Infrastructure Engineer - Lab Operations

Job Title: Infrastructure Engineer - Lab Operations Location: Slough/Winnersh - 5 days per week onsite initially, to go down to 2/3 afterwards Salary/Rate: £500 per day inside IR35 Start Date: 09/11/2026 Job Type: Contract - 6 months

Company Introduction We have an exciting opportunity now available with one of our sector-leading telecommunication clients!

This role will be supporting the transformation and operational management of the test lab estate. The role is not a traditional network engineering or testing position. The successful contractor will focus on lab operations, systems administration, Source of Truth ownership, platform stewardship, incident management and supporting the test environment.

The contractor will be instrumental in supporting an evolving lab operations model, helping build out the Source of Truth capability (NetBox), and ultimately supporting future automation and orchestration initiatives.

Job Responsibilities/Objectives

Administer systems Support lab infrastructure Manage operational processes Drive and maintain quality data Support the Source of Truth platform Coordinate incidents and work orders Contribute ideas and improvements Support future automation initiativesMust-Have Skills

NetBox (or Comparable Experience)This is the most important area of the role. Candidate does not need extensive NetBox experience, but any exposure is highly desirable.

Key responsibilities

Source of Truth stewardship Data quality management Asset and infrastructure visibility Supporting future automation initiatives Alternative experiences to consider: etBox autobot MDB ownership Infrastructure Source of Truth platforms Asset management platforms

Systems Administration / Platform AdministrationStrong experience managing and administering technical platforms. Examples: Infrastructure platforms Virtualisation environments Operational tools Platform support

Lab/Infrastructure OperationsExperience in: Complex lab environments Data centres Telecoms environments Technical operations teams Infrastructure support functions Ability to: Manage incidents Coordinate changes Administer environments Maintain accurate documentation Support operational workflows

Nice-to-Have Skills

Automation ExposureCandidates should ideally have: Python PowerShell Bash Automation mindset They will not be building large automation frameworks immediately, but candidates should be comfortable operating in an environment heading in that direction.

Telecoms ExperienceBeneficial but not essential. Examples: Telecoms

Isp

Mobile networks Fixed networks

If you are interested in this opportunity, please apply now with your updated CV in Microsoft Word/PDF format.

Disclaimer Notwithstanding any guidelines given to level of experience sought, we will consider candidates from outside this range if they can demonstrate the necessary competencies. Square One is acting as both an employment agency and an employment business, and is an equal opportunities recruitment business. Square One embraces diversity and will treat everyone equally. Please see our website for our full diversity statement