Design Solution - Senior Application Engineer

Single Board Computer (SBC) Software Application Engineer
Location: Remote (UK)
Permanent
RS Group is seeking a Single Board Computer (SBC) Software Application Engineer to join our team on a permanent basis. As a Senior System Application Engineer – SBCs within the RS Design Solutions team, you’ll be at the forefront of embedded technology innovation.

This role blends deep technical expertise with strong communication skills, enabling you to support customers and sales teams through complex design challenges. You’ll engage in high-level technical discussions, guide product development from concept to production, and play a pivotal role in scaling supplier technologies across the global RS ecosystem. Working closely with cross-functional teams and strategic partners, you’ll help shape solutions that deliver real-world impact across RS’s focus industries.

As a technical expert within the RS Design Solutions core team, your mission will be to identify, develop, and deliver tailored solutions that address customer challenges and unlock new opportunities. Leveraging RS’s extensive supplier network, you’ll guide customers through complex technical landscapes. Where off-the-shelf solutions fall short, you’ll apply your expertise to customize or develop hardware and/or software that meets specific customer needs—ensuring innovation, scalability, and long-term value.

What you’ll be doing: 

• Provide technical support to the sales team by addressing queries from both existing and prospective customers.
• Deliver second-line technical assistance to customers using SBCs when issues extend beyond first-line support.
• Train first-line support teams to handle recurring technical questions more effectively.
• Develop and maintain a comprehensive FAQ resource based on common queries and insights.
• Contribute to product design and optimization efforts to support scalable design-in opportunities.
• Collaborate with RS Design Solutions’ production and service teams to address technical aspects of customer engagements.
• Assist the engineering team in defining product specifications based on customer requirements and feedback.
• Support Sales and Field Application Engineering (FAE) teams with architectural solution proposals.
• Represent RS Group at industry trade shows and events, supporting both local and global teams.
• Create project documentation and technical collateral, with a focus on OEM and System Integrator (SI) customers.
• Diagnose and resolve technical issues related to customer returns.

About you: 
You are a technically skilled engineer with a passion for embedded systems and SBCs, but equally comfortable engaging with customers and stakeholders. You thrive in collaborative environments, enjoy solving complex problems, and are motivated by driving innovation that makes a tangible impact.

 What you’ll need:  

• Strong understanding of Single Board Computers (SBCs), including both hardware and the supporting software stack.
• Familiarity with the broader ecosystem surrounding SBCs, such as accessories, development tools, and integration environments.
• Solid knowledge of microcontrollers, processors, and related technologies across a range of vendors and applications.

Desirable Skills

• Experience with CAD tools for schematic capture and PCB layout design.
• Proficiency in software development, ideally across multiple platforms or languages.
• Familiarity with the full product development lifecycle—from concept and prototyping to production and go-to-market strategies.
• Understanding of product development processes, including Design for Manufacturing (DFM), collaboration with contract manufacturers (CMs), unit testing, and provisioning.
• Exposure to return merchandise authorization (RMA) procedures and experience with failure analysis and debugging.
• Background or interest in emerging technologies such as IoT, Machine Learning (ML), and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
• Working knowledge of SBC software architectures, including Linux kernel drivers, U-Boot, UEFI, and device tree overlays.

We Are RS 

We’ve been solving industry problems for over 80 years. We turn the ‘what ifs’ into the ‘why nots’, the impossible into the possible. 

Our purpose? Making amazing happen for a better world. 

We offer service and product solutions to over 1.2 million customers globally, shipping a parcel every 2 seconds to over 130 countries. With over 800,000 stocked and 3 million unstocked products, we’re a trusted partner to the world’s leading industries. 

We’re looking for curious, driven, and empathetic professionals to join our journey. People who think differently, act with purpose, and want to make a real impact.  

Rewards 

Our Reward Strategy Philosophy is designed to offer market competitive base salaries and provide all of our people the opportunity to participate in a short-term incentive, enabling them to share in the success of the Company. 

Our total reward package is more than just the cash; our recognition and benefit offering provide the opportunity for us to recognise, reward and enable the wellbeing of our people at all stages of their journey with RS. Our rewards and benefits vary by country, but include: 

• Financial - pension/retirement; life assurance; salary finance (payroll deduction loan scheme) 

• Wellbeing - medical plans; health screening; critical illness; disability insurance; holiday / paid time off; employee assistance programme; discounted gym/health club membership 

• Lifestyle - transportation assistance schemes (e.g., cycle to work, travel loans, car leasing); onsite catering/lunch vouchers; retail discounts 

• Spotlight – our global recognition programme provides a platform to highlight and recognise people role modelling our values

Ready to Make Amazing Happen? 

Join c. 9,000 colleagues and help us shape the future of our industry. Whoever you are, wherever you are — it all starts here. 

Apply now and make RS a part of your journey. 

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