Project Manager (Grants & Funded Programmes)
Operations
Athens, Greece
Join ICOMAT – Revolutionising the Future of Lightweight Manufacturing!
iCOMAT is an advanced manufacturing company that invented Rapid Tow Shearing (RTS) - the only proven technology for producing defect-free curved-fiber composite parts at industrial scale. We deliver the lightest structures possible for aerospace, automotive, defense, and space, at a rate and cost efficiency that far exceeds existing composite production processes.
We build and operate automated factories for composite materials, delivering components to Tier 1 suppliers and OEMs. The business has three main divisions: development of automated production machines, development of software design and production tools, and operation of the factory. We work with 25+ customers and completed the largest ever Series A in composites manufacturing to fuel a significant scale-up, with growth plans that will see the business multiply in size over the next two to three years and expand operations into the UK, Europe and the US.
The business has currently more than 130,000 sqm of production capacity with manufacturing facilities in the UK (Gloucester and Swindon) and the US (Dayton, Ohio); a Hardware R&D Centre in Bristol, UK; and a Software R&D Centre in Athens, Greece.
As Project Manager, Grants & Funded Programmes, you will own delivery of iCOMAT’s grant-funded and publicly funded projects, from grant agreement through to final report and close-out. You will hold the plan, the budget, the claims and the deliverables, and you will be the one accountable when a milestone, a report or a claim is at risk. This role covers funded programmes only; commercial customer projects are run by our project managers in the UK. You will be based at our Athens office, report to the Head of Project Management, and work hand in hand with the Head of Partnerships & Grants, who builds the pipeline and wins the bids you will deliver.
What will you be doing?
Programme Planning & Execution
Turning grant agreements and descriptions of work into detailed delivery plans, with work packages, milestones, deliverables and named owners. You will coordinate engineering, design, software and operations teams across Athens, Bristol, Gloucester and Swindon, and keep plans with real critical paths, resource loading and dependencies as the work moves.
Budget, Claims & Compliance
Owning the financial side of every funded programme: tracking eligible costs, timesheets and subcontract spend against the approved budget, preparing periodic claims with Finance, and keeping audit trails clean from day one. You will know each funder’s rules inside out, so nothing we spend becomes ineligible and no claim gets delayed.
Stakeholder Communication
Acting as the main point of contact for funding bodies, monitoring officers, project coordinators and consortium partners, as well as internal teams. You will run kick-offs, progress meetings and reviews, and deliver periodic and final reports that are concise, honest and on time, always paired with the corrective action.
Risk & Change Management
Identifying delivery, technical and financial risks early, quantifying them and escalating long before they become schedule or funding problems. When scope, timelines or partners change, you will manage the formal change requests and amendments with the funder and keep the programme on track.
Continuous Improvement
Building the templates, governance and reporting cadence for grant delivery at iCOMAT. You will capture lessons learned and feed delivery insight back into new bids, so the programmes we propose are the programmes we can deliver.
What do we need from you?
Hands-on project management of publicly funded R&D or innovation programmes is the number one requirement: you have delivered grant-funded projects from agreement to close-out, including reporting, claims and audits (e.g. Horizon Europe, EDF, EIC, ESA, Innovate UK, or Greek national and structural funds)
Experience in a technical, engineering or manufacturing environment, ideally aerospace, defence, automotive or space
A track record of running multiple programmes and deadlines simultaneously without losing control of any of them
Strong financial rigour: eligible costs, budget tracking, timesheets, cost claims and audit preparation
Confidence working with multinational consortia, funding bodies and senior internal stakeholders, with the credibility to hold them to a plan
Excellent written and spoken English; you will write reports that go directly to funders
Strong Office 365 skills, particularly Project, Excel and PowerPoint
A proactive, adaptable and collaborative professional who thrives in a fast-paced, high-tech environment
Nice to have:
Composites, materials or advanced manufacturing experience
Formal project management certification (PM², APM, PMP or PRINCE2)
Working knowledge of the EU Funding & Tenders Portal and Innovate UK processes
Experience with Greek funding instruments (e.g. GSRI programmes, Greece 2.0 / RRF, NSRF)
Fluency in Greek
Willingness to travel across the UK and Europe for project meetings and reviews
Our Values: Uncompromising Excellence
Discipline over excuses. We commit. We follow through. We hold ourselves and each other to the highest standard, especially when the pressure is on.
Push the edge. iCOMAT was built on a refusal to accept that curved fiber could not be manufactured at scale. We innovate where others hesitate.
Aligned and accountable. Everyone owns their lane, communicates openly, and delivers without being chased. No silos. No ambiguity.
Why iCOMAT?
Competitive Salary & Benefits: We offer a comprehensive benefits package, including private healthcare, pension scheme.
Stock Options: Equity options to give employees a stake in the company’s success
Career Growth Opportunities: Join us at a pivotal time as we scale up, offering unmatched professional growth opportunities in the rapidly advancing field of composite materials.
Innovation-Focused Culture: We pride ourselves on our inclusive, forward-thinking work environment. Recognized by Bloomberg as a "UK Startup to Watch," iCOMAT celebrates diversity and encourages all applicants, regardless of background, to apply.
Global Impact: Be a part of our mission to redefine lightweight structures for the automotive, aerospace, and space industries, working with some of the most influential companies worldwide.Ready to be part of something big?
Apply now to learn more and join us on our exciting journey!