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Pennon Group
Pennon Group

Maintenance Reliability Manager

Exeter On-site 10+ yrs exp
Reliability engineeringMaintenance strategyAsset managementReliability Centred MaintenanceFMECA

Requirements

The ideal candidate is a senior reliability professional with significant experience in asset-intensive industries and expertise in RCM and FMECA methodologies. You must possess strong stakeholder management skills and hold a degree or equivalent qualification in engineering, asset management, or a related discipline.

Job Description

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Powered by Water, Driven by Purpose

At Pennon Group, we’re proud to serve communities while protecting the environment. Together with our subsidiaries, South West Water, Bristol Water, Bournemouth Water, SES Water, Pennon Water Services and Pennon Power, we’re leading the way in water and renewables.

We’re proud to be recognised as a leader in the UK water sector, working towards a greener future. Our goals? As well as lowering our carbon footprint, we’re working with partners to plant 300,000 trees, restore peatlands and supporting farmers and landowners to improve water quality and wildlife.

Whether you’re starting out or seeking a new challenge, our scale and ambition create opportunities for you to shape your own career.

Ready to make a splash? Join our team today.


Help Shape the Future of Asset Reliability

At Pennon Group, we're transforming how we manage and maintain our critical infrastructure assets. We're looking for an experienced Asset Maintenance Reliability Manager to lead the development of our maintenance reliability strategy, ensuring we make smarter, risk-based decisions that improve asset performance, resilience and whole-life value.

This is a highly influential role where you'll act as the Group's technical authority for maintenance reliability, helping to drive the shift from reactive maintenance towards data-driven, predictive and reliability-centred approaches across a diverse and complex asset portfolio.

What you'll be doing:

You'll take ownership of the frameworks, methodologies and standards that underpin maintenance reliability across the Group, ensuring maintenance interventions are aligned to asset risk, criticality and performance objectives.

Key responsibilities include:

  • Developing and governing Pennon's maintenance reliability framework.

  • Leading the application of Reliability Centred Maintenance (RCM), FMECA and asset criticality methodologies.

  • Creating risk-based maintenance strategies that optimise asset performance and reduce unnecessary maintenance activity.

  • Translating reliability analysis into practical maintenance requirements and interventions.

  • Establishing the right balance between preventive, predictive, condition-based, corrective and run-to-failure maintenance approaches.

  • Driving continuous improvement through the analysis of asset performance, maintenance history and operational feedback.

  • Working closely with engineering, operations and asset management teams to embed best practice across the Group.

  • Coaching and developing colleagues to build capability in reliability engineering and maintenance strategy.

What we're looking for:

We're seeking a senior reliability professional who combines technical expertise with strong strategic thinking and stakeholder management skills.

You'll bring:

  • Significant experience in reliability engineering, maintenance strategy or asset management within an asset-intensive industry.

  • Strong knowledge of Reliability Centred Maintenance (RCM), FMECA and risk-based maintenance development.

  • Experience applying asset criticality and failure-mode analysis to develop effective maintenance strategies.

  • A detailed understanding of failure behaviour and intervention selection.

  • The ability to challenge traditional maintenance approaches and drive evidence-based decision making.

  • Experience developing technical standards, governance frameworks and engineering methodologies.

  • Excellent influencing and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to work across a broad range of teams and disciplines.

  • Degree, higher apprenticeship or equivalent experience in engineering, asset management, maintenance or a related discipline.

  • Professional qualifications or accreditation in reliability, maintenance or asset management would be advantageous.

  • Proven experience delivering reliability and maintenance strategy improvements in a complex operational environment.

Why join us?

This is a unique opportunity to influence maintenance and reliability practices across an essential infrastructure business. You'll play a key role in improving asset performance, reducing risk and helping deliver better outcomes for our customers, communities and environment.

  • Generous holiday allowance + bank holidays

  • Discretionary bonus scheme

  • Competitive contributory pension

  • Share-save scheme

  • A range of health and wellbeing benefits

  • Wellbeing and employee support programmes

  • Access to a wide range of discounts

  • Cycle to Work Scheme

  • Financial support services
    …and more!


Closing Date: 23rd November 2026

We may close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of applications. We encourage you to apply as soon as possible.

Please note that the successful candidate will be subject to a mandatory DBS check as part of the onboarding process.

Be yourself, we like it that way. Together, we will build a culture of belonging, where inclusion is instinctive. Diversity is our strength and a reflection of our communities. We care, we value everyone, we celebrate uniqueness.

Our core values, which are essential to our success, are:

Be Rock Solid - Build trust and be trusted. Be the one we all look to and can depend on.

Be You - We want you to bring your best everyday. Be yourself and make your mark in your individual way.

Be the Future - Embrace change. Drive Progress. Own the challenge.

Values

Education

Bachelor DegreeProfessional Certificate

Skills

Reliability engineeringMaintenance strategyAsset managementReliability Centred MaintenanceFMECARisk-based maintenanceAsset criticalityFailure-mode analysisStakeholder managementStrategic thinkingTechnical governanceData-driven decision makingPredictive maintenanceCondition-based maintenanceEngineering methodologies