Job Description:

Continuous Improvement Engineer

Location: Sittingbourne, Kent
Hours: Monday–Thursday 7:30am–4:00pm, Friday early finish

£competitive + benefits

Contact: Emily or Sammy, Pearson Whiffin Recruitment

Please note: Candidates must have the right to work in the UK without sponsorship.

A growing, highly specialised manufacturing business in Kent is looking for a Continuous Improvement Engineer who genuinely enjoys making things better, not just talking about improvement in meetings.

This is a role for someone who likes being out on the shop floor, challenging processes, solving problems properly and getting buy-in from teams across the business. You’ll be joining a company that is investing heavily in improvement, modernisation and long-term growth, where your ideas won’t disappear into a spreadsheet and never be actioned.

You’ll work closely with operational, engineering and quality teams to identify inefficiencies, improve processes and help drive a stronger continuous improvement culture across the site. The business operates within a complex, precision-led manufacturing environment, so this role would suit someone who enjoys technical challenges and can balance hands-on practicality with analytical thinking.

What you’ll be doing:

• Leading and supporting Lean and CI projects across manufacturing operations
• Driving improvements around efficiency, waste reduction, workflow and productivity
• Using structured problem-solving tools to investigate recurring issues and implement long-term fixes
• Working directly with shop-floor teams to improve processes and standards
• Supporting Kaizen activities, visual management and process mapping
• Analysing operational data and KPIs to identify trends and opportunities
• Helping embed a proactive, improvement-focused mindset across the business

What we’re looking for:

• Experience within a manufacturing, engineering or production environment
• Strong understanding of Lean / Continuous Improvement methodologies
• Someone practical and hands-on who enjoys being visible on the shop floor
• Experience using tools such as 5 Why, 8D, DMAIC, Kaizen or Six Sigma
• Confidence influencing people across different departments and levels
• A proactive mindset with the ability to challenge processes constructively
• Strong communication and problem-solving skills

Lean qualifications or Six Sigma accreditation would be beneficial, but attitude and approach are just as important as certifications.

Why this role stands out:

• Genuine opportunity to influence change and see the impact of your work
• Growing business with strong investment and ambitious plans
• Collaborative environment where improvement ideas are listened to
• Early finish Fridays
• Long-term progression and development opportunities
• Varied role with a mix of strategic improvement and hands-on involvement

This role would suit someone currently working as a Continuous Improvement Engineer, Manufacturing Engineer, Process Engineer, Lean Engineer or similar within a technical manufacturing environment.

METPERM