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Hypersonica is building Europe's hypersonic defence capability. This is a regional leadership role to establish and own health, safety, and environmental (HSE) capability across Hypersonica's German operations spanning R&D, manufacturing, assembly, test, and production activities.
You will build the German HSE management system from zero, translating German occupational health, safety, and environmental requirements into practical controls that engineers, technicians, and operators can use. This is not inheriting a mature corporate safety function—you will establish systems, controls, and culture as the business scales rapidly.
Key responsibilities include:
- Define and implement HSE management systems, standards, and operating procedures without unnecessary bureaucracy
- Lead workplace and process risk assessments across machinery, lifting operations, pressure systems, electrical work, hazardous substances, work at height, laboratories, and production
- Establish safe systems of work, permit-to-work controls, contractor management, emergency arrangements, and incident reporting
- Build machinery and equipment safety controls including guarding, isolation, lockout/tagout, and commissioning evidence
- Own incident and near-miss investigations, identifying root causes and driving permanent improvements
- Define HSE requirements for new sites and facility changes, supporting design reviews and operational handover
- Establish proportionate controls for prototype and R&D activity, balancing experimentation speed with disciplined risk management
- Develop training and competency programmes that are concise, relevant, and respected by technical teams
- Lead engagement with German authorities, insurers, auditors, contractors, and Berufsgenossenschaften
- Work with specialists on energetic materials, explosives, and major-hazard activity
- Build the future German HSE team, determining which capabilities sit internally versus externally
- Collaborate with UK counterpart and Group leadership to maintain standards across regions
- Travel to other Hypersonica locations, suppliers, and test sites as needed
You will work directly with Engineering, Manufacturing, Facilities, Quality, Security, and Operations, getting close enough to the work to understand real risk rather than managing from a distance. This is a role where you operate autonomously as the senior German HSE authority, with short decision paths and genuine ownership over how safety is embedded into new facilities and operations.
REQUIREMENTS:
- Senior HSE leader with significant experience in complex manufacturing, engineering, R&D, test, or production environments
- Proven track record building or materially transforming an HSE function (not just maintaining mature systems)
- Deeply practical; comfortable spending time in workshops, laboratories, production areas, and commissioning environments
- Strong working knowledge of German occupational health, safety, and environmental requirements for industrial and engineering operations
- Experienced with machinery safety, hazardous substances, contractor management, inspections, and incident management
- Comfortable with German requirements including workplace risk assessment, safe operation of work equipment, and hazardous-material controls
- Credible with engineers and operational leaders; able to challenge unsafe decisions while finding practical solutions
- Experienced supporting new-facility design, equipment commissioning, production readiness, or operational mobilisation
- Strong at incident investigation and root-cause analysis
- Comfortable establishing proportionate controls for fast-moving R&D and prototype activity without lowering the bar on serious risk
- Calm and decisive under pressure with sound judgement to distinguish manageable engineering risk from activity that must stop immediately
- Comfortable operating autonomously as senior German HSE authority
- Clear and concise in communication, documentation, and training
- Background in aerospace, defence, advanced manufacturing, automotive, motorsport, energy, chemicals, or similar high-consequence engineering environment
- Exposure to energetic materials, explosives, hazardous substances, or major-hazard environments particularly valuable
- Motivated by building a safety culture where high standards increase programme velocity rather than becoming an obstacle
- Must be able to meet nationality, security, and clearance requirements applicable to defence programmes
