Senior / Associate Drafter - Bridges & Structures, Rail & Metro

SMEC (an SJ Group company); Sydney; Hybrid; AUD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work model

18 weeks parental leave

Job summary

SMEC, a global multidisciplinary engineering consultancy, is seeking a Senior/Associate Drafter – Bridges & Structures to support our Rail & Metro team in Sydney. The role focuses on senior drafting leadership, coordination of high-quality bridge and structural documentation, and delivering projects to time and budget.

You will mentor drafting colleagues, ensure compliance with Australian standards, and collaborate with engineers, project managers and clients to achieve optimal outcomes.

Qualifications

• Diploma or Advanced Diploma in Civil Drafting.
• 8–12+ years of experience in structural drafting for bridges, structures or major transport projects.
• Advanced proficiency in Autodesk Revit for bridge and civil structures drafting and modelling.
• Experience producing detailed design documentation and BIM deliverables for transport infrastructure projects.
• Strong understanding of Australian drafting standards and bridge detailing practice.
• Extensive experience modelling and documenting complex bridge structures.
• Experience in computational design and digital engineering workflows (desirable).
• Ability to develop or utilise automation tools using C#, Dynamo, Grasshopper, Python, or similar (desirable).

Responsibilities

• Provide senior technical drafting leadership across Bridge, Structures, Rail & Metro projects.
• Deliver and coordinate high-quality structural documentation for transport infrastructure works.
• Supervise, check and approve drawings for accuracy, compliance and consistency.
• Coordinate digital delivery outputs and collaborate with other design disciplines.
• Manage workloads, priorities and deadlines to meet programme and budget requirements.
• Mentor and support the development of drafting team members.
• Collaborate with project managers, engineers and clients to achieve quality outcomes.

Skills

Senior drafting leadership

Structural drafting

Coordination

Mentoring

Education

Civil Drafting Diploma/Advanced Diploma

Tools

Autodesk Revit

Dynamo

Grasshopper

Python

C#

Job description

• Join a global, multidiscipline Engineering Consultancy, with on-going career opportunities and development
• Work on major Rail projects across Australia
• Flexible working arrangements – hybrid work model

• Join a global, multidiscipline Engineering Consultancy, with on-going career opportunities and development
• Work on major Rail projects across Australia
• Flexible working arrangements – hybrid work model

About SMEC

SMEC provides unique opportunities to work on iconic industry projects with experienced colleagues and leadership teams. We support and empower employees to drive innovation initiatives within a well-established and growing organisation

With over 16,500 employees working out of 120 offices in 40+ countries throughout Australasia, Asia, the Middle East, UK, Africa, North and South America, we partner with our parent company Surbana Jurong and sister company Robert Bird Group (RBG) to deliver integrated Infrastructure, Urban Development and Management Services expertise to our clients worldwide.

The Role

SMEC are looking for a Senior / Associate Drafter – Bridges & Structures to join our Rail & Metro team in Sydney. The successful candidate will provide senior technical drafting leadership across a range of complex transport infrastructure projects. Working within a multidisciplinary consulting environment, you will play a key role in coordinating and delivering high‑quality structural documentation that supports successful project outcomes.

You will combine advanced drafting expertise with strong project coordination and leadership capability, ensuring design outputs meet technical standards, programme requirements and client expectations. The role also contributes to mentoring and developing drafting capability within the team, supporting efficient delivery and consistency across digital design practices.

This position offers the opportunity to influence quality, efficiency and collaboration across Rail & Metro projects while working closely with engineers, project managers and stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

• Providing senior technical drafting leadership across Bridge, Structures, Rail & Metro projects
• Delivering and coordinating high‑quality structural documentation for transport infrastructure works
• Supervising, checking and approving drawings to ensure accuracy, compliance and consistency
• Coordinating digital delivery outputs and working closely with other design disciplines
• Managing workloads, priorities and deadlines to meet programme and budget requirements
• Mentoring and supporting the development of drafting team members
• Collaborating with project managers, engineers and clients to achieve quality outcomes

About You

• A Diploma, Advanced Diploma or equivalent tertiary qualification in Civil Drafting
• 8-12+ years of experience in structural drafting for Bridge, Structures, Rail & Metro or major transport infrastructure projects
• Advanced proficiency in Autodesk Revit for bridge and civil structures drafting and modelling
• Demonstrated experience producing detailed design documentation and BIM deliverables for transport infrastructure projects
• Strong understanding of Australian drafting standards and bridge detailing practice
• Extensive experience in the modelling and documentation of complex bridge structures
• Experience in computational design and digital engineering workflows (highly desirable)
• Ability to develop or utilise automation tools using C#, Dynamo, Grasshopper, Python, or similar programming environments to improve design efficiency, model quality, and document production (highly desirable)

SMEC is committed to building a diverse, inclusive and gender‑equitable workforce and encourages applications from people of all backgrounds across engineering and technical disciplines. We provide a supportive and flexible working environment that recognises individual contribution, supports career progression, and enables our people to balance work and life at all stages of their career.

As a family‑friendly employer, we offer flexible working arrangements and benefits including 18 weeks of universal paid parental leave. We are proud to foster an inclusive culture that supports gender equity, LGBTI+ inclusion and First Nations representation, with access to strong professional networks, role models, and mentoring and sponsorship programs.