Remote Sales Engineer UK - Watson-Marlow FTSE100 — Columbus
Traveler-Friendly Insight
This role is listed as remote in terms of base location — you work from home rather than a company office. However, it is not compatible with a location-independent nomadic lifestyle. The posting explicitly requires 60–70% travel across the UK Midlands and East Anglia territory for face-to-face customer visits, site demonstrations, and exhibitions.
In practice, this means you need to be physically based in or near the UK Midlands to service the designated patch efficiently. Most weeks will involve driving or taking trains between customer sites in that region, so a permanent UK base — and almost certainly a UK driving licence — is a practical necessity.
Visa considerations: Given the territorial nature of the role, candidates must have the right to work in the UK. EU/EEA nationals would need a UK work visa (Skilled Worker route may apply). Digital nomad visas are irrelevant here as the role is UK-territory-bound.
Travel perks: While the role involves substantial travel, there is no mention of a coworking allowance, equipment stipend, or international travel budget. Travel is domestic and customer-facing rather than lifestyle-driven.
If you are seeking a truly location-flexible or async-friendly remote role, this position is not a fit. Look instead for technical sales roles at software or SaaS companies with global customer bases and no fixed territory requirements.
Job Title: Sales Engineer - Process Industries - Midlands
Location: UK - Midlands & East Anglia
Location Type: Remote
Website: https://www.wmfts.com/en/
Group: https://www.spiraxgroup.com/
General Industrial: https://www.wmfts.com/en/industrial/
Waste Water Treatment: https://www.wmfts.com/en/water-wastewater/
Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Solutions is part of Spirax Group, a FTSE100 and FTSE4Good multi-national industrial engineering Group with expertise in the control and management of steam, electric thermal solutions, peristaltic pumping and associated fluid technologies. When you join us, you will be integrated into a cooperative and encouraging team, participate in challenging yet critical work, and experience ongoing growth opportunities to help you achieve your full potential.
Job Summary:
As a Sales Engineer, you will play a pivotal role in driving sustainable business growth by establishing and nurturing customer relationships, providing technical expertise, and promoting innovative fluid management solutions across a designated region and subsector. Acting as a trusted advisor, you will combine technical knowledge with commercial acumen to deliver tailored solutions that meet customer needs while aligning with our Total Customer Solutions approach.
You will be responsible for identifying and engaging potential customers, managing a robust pipeline of opportunities, and supporting key account growth through consultative sales practices. The role involves frequent interaction with customers, including on-site visits and virtual demonstrations, to showcase the features and benefits of our cutting-edge products. Your ability to work autonomously, travel extensively, and adapt to dynamic challenges will ensure success in this impactful role.
Key Responsibilities:
- Account Management: Establish and maintain a sustainable pipeline of potential opportunities by growing key customers and high-growth industries within the designated sector.
- Business Development: Identify and engage potential customers through research, networking, and industry events, promoting the full range of Watson-Marlow products.
- Consultative Selling: Use a consultative approach to guide customers through their buying journey. Research each customer to form a hypothesis about their potential pain or gain, validate this directly with the customer, help scope and define the problem, then co-develop a tailored solution and implementation plan.
- Customer Partnering: Act as a trusted advisor for existing customers, offering technical expertise and building long-term relationships by understanding customer needs, troubleshooting issues, and providing proactive recommendations to enhance system performance.
- Managing Sales Leads: Take ownership of sales leads and inquiries, providing tailored quotations and ensuring timely follow-ups.
- Allocating Workload Strategically: Strategically allocate workload across EMEA support functions to free capacity for high-impact commercial initiatives.
- Demonstrating Products: Proactively visit customers and attend exhibitions showcasing Watson-Marlow products through on-site or virtual demonstrations, highlighting features, benefits, and real-world applications.
- Researching Trends: Research competitor, market, and industry trends; engage in ongoing professional development to stay at the forefront of industry advancements; share insights and best practices with global colleagues.
- Utilising CRM Tools: Use CRM tools to track and manage leads, ensuring consistent follow-ups and progression through the sales funnel, and deliver accurate and timely forecasts.
- Driving Total Customer Solutions: Adopt the Total Customer Solutions drive by utilising consultative sales skills and acting as a true partner to the key customer base.
- Championing Core Values: Foster a culture of safety, collaboration, customer focus, excellence, and respect across teams to deliver exceptional results.
Skills/Experience:
- BSc or Diploma in an aligned subject, or equivalent technical experience within an aligned industry.
- Technical sales experience selling process capital equipment or similar services/products into process industrial customers is required. Experience across Industrial and/or Water Treatment customers is a bonus.
- Strong commercial acumen, with a proven ability across both key account management and business development in a technical B2B environment.
- Entrepreneurial skills including problem solving, budgeting, networking and collaboration, given the autonomous nature of the role.
- Ability to travel 60–70% across the designated patch (Midlands & East Anglia) is essential for face-to-face customer interaction.
At Watson-Marlow, we believe in taking care of our colleagues. We offer a generous benefits package, including:
- A competitive salary
- Flexible working arrangements
- A generous holiday allowance
- Three days' paid volunteering leave
- Additional support and benefits through our Everyone is Included Group Inclusion Plan
Everyone is Included at Spirax Group
We are passionate about creating inclusive and equitable working cultures where everyone can be themselves and achieve their full potential. For us, that means supportive teams and strong relationships where everyone's contribution is valued — across social and cultural backgrounds, ethnicities, ages, genders, gender identities, abilities, neurodiversity, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, and everything else that makes us human and unique.
We know that everyone needs some extra help from time to time, so we have introduced a range of additional benefits through our Group Inclusion Commitments:
- Gender-neutral parental leave
- 15 days of extra paid caregiver leave
- Paid time off and support for anyone experiencing pregnancy loss or domestic abuse
- Menopause-friendly workplace principles and more
Learn more at spiraxgroup.com/inclusion.
We are also a Disability Confident Committed Employer. If you would like to apply using this scheme, please select this option in our application form. We are an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply. If you require accommodations during the application process, please let us know.
Company Overview
At Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Solutions, part of Spirax Group, we are driven by innovation and dedicated to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone is empowered to make a difference. As a world leader in manufacturing peristaltic pumps and associated fluid path technologies for the life sciences and process industries, we offer a wide range of products including tubing, specialised filling systems, and products for single-use applications.
Our technologies play an essential role in critical industrial processes across industries as diverse as Food & Beverage, Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology, Power Generation, Semiconductors and Healthcare. With customers in 116 countries, we provide solutions that sit behind the production of many items used in daily life, from baked beans to mobile phones!