Senior Firmware Engineer
Buckinghamshire. Partially remote with adhoc on site working (1/2 days per month max)
Purpose of the Role (Overview):
Our client is looking for a Senior Firmware Design Engineer for a major Electronic Warfare (EW) programme, to lead design, development and test of new and existing FPGA firmware products for EW training pods. The Senior Firmware Design Engineer is responsible for producing customer deliverable firmware in a structured, process driven environment. This includes, but is not limited to, development of FPGA firmware design architecture, models, configuration of FPGA SoC components, firmware tests and documentation. The engineer will also be involved in the review and verification, place and route and meet timing processes. The engineer shall employ the appropriate processes, practices and tools to ensure that responsibilities are delivered to project timescales and necessary quality.
Key Responsibilities:
• Application of discipline domain knowledge to the design, development and test of high speed firmware components on time, within budget and with required quality
• Peer review of firmware
• Produce documentation required to support the firmware
• Assist in estimating, planning and progress reporting
• Provide support to the project and systems teams
• Collaboration with other project team members to analyse and address project requirements
• Support the implementation of design review practice including: System Design Review, Preliminary Design Review, Critical Design Review, Test Readiness Review and Final Acceptance Review.
• Application of and compliance with, engineering processes and practices, including engineering framework, life cycle management and regulatory requirements.
• Identification of opportunities for the improvement of processes, practices and tools.
• Collaboration with discipline peers within the team, business unit and company to share and learn best practice.
• Identification and documentation of our intellectual property, such as trade secrets, patents and controlled information.
• Any other duties that are reasonably requested by management, within the capability of the engineer.
Outline of Competencies:
• Familiarity with the product lifecycle from system requirements, architecture, algorithm development, modelling, design, integration, qualification, verification, through to production and support
• Familiarity with engineering processes, practices and measures of performance for the discipline
• Aptitude for complex problem solving and creativity
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Self-motivated, confident, with initiative and drive
• Good team player with the ability to work in self-organised teams within a large organization in a matrix management structure
• Ability to obtain a SC Security Clearance
• Proven ability to work and deliver to deadlines
Qualifications and Experience required:
- Highly experienced (10+ years) in developing production FPGA firmware, ideally for one or more of the following: Software Defined Radio, EW, communications or surveillance systems for an airborne environment
- Expertise in design, coding, debugging, reviewing and testing complex digital high speed systems
- Proficient in digital implementation in VHDL language
- Familiar with Xilinx (AMD) Vivado and Microsemi Libero design tools, Block Diagram Design entry as well as VHDL, & IP integrator.
- Proficient in designing digital processing components and algorithms in Matlab/Simulink design for HDL coder and targeting FPGA devices
- Must be proficient in scripting language Tcl to support FPGA Vivado/Libero design and Modelsim simulation.
- Experience of processor system block design, schematic design, IP integrator, and VHDL firmware development
- Experience of developing firmware I&Q signal processing, digital filter design and frame based sample streaming.
- Experience of implementing efficient resource and time critical firmware on latest technology ultra large FPGA and SoC FPGA devices with multi ARM processors.
- Experience designing FPGAs custom programmable logic interfacing/ integrating SoCs ARM multi-Processing system with DDR, Ethernet, DMA, FIFO, RS232/422 UARTs, I2C, SPI, IPMI, AXI, AXIStream, AXI4Lite, AHB, APB busses etc.
- Ability to apply timing driven optimisation to achieve closure for place and route process
- Ability to write optimised efficient code.
- Experience of development environments including Vivado block design, IP Integrator, VHDL source code, Libero development IDE for smartfusion2.
- Experience in writing VHDL testbenches to verify the firmware using Modelsim.
- Proficient and confident with version control systems e.g. GIT, and with an understanding of Configuration Management
- Educational qualifications: Minimum Technical Degree in Computer Science, Electronics or Software Engineering or equivalent
- Desirable that the candidate is familiar with communication systems and various modulation schemes for VHF/UHF, EW systems, aerospace and defence industries, products and technologies
- Experience of the design of digital firmware for FPGA in EW Systems is desirable