Construction Cost Engineer

CoreWeave•Livingston, NJ

17h•$134,000 - $179,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The Data Center Planning & Construction team at CoreWeave is responsible for delivering a rapidly growing portfolio of data centers and critical infrastructure projects that power our AI cloud platform. We own the full project lifecycle—from site due diligence and design through construction, commissioning, and turnover—while partnering closely with Finance, Operations, and Executive Leadership to scale our footprint responsibly. The Construction Cost Engineer will be the owner-side commercial lead across a portfolio of complex, large-scale developments, with a focus on data centers and mission-critical infrastructure. You will build and maintain the financial “source of truth” for your projects, ensuring clarity, accountability, and control over every dollar from pre-construction through closeout. About the role: As a Construction Cost Engineer, you are responsible for the financial integrity of CoreWeave’s physical build-outs. You will manage capital expenditure (CAPEX) for large-scale data center projects, ensuring our ambitious AI infrastructure deployment timelines are met without budget overruns. You will act as the "financial conscience" for our Project Managers and General Contractors. In this role, you will: Own portfolio-level cost planning, control, and forecasting across multiple concurrent projects. Serve as a strategic advisor to Construction, Real Estate, and Finance leadership on budget, risk, and commercial strategy. Implement scalable tools, processes, and reporting that support CoreWeave’s rapid growth and evolving data center program. Partner with internal and external teams to anticipate risk, drive value, and protect the company’s capital while enabling speed.= Who You Are: Cost Planning, Budgeting & Forecasting Develop and manage project and program-level budgets, cost plans, and capital forecasts for data center and infrastructure projects. Build and maintain cost models and benchmarks across markets, asset types, and delivery models. Own Anticipated Final Cost (AFC) and Estimate at Completion (EAC) forecasting; identify variances and risks early with clear mitigation plans. Cost Control & Financial Management Lead end-to-end cost control for multiple projects, including tracking commitments, accruals, and actuals. Monitor WIP, invoices, payment applications, and change events to ensure accuracy, compliance, and timeliness. Prepare and present monthly cost reports and dashboards covering budget, forecast, exposure, contingency, and cash flow. Implement and refine cost control systems, standards, and KPIs that can scale across the portfolio. Change Management & Risk Analysis Review and validate, and negotiate change orders, claims, and potential change events from GCs, subs, and vendors. Maintain contingency, exposure, and escalation tracking, including log management and drawdown strategy. Partner with Construction, Design, and Operations to identify cost risks, model impacts, and recommend mitigation paths. Lead or support post-mortem cost analyses, lessons learned, and audits to continuously improve cost performance. Vendor & Consultant Management Manage and direct third-party QS/cost consultants and other commercial partners; ensure deliverables are on time, accurate, and actionable. Review estimates, reconciliations, value engineering proposals, and cost reports for quality and alignment with CoreWeave standards. Hold vendors accountable for scope, budget, and reporting expectations, and escalate issues as needed. Data, Reporting & Continuous Improvement Build and maintain cost databases, historical benchmarks, and market intel to inform future projects and negotiations. Analyze trends to identify value-engineering and cost-optimization opportunities without compromising performance or reliability. Develop standardized tools, templates, and dashboards (e.g., for AFC, exposure, contingency, cash flow) to drive consistency. Contribute to playbooks and best practices for project controls across the Construction & Data Center Planning organization.

Requirements

5+ years in or data center project controls.
Advanced MEP (Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing) Estimating: Specific expertise in pricing high-density power systems and specialized cooling.
Ability to develop life-cycle cost models that include GPU depreciation, power usage effectiveness (PUE), and carbon offset costs.
Proficiency in using historical data to create "Cost per Megawatt" or "Cost per Rack" benchmarks specifically for AI workloads.
Expertise in validating "AI-driven design changes"—such as mid-project increases in floor loading for heavier GPU clusters or power-train upgrades.
Proficiency as a power user of construction management platforms (Procore, Autodesk Build, or e-Builder).
Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel (including VBA/Power Query) required for synthesizing and analyzing large-scale vendor spreadsheets.
Quantity Surveying Expertise: The ability to perform quantity take-offs from construction drawings to accurately verify vendor quotes.
High-Velocity Performance: Ability to consistently process critical approvals and perform cost analyses with the speed required by CoreWeave’s high-velocity operating schedule.
Effective Communication and Presentation Skills: Ability to translate complex cost data into clear, concise narratives and recommendations for diverse audiences.
Proven ability to influence and align cross-functional teams and senior stakeholders using data-driven insights, sound judgment, and structured thinking.
Deep knowledge of: Core construction cost drivers, including MEP systems, structure, envelope, and siteworks.
Estimating tools and workflows (e.g., CostX, Bluebeam, On-Screen Takeoff, Excel-based models).
Project controls best practices, including change management, contingencies, escalation, and exposure tracking.

Nice To Haves

Professional certifications such as RICS, CCP, FRICS, PMP, or equivalent.
Familiarity with project management and collaboration tools (e.g., Primavera P6, MS Project, Procore, NetSuite, or similar).
Experience building or contributing to cost databases, benchmarking frameworks, or standardized reporting suites.
Comfort operating in high-growth, ambiguous, and fast-changing environments.

Responsibilities

Own portfolio-level cost planning, control, and forecasting across multiple concurrent projects.
Serve as a strategic advisor to Construction, Real Estate, and Finance leadership on budget, risk, and commercial strategy.
Implement scalable tools, processes, and reporting that support CoreWeave’s rapid growth and evolving data center program.
Partner with internal and external teams to anticipate risk, drive value, and protect the company’s capital while enabling speed.
Develop and manage project and program-level budgets, cost plans, and capital forecasts for data center and infrastructure projects.
Build and maintain cost models and benchmarks across markets, asset types, and delivery models.
Own Anticipated Final Cost (AFC) and Estimate at Completion (EAC) forecasting; identify variances and risks early with clear mitigation plans.
Lead end-to-end cost control for multiple projects, including tracking commitments, accruals, and actuals.
Monitor WIP, invoices, payment applications, and change events to ensure accuracy, compliance, and timeliness.
Prepare and present monthly cost reports and dashboards covering budget, forecast, exposure, contingency, and cash flow.
Implement and refine cost control systems, standards, and KPIs that can scale across the portfolio.
Review and validate, and negotiate change orders, claims, and potential change events from GCs, subs, and vendors.
Maintain contingency, exposure, and escalation tracking, including log management and drawdown strategy.
Partner with Construction, Design, and Operations to identify cost risks, model impacts, and recommend mitigation paths.
Lead or support post-mortem cost analyses, lessons learned, and audits to continuously improve cost performance.
Manage and direct third-party QS/cost consultants and other commercial partners; ensure deliverables are on time, accurate, and actionable.
Review estimates, reconciliations, value engineering proposals, and cost reports for quality and alignment with CoreWeave standards.
Hold vendors accountable for scope, budget, and reporting expectations, and escalate issues as needed.
Build and maintain cost databases, historical benchmarks, and market intel to inform future projects and negotiations.
Analyze trends to identify value-engineering and cost-optimization opportunities without compromising performance or reliability.
Develop standardized tools, templates, and dashboards (e.g., for AFC, exposure, contingency, cash flow) to drive consistency.
Contribute to playbooks and best practices for project controls across the Construction & Data Center Planning organization.