Military options

The UK's defence market is highly competitive. Data from the

shows the industry is the second largest in the world after the US in turnover and employment. Employing about 350,000 people, it is one of the country's largest sectors, accounting for 40 per cent of the UK's electronics manufacturing.

It should therefore be no surprise that the defence market is also responsible for producing a high number of new technologies and is actively recruiting engineers who can help with this.

'The UK defence sector continues to be the envy of many and helps provide the UK armed forces with technical superiority for its defensive and peacekeeping activities,' said Tim Janes,

head of EMEA resourcing. 'It also delivers numerous key defence innovations, which then are also adopted within the civil sector — thermal imaging and mobile phones being a couple of good examples.'

Important work is also taking place on the research side. 'The complexities of the modern-day battlefield, the pressure on budgets and the increasingly sophisticated threats posed to our armed forces and security services has intensified the demand for the input of science and technology research and advice at all military and security levels,' said Sarah Hammer, strategic resourcing manager at