Embedded Firmware Engineer

Orion Group Life Sciences are currently recruiting a Senior Embedded Firmware Engineer on behalf of our Multinational Biopharmaceutical Client based in Cambourne, UK on an initial 2-year contract with potential to extend. Hybrid role. Role Description Our Technology Solutions division is evolving towards a Product Operating Model - a way of working that empowers product teams to take full ownership and accountability for delivering customer and business value. Our product and platform teams are cross-functional and collaborative, bringing together the skills required to deliver impactful outcomes. Each team includes a Product Manager, Technology Lead, Product Designer, Delivery Lead, engineers and developers. We believe in customer centricity, ownership and accountability. Solutions must be:

• Valuable - customers choose to buy or use them.
• Viable - aligned with business constraints and goals.
• Usable - intuitive and user-friendly.
• Feasible - achievable with our technical capabilities.

Leadership of the Product team is shared between the Product Manager and Technology Lead, providing balanced guidance that connects product vision with technical execution. The team will develop and deliver future generations of the Vence Collar, a multidisciplinary connected product with an advanced system architecture and demanding low-power, sensing and wireless requirements. Short delivery cycles and direct customer feedback will provide clear visibility of the impact of your work. As an Embedded Firmware Engineer, you will have a significant impact on multidisciplinary R&D projects, contribute to the development of new technologies and support the connected-device product line throughout both discovery and delivery. You will design, develop, debug and optimise robust, production-ready firmware for resource-constrained, low-power IoT devices, working closely with hardware, systems, integration, test and wider product engineering teams. Role Functions Functions include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Design, develop, debug and optimise embedded firmware for low-power, STM32-based IoT devices.
• Develop robust and maintainable firmware suitable for production deployment.
• Integrate GNSS modules, LoRa/LoRaWAN connectivity and a range of hardware peripherals.
• Develop embedded software within an RTOS environment, preferably FreeRTOS.
• Work closely with hardware engineers to integrate firmware with microcontrollers, sensors, communications modules and other embedded components.
• Develop and troubleshoot communication interfaces including I2C, SPI, ADC, DAC, PWM and external EEPROM.
• Perform embedded debugging, fault investigation and root-cause analysis.
• Support firmware verification, validation, integration and production release activities.
• Contribute to technical design discussions, code reviews and continuous improvement activities.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary product and platform teams across the UK, Israel and the United States.
• Communicate technical progress, risks, issues and blockers clearly to relevant stakeholders.
• Contribute to the delivery of reliable, maintainable and production-ready embedded solutions.

The position requires strong practical embedded engineering capability, sound technical judgement and the ability to work effectively with software, hardware, systems, integration and test stakeholders. Embedded Software

• Approximately 5 years of professional experience developing embedded systems using C/C++.
• Strong understanding of embedded software development principles and practices.
• Proven experience delivering production-ready embedded firmware.

Microcontrollers

• Strong hands-on experience with STM microcontrollers, specifically STM32.
• Experience with embedded debugging and troubleshooting at both software and system level.

Low-Power Systems

• Proven experience developing ultra-low-power, battery-operated devices.
• Understanding of power consumption optimisation and power management within resource-constrained embedded systems.

GNSS & Wireless Connectivity

• Experience integrating GNSS modules into embedded products.
• Experience implementing, integrating or troubleshooting LoRa or LoRaWAN communications.
• Understanding of wireless connectivity considerations within low-power IoT products.

Hardware Interfaces & Peripherals

• Strong understanding of:

• I2C
• SPI
• ADC
• DAC
• PWM
• External EEPROM
• Ability to work effectively alongside hardware engineers and interpret hardware-level issues during firmware development and debugging.

RTOS & Development Tools

• Professional experience working with an RTOS, preferably FreeRTOS.
• Proficiency with VS Code and/or STM32CubeIDE.
• Experience with standard embedded development, debugging and source-control workflows.

Working Style

• Self-motivated, pragmatic and organised.
• Able to work autonomously while maintaining strong communication with the wider team.
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Comfortable working within multidisciplinary and geographically distributed engineering teams.
• Able to communicate technical decisions, progress, risks and blockers clearly.
• Strong focus on quality, reliability, maintainability and delivery., * Approximately 5 years of embedded software engineering experience using C/C++.
• Hands-on experience with STM32 microcontrollers and embedded debugging.
• Proven experience delivering low-power firmware for battery-operated devices.
• Experience with GNSS, LoRa or LoRaWAN, embedded peripherals and an RTOS.
• Strong understanding of embedded hardware interfaces including I2C, SPI, ADC, DAC and PWM.
• Ability to work independently and deliver production-ready, maintainable firmware.
• Experience collaborating with hardware, systems, integration and test engineering teams.

Desirable Skills & Experience

• Experience with u-blox M10 or newer GNSS architectures.
• Familiarity with oscilloscopes, logic analysers, multimeters and J-Link or ST-Link debugging tools.
• Experience with Git and collaborative software development workflows.
• Ability to read and interpret hardware schematics and PCB layouts.
• Experience working on connected, IoT or battery-powered products.
• Experience using AI-assisted development tools such as GitHub Copilot or comparable tools.

Orion Group was founded in 1987 and is now one of the largest, independent, international recruitment companies. We have a network of 200 employees working from 24 offices, delivering a range of services - Talent Acquisition, Recruitment Outsourcing Services, Retained Search, Global Workforce Solutions, Completions & Commissioning and Materials Management - across 68 countries. As a global leader in workforce solutions, we recruit personnel across the Engineering & Technical, Office & Commercial, Scientific and Skilled Trades disciplines, for sectors including Oil & Gas, Life Science, Power & Utilities, Constructions & Infrastructure, Manufacturing and Renewables.