Area Construction Engineer

Lead and guide construction inspection staff and managers to achieve district contract goals for safety, quality, schedule, and budgeting for construction and maintenance contracts. Independently perform and oversee contract construction activities within a geographic region. Identify methods for improvement and make cost effective recommendations that are in compliance with safety, environmental, federal and state standards. Ensure continuous improvement of all aspects of contract construction. Provide direction, leadership, and professional engineering advice to staff and serve as responsible charge engineer for highway construction functions. Provide management, leadership and direction for assigned District engineering section. Plan, organize and monitor project activities. Provide fiscal management and technical guidance on a wide variety of transportation projects. Train and develop team members.

How you will contribute:

Budgets: Budgets – Manage budgets to ensure expenditures do not exceed allocations by providing oversight and direction to the development and management of budgets for each functional area.

Communication: Enhance current outreach efforts both internal and external to VDOT. Promote VDOT's mission to the community, business partners, and other stakeholder groups. Respond to inquiries from the public, DOT officials, CTB members, news media, and local, state, and federal agencies concerning district transportation activities, problems, projects, etc. Collaborate and communicate VDOT initiatives to other government entities. Strengthen relationships with legislators, local leaders, and other stakeholders. Maintain communication and outreach efforts with legislators, government and planning agencies, media, citizen groups, and a variety of special interest groups concerning project status, progress, successes and challenges.

Construction Project Budgets: Manage contract construction budgets for all assigned projects to meet performance goals. Coordinate with FHWA in the preparation and review of work orders, NOIs, and claims to validate necessity of work and level of federal participation. Work jointly with residencies within assigned region to determine needs for project managers, inspectors, equipment, and supplies for projects. Conduct on-site field visits to ensure all elements of design and construction are within scope of contract and within established standards and specifications. Meet with all involved engineering and construction groups as necessary to gain additional information and to ensure understanding of factors relating to projects. Identify costs and benefits related to recommendation implementation and reports findings to management. Consult with District Contract Administrator and District Business Manager to prepare monthly and fiscal year end reports.

Pre-Advertisement Phase and Project Development: Evaluate project development process to ensure they adequately address constructability and contract lessons learned. Conduct extensive constructability reviews focusing on scheduling. Develop project schedules and establish project timeframes. Participate in scoping meetings, field inspections, concurrent engineering meetings, public hearings, field reviews, and pre-ad conferences to identify details for clarification or to be addressed upon discovery along with lessons learned from ongoing and past projects. Recommend steps to address identified shortcomings. Prepare and submit constructability review reports and checklist. Ensure biddability analysis is performed prior to ad and coordinate with appropriate Scheduling and Contract Division staff on modifications to bid proposal. Review plans and contract special provisions prior to beginning construction work.

Program Management: Provide leadership and create an environment of high performance, commitment, partnership and support for the achievement of business goals. Organize work unit and assign workload ensuring effective use of human and fiscal resources. Monitor workload assignments such that projects and tasks are completed in support of VDOT programs. Manage time and adjust priorities of tasks. Provide on-going direction to project manager roles. Establish organizational structure supporting effective project management. Evaluate performance and make adjustments. Optimize resources across projects.

Project Contract Coordination: Represent VDOT when meeting with outside contractors to include resolving issues of public concern. Work with district and residency staff to communicate all contract issues and work as a team member and leader to resolve problems.

Project Scheduling: Manage VDOT resources and partner with contractors to facilitate on-time completion of projects. Ensure adequate staff is in place to accomplish work within schedules and guidelines. Conduct periodic assessments to ensure compliance with established guidelines, procedures, and policies. Complete review based on project findings and provide reports to management. Make detailed recommendations for corrective actions. Ensure Scheduling and Contract Division directives are implemented in accordance with written instructions. Provide monthly and fiscal year-end program accomplishment reports. Review, coordinate and schedule projects and monitor progress throughout construction phase. Work to resolve issues that may delay projects through partnering with all stakeholders.

Quality Improvement: Manage and facilitate contract and construction quality improvement. Provide leadership in dispute resolution; perform analysis and lead negotiations. Interpret plans, schedule, and contract requirements and provide technical advice to contractors, design and field staff. Ensure reviews of project correspondence are conducted. Conduct meetings with engineering and construction groups to address project issues and maintain consistency. Conduct follow-up reviews with staff and management to support implementation of recommendations. Conduct on-site field visits and document findings to appropriate parties; perform follow-up assessments to evaluate implementation effectiveness. Prepare reports with constructability issues clearly identified with recommendations for resolution.

Strategic Management: Participate with other top departmental senior managers in implementing agency mission, goals and objectives. Engage fully as a member of the district’s senior leadership team by working with team members to support and promote achievement of district performance goals. Work on district-wide and special initiatives at DA request. Offer ideas and suggestions to team members supporting process improvements and program efficiencies. Ensure core functions and strategic initiatives are appropriately resourced and linked to the larger VDOT strategic plan.

Technical Guidance: Demonstrate considerable knowledge of sound engineering practices and project management procedures to address transportation related matters. Apply sound technical guidance to resolve problems and issues. Suggest modifications and changes to current technical policies and directives to improve effectiveness and efficiency. Attend meetings, facilitate actions and communicate. Correspond with appropriate officials in support of VDOT values, goals and objectives.

What will make you successful:

Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing with contractors, political entities and general public.

Ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing with diverse audiences to include making technical presentations and conducting public meetings.

Ability to manage administrative, financial, and technical functions of an engineering work unit.

Ability to manage staff, programs, and develop budgets.

Ability to provide technical and engineering guidance and direction to construction staff, design engineers, and others.

Ability to research and analyze data and prepare and present technical reports.

Ability to supervise and evaluate the work of others.

Advanced knowledge of transportation and highway engineering principles, laws and regulations.

Knowledge of civil engineering and design engineering principles related to roadway, structures, drainage and environmental.

Knowledge of constructability review processes and practices, project management, and problem resolution methods and ability to conduct constructability reviews for a range of projects.

Knowledge of contract administration.

Knowledge of engineering construction principles and practices.

Knowledge of state and federal standards related to highway construction and design.

Knowledge of strategic and operational principles, practices, and techniques.

Knowledge of supervisory and human resources practices and principles to include hiring, discipline, performance management, and employee development.

Knowledge of transportation project management and transportation project engineering.

Skill in building networks and relationships with employees from other divisions, field personnel, contractors, manufacturers and FHWA representatives.

Skill in effectively planning and scheduling work of diverse teams.

Skill in leadership coaching, counseling, training, and development.

Skill in managing the delivery of exemplary customer service by self and others.

Skill in the use of computers and software applications to include engineering design and analysis software.

Skill in working with all levels of management and elected and appointed officials.

Minimum Qualifications:

Ability to apply knowledge of federal, FHWA, state and local transportation rules, regulations and policies.

Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing with diverse audiences and to make presentation and conduct meetings.

Ability to oversee construction activities for multiple projects of varying complexity.

Degree in Construction Engineering or related field.

Knowledge of engineering design for roadways, structures, drainage and environmental state and federal standards related to highway design and construction.

Knowledge of quality assurance and control methods.

Knowledge of transportation construction principles and practices, transportation project management, processes, quality assurance and quality control methods.

Skill in project scheduling and management.

Skill in use of computers and software applications to perform tasks which support VDOT operations.

Valid Professional Engineer's license.

Valid driver's license.

Additional Considerations:

Certification as Certified Construction Manager (CCM).

Certified Project Management Professional (PMP).

Experience in project and program management related to transportation engineering. Progressively responsible managerial experience in transportation engineering.

Experience interpreting federal and state guidelines, policies and practices related to Transporation engineering.

Extensive experience conducting constructability reviews focusing on scheduling, assessments, and report recommendations for highways and structures.

Extensive experience leading and supervising construction and engineering staff.

Extensive experience leading construction engineering staff in resolution of construction issues and in quality improvement for projects of varying complexity.

Extensive experience leading engineering staff in resolution of issues for projects of varying complexity. Progressively responsible experience in transportation engineering.

Progressively responsible experience in management and administration of diversified transportation engineering or construction program.

Click below to learn more about the Competency Model associated with this Position:
Competency Model

Physical Requirements
Physical Requirements

VDOT employees must abide by VDOTs Code of Ethics and the Commonwealths Standards of Conduct.
VDOT Code of Ethics
Standards of Conduct

Physical Requirements
Physical Requirements

Minimum Salary: 103950.00

Maximum Salary: 168919.00