Geometrical Product Specification (GPS) Manager

The GPS Manager is accountable for leading the Geometrical Product Specification (GPS) function across McLaren Automotive, ensuring the effective deployment, governance and adoption of GPS standards throughout product development, supplier integration and manufacturing operations.

The role provides functional leadership for a team of GPS Champions and Specialists and DVA CAD Designers, establishing the processes, capability and governance required to ensure consistent application of dimensional engineering principles, tolerance management and engineering definition standards across all vehicle programmes.

Through close collaboration with Engineering, Manufacturing, Quality, Purchasing and Suppliers, the GPS Manager ensures robust engineering definitions are established that support product quality, manufacturing capability, inspection effectiveness and right-first-time programme delivery.

This function is crucial to integrate major vehicle systems; its outputs provide a common understanding of the GPS language and a “right first time” approach to preventing problems before they happen.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead, develop and manage the GPS function, including ER and CR workload planning, performance management, resource deployment and capability development.
• Establish departmental objectives and performance metrics aligned to business and programme requirements.
• Develop and maintain a network of GPS Champions across Engineering, Manufacturing and Supplier organisations.
• Build organisational capability through structured training, mentoring and coaching programmes.
• Ensure succession planning and technical competency development within the GPS team.
• Develop and coordinate the deployment of the “Golden Parts” Library.
• Define and manage the standards for GPS application in 2D & 3D CAD and 1D McLaren Tolerance Calculator, including ownership of training guides and methods.
• In addition to training all relevant stakeholders, identify, train and mentor “McLaren GPS Champions” to develop a broad network of high competency.
• Provide “at-elbow” drawing and GPS standards support to relevant stakeholders to ensure correct application, thereby setting the overall engineering assembly concept.
• Ensure cost, manufacture, inspection, and maintenance concerns are addressed within the dimensions and tolerances of Engineering definitions.
• GPS Governance & Standards Ownership.
• Own and govern McLaren Automotive GPS standards, methodologies, processes and training materials.
• Ensure engineering definitions are compliant with recognised industry standards, including BS 8888 and associated GPS frameworks.
• Lead the implementation and deployment of new GPS standards and methodologies across the organisation and supply chain.
• Define governance processes and quality gates to ensure compliance with engineering definition requirements.
• Programme Delivery.
• Provide GPS leadership across all vehicle programmes from concept development through launch and series production.
• Ensure dimensional and tolerance requirements support product functionality, manufacturability, including inspectional perspectives.
• Act as the escalation point for complex GPS and tolerance-related issues affecting programme delivery.
• Lead cross-functional reviews to ensure robust engineering assembly strategies are established and maintained.
• Supplier & Manufacturing Integration.
• Drive GPS adoption and capability development across the supplier network.
• Support the SQD team to ensure suppliers apply approved GPS methodologies and dimensional management practices.
• Support manufacturing, tooling and quality teams in developing effective measurement, validation and process control strategies.
• Support initiatives to improve supplier dimensional capability and engineering definition maturity.
• Support root cause analysis and issue resolution for relevant drawing / component tolerance problems.
• Ensure previous lessons learned are raised, addressed and embedded in future process, thus developing optimal design solutions.
• Continuous Improvement & Technical Authority.
• Lead root cause investigations relating to engineering definition, dimensional variation and tolerance-related issues.
• Embed lessons learned into standards, training and future programme activities.
• Identify opportunities to improve engineering quality, reduce programme risk and enhance manufacturing efficiency through improved GPS application.
• Develop a thorough understanding of best practice tooling philosophies in the Engineering, Manufacturing and Quality teams.
• Represent McLaren Automotive as the functional authority for GPS best practice internally and externally.

Requirements:

• A degree in mechanical / automotive engineering or similar (2:1 or above) and a minimum of 5 years equivalent experience in a similar role.
• 3 Years+ experience of delivering and developing technical training.
• Proficient in a 3D CAD system, preferably CATIA V5.
• 3DCS Tolerance analysis software, or similar.
• Expert-level competence in GPS and its application in accordance with BS 8888:2020.
• Demonstrable experience leading and developing technical engineering teams.
• Expert understanding of BS 8888 and Geometrical Product Specification standards.
• Strong knowledge of product development, manufacturing processes and vehicle assembly strategies.
• Experience establishing governance frameworks, technical standards and organisational capability programmes.
• Proven ability to influence senior stakeholders across multiple business functions.
• Strong analytical and structured problem-solving capability.
• 8D or Practical Problem Solving (PPS) ability.
• Methodical approach to work with strong analytical skills.
• Self-starter capable of using initiative.

Personal Attributes:

• You will naturally have an understanding and appreciation for low volume vehicle production and brand requirements.
• As the GPS Manager, you will naturally have an aptitude to learn and develop the technical ability of other employees throughout the McLaren Automotive business and extended enterprise.
• We work in a fast-paced environment so the ability to act under pressure with calmness, clarity of thought, and decisive authority is crucial.
• You may be required to travel to off-site development facilities, within the UK and throughout Europe, therefore a flexible approach to travel is required.

What We Offer:

• Structured career development framework.
• 25 days’ holiday, plus bank holiday.
• Annual buy & sell up to five days.
• Enhanced company pension scheme.
• Discretionary annual bonus award.
• Private medical insurance and health cash plan.
• Life assurance benefit.
• Ability to apply for a sabbatical of up to one year after only two years’ service.
• Benefits you can adapt to your lifestyle, such as discounted shopping.
• Generous parental leave policies.
• A range of wellbeing initiatives, such as employee assistance programme and free financial & mortgage advice.