Dredging R&D Engineer

Careers at Royal IHC

Royal IHC is looking to strengthen its Technology & Innovation department with a Dredging R&D Engineer.

In this role, you will advance our understanding of excavation processes and help translate this knowledge into engineering methods and design tools that accurately estimate excavation production within hydraulic transport systems. You will also develop and apply expertise at the intersection of excavation, slurry behaviour and sediment transport.

Beyond this, you will support the selection and optimisation of complex dredging and slurry transport systems used in demanding offshore, dredging and mining environments. Rather than performing detailed design engineering, your focus lies in delivering high‑level technical expertise, sound engineering judgement and integrated system analysis across the full lifecycle of dredging and hydraulic transport systems, working in an interdisciplinary environment.

Your activities will range from conceptual studies and advanced calculations that support advisory and project teams, to experimental validation in our laboratory and the development of state‑of‑the‑art design and calculation tools. In doing so, you will bridge theory, modelling and testing with practical applications and operational performance. A key aspect of the role is maintaining a holistic, system‑level perspective while working closely with colleagues from Design & Estimation, Engineering and the Product Market Groups.

A distinctive element of this position is the combination of desk‑based engineering, expert advisory work, hands‑on laboratory testing and operational validation—offering a dynamic and highly engaging environment for engineers who want to see how fundamental insights translate into real‑world applications.

Your role and responsibilities

• Contributing expert input to the selection and sizing of excavation equipment and cutting tools.
• Contributing expert input to the selection and sizing of dredging systems and associated drive systems.
• System-level engineering and assessment of hydraulic transportation systems, including cutting tools, pipelines, nozzles and flow restrictions.
• Analysis of sediment dynamics, slurry transport behaviour and pump–pipeline system performance.
• Production estimates, loading time calculations and operational performance assessments.
• Execution and support of laboratory experiments, scale model tests and full-scale (sea) trials.
• Verification and validation of analytical and numerical predictions using measurements and operational data.
• Technical support to sales teams and customers during project development.
• Engineering consultancy related to dredging, mining and other marine hydraulic systems.
• Contribution to R&D projects on excavation processes, slurrification, pump applications and overall system optimisation.
• Development and application of engineering tools, scripts and workflows (e.g. using Python) to support analysis and decision-making.

Your profile

You bring a strong engineering mindset combined with curiosity, analytical rigour and a willingness to engage with both theory and practice.

You have:

• A master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Process Engineering, Mining Engineering, Applied Physics (or a related discipline).
• A strong affinity with excavation processes, hydraulic transport, slurry systems, hydrodynamics or marine process engineering.
• Interest in or experience with sediment cutting processes (soil, sand, clay, rock) and marine equipment.
• Affinity with programming and data-driven engineering; experience with Python is a prerequisite.
• Good command of English; Dutch is an advantage.

Please note that only candidates with valid EU work visa will be considered as viable candidates.

Royal IHC offers you:

• A salary between €4000,- and €5500,- gross per month, plus 8% holiday allowance.
• Plenty of time off: 40 vacation days for a full-time position, with the option to buy or sell additional leave.
• A profit-sharing scheme that lets you share in Royal IHC’s success.
• Flexible working: A home office allowance of €2.45 per day + a one-time payment of €750 to set up your workspace.
• Travel allowance of €0.21 per kilometer for the days you commute to the office.
• A solid pension plan through PME.
• Room to grow: Numerous internal career opportunities and a training budget + access to our IHC Academy to support your development.
• Health and energy: Unlimited access to our in-house gym (in exchange for the sustainable employability day).
• Royal IHC takes care of things you’d rather not worry about, but that are still important—such as disability insurance, partner pension, and the option to have additional healthcare costs reimbursed through our Social Fund.

Our Technology department

IHC Technology is one of the enabling organizations for IHC’s Core and Potential Core to achieve its strategy towards a sustainable future. The unit consists of around 20 employees with different backgrounds, mostly at PhD or MSc/BSc level. Besides DAS, a R&D group, IP, Innovation Management Support and Subsidy Support. IHC Technology also operates a well-equipped test facility.

Royal IHC is a leading supplier of maritime technology and expert craftsmanship. Driven by innovation, our dedicated experts provide a competitive edge to our worldwide customers in the dredging, offshore, mining and defence industries.