Lead Civil Owner's Engineer

Ulteig•Houston, TX

6d•$123,200 - $159,650

About The Position

Ulteig is seeking an experienced Lead Civil Owner’s Engineer to serve as an extension of the owner’s project team for major EPC transmission and substation projects. The role provides independent civil and structural technical review, material and procurement support, field assurance, and documented recommendations while preserving the Owner’s decision-making authority and the EPC Contractor’s design and construction responsibilities. The engineer supports projects throughout development, design, construction, commissioning, and turnover. The position reviews civil and structural designs and deliverables, specifications, materials, procurement documentation, field quality records, and readiness evidence; identifies risks and coordinates multidisciplinary interfaces; and provides documented recommendations to the Owner. It also includes owner-side construction oversight and support for milestone and turnover readiness. The role requires a Civil or Structural Professional Engineer license, a relevant engineering degree, at least eight years of applicable experience, and authorization to work permanently in the U.S. Work may be remote, hybrid, or in office, with travel to project sites, supplier facilities, and EPC offices as needed. Remote work must be performed within the United States unless otherwise authorized and compliant with security requirements.

Requirements

B.S. in Civil or Structural Engineering from an ABET-accredited program or equivalent.
Active Civil or Structural Professional Engineer license.
At least 8 years of electric utility, heavy civil, transmission, or substation civil/structural design, design review, or construction support experience.
Demonstrated Owner’s Engineer or EPC oversight experience.
Strong knowledge of geotechnical engineering, grading, drainage, foundations, structural systems, access, erosion control, permitting, and applicable codes and standards, including IBC, ASCE 7, ACI, and AISC.
Experience reviewing specifications, material lists, vendor submittals, material test documentation, field quality records, non-conformances, and construction/turnover readiness evidence.
Ability to communicate concise, defensible recommendations; maintain traceable review records; lead multidisciplinary interfaces; and distinguish review and monitoring responsibilities from Owner approval authority.
Ability to work within the Owner’s operational footprint and travel to project sites, supplier facilities, and EPC offices as needed.
Remote work must be performed within the United States unless otherwise authorized and compliant with security requirements.
Must have authorization to work permanently in the U.S.

Nice To Haves

Experience with 138 kV and 345 kV facilities is strongly preferred.
Proficiency with Microsoft 365.
Familiarity with utility design/project systems such as GIS, SAP, Primavera P6, Bentley MicroStation, and ProjectWise.
Openness to innovation by embracing and applying evolving technology and AI tools to enhance workflows, solve problems, and drive continuous improvement.
Relevant military experience is considered.

Responsibilities

Provide owner-side civil and structural engineering support across project development, design, construction, commissioning, and turnover; identify technical, permitting, geotechnical, drainage, and constructability risks and support stage-gate readiness.
Develop, review, or refine Owner’s Project Specifications and owner-side technical input to the Basis of Design; verify use of current Company standards, survey control, geotechnical criteria, hydrology/hydraulics, environmental constraints, and permitting requirements.
Review EPC design QA/QC processes and deliverables from preliminary through final for completeness, consistency, quality, constructability, and compliance; manage comment logs, deviations, recurring issues, root-cause trends, and closure status.
Review substation site civil and structural design, including grading, drainage, stormwater controls, access roads, laydown areas, fencing, foundations, anchor-bolt systems, equipment pads, cable trenches, control buildings, oil containment, and related site features.
Review transmission civil/structural interfaces, including structure locations, foundations, geotechnical inputs, access, erosion control, route constraints, and field fit; provide risk-informed and value-engineering recommendations to the Owner.
Coordinate civil interfaces with electrical, grounding, transmission line, environmental, permitting, land, operations, procurement, and construction teams; participate in field layout, constructability, and readiness reviews.
Review and validate EPC material lists, specification codes, item numbers, quantities, bid descriptions, and technical requirements for civil materials, foundations, fencing, control buildings, structural steel, anchor-bolt cages, and related site features.
Identify requested deviations, exceptions, and non-standard materials; assess technical compliance, completeness, durability, constructability, and consistency with Company requirements.
Support procurement packaging, technical bid evaluations, supplier proposal reviews, long-lead planning, logistics, receiving, storage, preservation, and alignment with design maturity and construction sequencing.
Review mix designs, mill certificates, geotechnical and laboratory reports, material test reports, certified test documentation, inspection records, and procurement submittals; track discrepancies, non-conformances, release status, and readiness.
Provide qualified support for supplier inspections or factory acceptance activities applicable to prefabricated buildings, structural assemblies, foundations, or other major civil/structural procurements; document observations and follow-up actions.
Provide owner-side field oversight of EPC and subcontractor civil/structural work; evaluate conformance with approved drawings, specifications, procedures, permits, acceptance criteria, and project requirements without directing the Contractor unless expressly authorized.
Attend construction progress and site coordination meetings; assess preconstruction planning, work packaging, survey control, site readiness, sequencing, access, temporary works, dewatering, erosion controls, safety, schedule, quality, and constructability.
Review field QC testing and inspection records for earthwork, compaction, concrete, reinforcing steel, foundations, structural installation, coatings, drainage, roads, and fencing; maintain field reports, issue logs, quality-surveillance records, NCR tracking, and closure documentation.
Evaluate changed conditions, RFIs, proposed field changes, and non-conformances; provide documented technical, schedule, cost, and constructability recommendations while routing approval decisions to the Owner.
Support milestone and turnover readiness by tracking punch-list items, test exceptions, inspections, as-built records, permits, O&M information, warranties, and closeout documentation through final closure.