Pre-Construction Manager

SWI Fencing; Sydney; Remote; AUD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

SWI Fencing is seeking a Pre-Construction Manager to scrutinise tenders beyond price, ensuring buildability, procurement strategy and margin protection before commitment. The role spans national scope with flexible location, interfacing closely with Estimators, Senior Project Managers, Contracts Administration and Delivery.

You’ll drive procurement sequencing, value-engineering, and risk reviews, coordinating consultants and suppliers to ensure the project is deliverable and commercially sound

Qualifications

• Senior pre-construction, estimating or delivery background in fencing, civil or construction.
• Ability to challenge assumptions and identify better ways to deliver.
• Disciplined and thorough when handing projects across to Delivery.

Responsibilities

• Review tender strategy, project methodology and procurement plan.
• Assess programme, procurement and delivery risks; test buildability.
• Identify long-lead items, supply-chain constraints and margin risk.
• Coordinate internal tender reviews and client proposals.
• Lead value-engineering and design workshops; develop alternative systems.
• Sign off margin, risk and procurement sequencing with delivery teams.
• Transfer programme, procurement requirements and risks to Delivery.
• Lead handover into Delivery and ensure clear communication with subcontractors.

Skills

Buildability analysis

Programme logic

Commercial acumen

Risk management

Procurement strategy

Stakeholder engagement

Job description

Know what we're signing up to deliver before we commit.

A good tender isn't just about winning the work. It’s about knowing what you’re actually signing up to deliver.

At SWI Fencing, we're looking for a Pre-Construction Manager who can look beyond the tender price and ask the questions that matter before we commit:

Can we build it?
Can we build it in the time available?
Can we procure what we need?
What could go wrong?
And will the margin hold?

If you naturally think this way, this could be the role for you.

This is where projects are won or lost. Your job is to make sure SWI goes into a project with its eyes open with the buildability tested, risks understood, programme challenged, procurement strategy developed and margin protected.

What you'll actually do

You'll work across tenders and opportunities through the pre-construction phase, challenging the proposed approach before anything is handed to Delivery.

You'll be responsible for:

• Reviewing tender strategy and project methodology
• Assessing programme, procurement and delivery risks
• Testing whether the programme can actually be achieved and identifying where it can be improved
• Assessing buildability, staging and delivery sequencing
• Identifying long-lead items and supply-chain constraints
• Reviewing commercial and operational exposure
• Coordinating the internal tender review process
• Preparing proposals for client submission
• Completing thorough WBS reviews
• Leading value-engineering initiatives and alternative design workshops
• Coordinating technical inputs and clarifications
• Bringing consultants and suppliers into the conversation to develop alternative systems and solutions
• Signing off margin and risk
• Developing the procurement strategy and critical-path requirements. Claude PreConstruction PDs

You’ll need to think beyond the tender. You need to understand what the drawings say but also what they mean when someone actually has to build the project.

You need to understand programme not just produce one.

You need to understand procurement including what could hold the project up before it starts.

And you need to understand margin including what could erode it before the first person steps onto site.

When there is a better way to build something, we expect you to find it.

Commercial judgement matters. This isn't a role where commercial considerations are someone else's problem.

You'll work closely with the Commercial Manager to assess subcontract terms, qualifications, inclusions and exclusions and ensure supplier and subcontractor arrangements align back-to-back with the Head Contractor's subcontract conditions.

You'll also recommend procurement sequencing and supplier commitments and continue subcontract reviews with the Contracts Administrator.

You own the conversation around margin and risk.

And then comes the handover

Winning the project and throwing a folder over the fence isn't pre-construction.

The job isn't finished when the contract is signed.

A successful pre-construction process means Delivery receives a project they understand and can execute.

You’ll:

• Engage the Senior Project Manager to allocate the delivery team
• Recommend key suppliers and subcontractors
• Finalise the procurement strategy and critical-path items
• Lead the project handover into Delivery
• Transfer the programme, procurement requirements and project risks clearly to the Delivery team.

Your work should make the Delivery team's job easier because the difficult questions have already been asked.

What we’re looking for

You’ll likely come from a senior pre-construction, estimating or delivery background within fencing, civil or broader construction.

We’re looking for someone who is:

• Strong on buildability, programme logic and construction methodology
• Commercially sharp, with the ability to own margin and risk sign-off
• Experienced in assessing back-to-back subcontract exposure
• Confident bringing suppliers and consultants into the process
• Able to challenge assumptions and identify better ways to deliver
• Disciplined and thorough when handing projects across to Delivery
• Comfortable coordinating multiple technical, commercial and operational inputs without losing sight of the bigger picture.

Why SWI Fencing?

SWI Fencing delivers high-security fencing and construction packages across defence, government, infrastructure, transport, utilities and critical infrastructure.

We’re continuing to strengthen our pre-construction capability and want this function to have a genuine influence on what work we pursue, how we approach it and how confidently we commit to delivering it.

This is a national role with flexible location, working closely with Estimators, Senior Project Managers, Contracts Administration and Delivery.

This isn't an estimating role with a bigger title. We’re looking for someone who can step back from the number and ask:

Does the project make sense?

Can we actually build it?

What are we missing?

Where is the risk?

What can we do better?

And are we comfortable committing to it?

If you enjoy figuring out how something should actually be built before it gets built, and you have the commercial judgement to make sure the numbers and risks stack up, we’d like to hear from you.