Technical Publications Writer

From 12 UK sites, our team of over 1,400 people deliver unique capabilities across air, land, sea, space and cyber for military, security and commercial customers, worldwide.

L3Harris in Tewkesbury and Fleet are part of our ICI division, we work closely with UK Government and Security Agencies primarily in the areas of crypto/cyber security, electronic warfare, counter drone capabilities and situation awareness projects.

In this role of Technical Writer you will be instrumental in creating technical documentation which includes operation manuals, repair and maintenance manuals, assembly instructions, setup guides, and technical bulletins.

You will be expected to deliver the publications in the specified format, visit customer locations, and attend meetings, as required.

The Techncial Author ensures that documents conform to program standards and Data Item Description (DID) requirements, if specified. You will work with the engineering team to define the content of the documents. You will have primary responsibility for authorship. You will gather requirements from users/stakeholders and prepare user and program documentation. You will work closely with technical staff and will be responsible for managing multiple documentation assignments simultaneously.

A few of our employee benefits are:

Hybrid working where possible
Flexible, condensed or reduced working hours available, i.e. 4-day condensed working week, 9-day fortnights,12pm finish every Friday, etc.
25 days holiday per year (plus bank holidays), increasing with long service and with the opportunity to buy/sell up to 5 days
Private medical insurance with optional family cover
Pension scheme of up to 7% employer contribution
Life Assurance 4x salary (flexible up to 10x)
Group income protection
Flexible opt-in extras such as a health care cash plan, dental insurance, gym membership, critical illness cover and cycle to work scheme
Employee assistance program providing mental health and wellbeing support
Professional registration with the IET

Key Responsibilities:

Writes and edits technical and procedural documents including reference manuals and product manuals.
Determines the type of publication that will best serve the project requirements.
Meets with engineers, programmers, and project managers to learn about specific products or processes.
Research product samples to fully understand product.
Assesses the audience needs for whom the technical and procedural documentation is intended; adjusts tone and technical terms used to meet those needs and to ensure understanding.
Plans writing processes and sets timelines and deadlines.
Creates or works with graphic designers to create diagrams, charts, and other visual aids to assist readers in understanding a product or process.
Gathers feedback from customers, designers, and manufacturers to improve technical documents.
Establish and communicate standards for information types, structures, and assembly so that content is organised logically with the end-user in mind.
Provides cost and time estimates for creating technical documents.

Essential Requirements for the Role:

Bachelor’s degree or Associate degree in Engineering, or other related field with 2 years’ experience as a Technical Writer (Preferred).
Experience in creating Army Equipment Support Publications (AESP).
Experience effectively creating, formatting and editing technical publications and proposals, including writing, editing, and illustrating using MS Office Suite, SQL, XML.
Experience working with system engineers, software engineers, and program management to translate technical information into clear, concise documentation.
Must be an independent thinker, capable of performing high quality work, both independently and with a team, in a fast-moving environment.

Additional Skills and Experience:

Excellent communication & interpersonal skills: fluent written and oral English is mandatory and proficiency in Simplified Technical English and grammatical skills.
Excellent organisational skills and attention to detail.
Ability to present complex data in clear, concise text.
Ability to edit and proof read work of colleagues.
Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite.
Knowledge of the S1000D International Specification for Technical Publications (Beneficial).
Experience of creation of S1000D Interactive Electronic Technical Publications (IETPs) (Beneficial).
Experience with Adobe FrameMaker software (Beneficial).