Design Project Manager

Coffey; Birmingham; Hybrid; GBP 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

A civil engineering specialist in Birmingham is looking for a Design Project Manager. This role involves planning and coordinating design processes in water and wastewater projects. Candidates should have an engineering degree and 5-10 years of related experience, including managing multi-disciplinary teams. The position supports a hybrid work environment, balancing office and remote work. The ideal candidate will be skilled in communication and project lifecycle management, committed to delivering compliant designs safely and efficiently.

Qualifications

• 5-10 years of experience in water/wastewater industry
• Proven ability to manage multi-disciplinary design teams
• Experience from ECI through detailed design to construction support

Responsibilities

• Manage and coordinate design works packages
• Ensure compliance with quality control procedures
• Implement robust change control for project management

Skills

Project lifecycle management

Design coordination

Communication skills

BIM principles

Problem-solving

Education

Engineering degree (Mechanical, Electrical, Civil)

Tools

Microsoft Office

Asite

Autodesk Construction Cloud (ACC)

Job description

About The Role

Role Summary :

The Design Project Manager will provide planning, design, and coordination support on Coffey projects and tenders. This pivotal role will involve active participation and oversight across the full design lifecycle, including Early Contractor Involvement (ECI), outline design, detailed design, and providing construction support. As part of the design and project teams, the DPM will carry responsibility for managing the design phase to ensure programme, cost, and quality requirements are met. They will play an important role in liaising with internal and external design consultant teams, ensuring that designs are controlled, optimised, and deliver practical solutions that can be built safely and efficiently. This position is offered on a hybrid working basis, with three days per week in the office and two days remote.

The position requires supporting the development of technical solutions for water and wastewater assets, covering both new facilities and upgrades, while ensuring compliance with project objectives and client expectations.

Key Responsibilities

• Management and coordination of the delivery of design works packages, ensuring effective communication and clear assignment of responsibilities, and full compliance with Coffey quality control procedures;
• Management of interfaces between internal and external design resources, including subcontract design packages, ensuring coordinated delivery of all design work packages in line with BIM requirements and the associated Common Data Environment (CDE);
• Coordination of information between designers and relevant other parties who are likely to be affected by aspects of the design;
• Ensuring the design meets the Employer's requirements, and that value engineering proposals are appropriately assessed and implemented;
• Effective management of the design programme and budget, including regular review of resource hours and variances. Implement robust change control to manage scope, cost, or schedule deviations, informing the Design Manager and Project Manager as required;
• Work with the project site team and coordinate the delivery of robust technical solutions to design issues arising on site;
• Communicate freely to develop ongoing relationships with clients, stakeholders and customers;
• Ensure the delivery of safe and compliant designs in accordance with CDM 2015 principles, proactively identifying, eliminating, and mitigating foreseeable risks through effective design coordination and collaboration with the Principal Designer, design team, and construction partners.

About You

Essential Criteria

• An engineering degree (preferably Mechanical, Electrical, Civil or equivalent) to support your competency in the role;
• 5-10 years of experience, with water / wastewater industry experience preferred;
• Proven experience managing multi-disciplinary design teams within the water or wastewater sector, including coordination of internal, external, and subcontract design resources;
• Experience in the full project lifecycle, from Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) through detailed design to construction support, within a design-and-build environment;
• Have an understanding CDM 2015 principles and their practical application in design, including the ability to identify, manage, and communicate design risks to ensure health, safety, and compliance;
• Excellent written and oral communication;
• Ability to work on multiple projects;
• Good communication and people skills;
• Excellent knowledge of Microsoft Office suite of applications, including MS Excel, MS Office and MS Project;
• Excellent written & fluent English

Desirable Criteria

• Strong understanding of BIM processes and Common Data Environment (CDE) platforms, with practical experience ensuring design compliance and information management in line with ISO 19650 standards;
• Demonstrated capability in design programme and budget control, including change management;
• Proficiency in design management and collaboration tools such as Asite and Autodesk Construction Could (ACC);
• Holds a valid CSCS card and a current EUSR Clean Water Hygiene card

About Us

Coffey is a water infrastructure and civil engineering specialist operating in every major construction sector throughout Ireland and the UK. Passionate about quality and efficiency, this passion drives our belief in delivering projects with the best workforce. The hallmarks of our work are innovative solutions, engineering ingenuity, professional construction management and the highest level of safety and quality. We pride ourselves in nurturing an environment that empowers critical thinking, creative problem-solving, customer focus, efficiency and flexibility.

Coffey values are at the heart of everything we do – Do the right thing, Do it better, Do it together.