multi-disciplinary teams to develop hull forms and carry out vessel performance assessments.
• Conduct lightship weight analysis, propulsion system selection, and seakeeping assessments (model testing and analytical).
• Undertake intact and damage stability assessments, structural arrangement development, and 3D render support for tender submissions.
• Engage directly with clients to define technical requirements and lead the design process.
• Collaborate internally with sales, programme delivery, and engineering teams to ensure project quality and timely delivery.
• Support usability, safety, and compliance through lifecycle engineering, validation, and verification activities.

About the Role

This role is nominally based in Fareham, with hybrid working (3 days in office) encouraged. Travel to customer sites or meetings will occasionally be required. Flexible and part-time working arrangements will be considered.

About You

You will hold a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Naval Architecture and have a strong practical background in marine vessel design and delivery. Experience with classification society rules and practical shipbuilding experience is desirable.

You should be confident with:

• Hull design, performance prediction, model testing, and sea-keeping analysis
• Developing tank plans and arrangement drawings
• Applying relevant codes, standards, and regulations
• Using tools such as AutoCAD, Maxsurf, and other naval architecture software

Experience with various vessel types and hull forms (e.g. high-speed catamarans, monohulls, SWATH, SES, Pentamaran) is beneficial.
You'll bring commercial awareness, a high level of initiative, and a strong sense of accountability. Experience in project management, team supervision, and quality checking is expected. Strong interpersonal and client-facing communication skills are essential.

Benefits

• Private medical coverage (including family)
• Enhanced pension contributions
• 18 weeks enhanced maternity pay (after 1 year service)
• 26 days holiday plus bank holidays, with trading options
• Professional membership subscriptions
• Retail discounts

Services advertised by Gold Group are those of an Agency and/or an Employment Business.
We will contact you within the next 14 days if you are selected for interview. For a copy of our privacy policy please visit our website.