Railway Senior System Engineer

Mission

The Senior Railway System Engineer leads the design, integration, and validation of complex railway systems, ensuring the delivery of safe, reliable, and efficient transportation solutions in alignment with client and regulatory requirements.
This role provides technical leadership across multidisciplinary teams, contributing to the success of national and international railway programs.
The position combines deep system-level expertise with project management and mentoring responsibilities, ensuring that engineering outputs meet the highest quality, safety, and performance standards.

Key Accountabilities

System Design & Architecture
- Lead the definition of system-level requirements, architecture, and functional interfaces across rolling stock, signaling, infrastructure, and power supply domains.
- Oversee the design and configuration of complex railway systems, ensuring compliance with applicable standards (CENELEC, IEC, UIC, etc.).
- Provide technical authority and decision-making for key design and configuration issues.
- Supervise and review the technical work of junior and mid-level engineers, ensuring accuracy and quality.
- Drive innovation and propose optimized design solutions to enhance system performance and cost-effectiveness.
System Integration
- Manage and coordinate integration across multiple railway subsystems (e.g., ETCS/ERTMS, CBTC, traction power, telecom).
- Ensure interoperability between legacy and new systems, managing interface control documentation and integration testing strategies.
- Define and validate integration procedures to ensure technical coherence throughout the project lifecycle.
- Collaborate with clients, suppliers, and stakeholders to resolve complex technical issues and ensure seamless integration across domains.
Performance Optimization
- Analyze and optimize overall system performance parameters (capacity, RAMS, energy efficiency, maintainability).
- Lead system simulations, data analytics, and operational studies to support performance enhancement.
- Propose corrective and preventive measures for system optimization during design and operation phases.
Verification & Validation (V&V)
- Define and manage the complete V&V strategy, ensuring alignment with standards such as EN 50126/8/9.
- Review and approve verification plans, test protocols, and validation results.
- Lead factory and on-site testing (FAT, SAT) and ensure conformity with contractual and regulatory requirements.
- Interface with safety assessors, notified bodies, and certification authorities.
Lifecycle Management
- Oversee configuration management, obsolescence management, and system upgrade programs.
- Contribute to asset management strategies and lifecycle cost evaluations.
- Ensure system documentation and traceability throughout design, commissioning, and maintenance phases.
- Support clients in modernization and performance improvement programs.
Digitalization & Smart Rail Technologies
- Drive the adoption of digital technologies in railway projects (IoT, AI, Big Data, predictive analytics).
- Lead the implementation of Digital Twin, remote monitoring, and smart signaling initiatives.
- Evaluate and integrate emerging technologies to enhance railway automation and system intelligence.
Leadership & Strategic Contribution
- Lead and mentor multidisciplinary engineering teams, fostering technical excellence and continuous improvement.
- Exercise independent judgement and initiative in defining and implementing engineering goals.
- Provide input on team composition, performance assessment, and recruitment within the discipline (with divisional approval).
- Represent the engineering function in internal and external technical reviews, client meetings, and conferences.
- Contribute to company strategy through technical reports, concept papers, and presentations.

Education

Qualifications

'- 10+ years of professional experience mainly in railway systems engineering, covering multiple lifecycle phases (concept, design, integration, commissioning, operation).
- Advanced expertise in at least one of the following domains and solid understanding of all others:
Rolling Stock Systems: traction, braking, TCMS, onboard ETCS/CBTC
Signaling & Train Control: ERTMS/ETCS, CBTC, PTC, interlocking
Power Supply & Electrification: 25kV AC, 3kV DC, 750V DC
Infrastructure & Track Systems: conventional, metro, light rail, high-speed rail
- Mastery of Systems Engineering and Integration methodologies (V-Model, requirements management, interface control).
- Deep knowledge of CENELEC Standards (EN 50126, EN 50128, EN 50129) and related safety processes.
- Experience with:
Systems tools: DOORS, Enterprise Architect
RAMS tools: FMECA, FTA, ReliaSoft
Simulation/Design: MATLAB, Simulink, CATIA
- Strong communication, facilitation, and leadership skills.
- Proven experience leading multidisciplinary teams and managing client relationships.
- Fluent in English; proficiency in a second European language (Italian, French, or Spanish) is highly desirable.

Competencies