Principal Construction Support Engineer

McDermott International, Ltd; Chennai District; On-site; INR 3,000,000 - 4,500,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading engineering firm in India seeks a Principal Construction Support Engineer skilled in solving complex problems and leading functional teams. This role involves comprehensive analyses, managing design processes, and ensuring compliance with project specifications. The ideal candidate is expected to have over 15 years of experience in oil and gas and possess a Bachelor's degree in a relevant engineering field. Responsibilities include project coordination, preparing design calculations, and effective communication with multidisciplinary teams.

Qualifications

• 15–20 years of experience in oil and gas with a major contractor or consultant.
• Detailed knowledge of design techniques, analysis methods, and applicable standards.
• Knowledgeable in project coordination and execution skills.

Responsibilities

• Perform conceptual, FEED, and detailed analyses.
• Manage time to meet project objectives.
• Prepare clear and accurate design calculations.

Skills

Project coordination

Complex problem solving

Engineering design principles

Communication skills

Team leadership

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Naval Architecture, Civil/Structural/Mechanical Engineering

Job description

JOB DESCRIPTION

Principal Construction Support Engineer is responsible for interpreting internal or external business issues and recommending best practices. They will solve complex Construction Support (Eng) related problems and work independently with minimal guidance. The Principal may lead functional teams or projects and is regarded as a specialist in Construction Support (Eng). In addition, they must have in-depth expertise and broad knowledge of the Discipline within the Engineering function.

JOB OVERVIEW

The Principal Construction Support Engineer is responsible for interpreting internal or external business issues and recommending best practices. They will be tasked with solving complex Construction Support (Eng) related problems and will work independently with minimal guidance. The Principal may be responsible for leading functional teams or projects and is regarded as a specialist in Construction Support (Eng). As such, they must have in-depth expertise in Construction Support (Eng) as well as broad knowledge of the Construction Support (Eng) discipline within the Engineering function.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Perform conceptual, FEED, and detailed analyses and design as per design basis, project specifications, design codes, and standards.


• Apply in-depth skills and broad knowledge of the business to address complex problems and nonstandard situations.


• Prepare clear and accurate detailed design calculations and analyses including design reports and procedures.


• Manage own time to meet objectives and (as Lead Engineer) forecast and plan resource requirements.


• Clearly communicate and explain difficult concepts and persuade others to adopt a point of view.


• Become fully familiar with the project scope of work, specifications, schedule, and all inter‑discipline requirements; including identifying concerns as early as practicable and taking appropriate initiatives to address issues, interpreting contractual requirements as they relate to engineering execution.


• Identify changes to scope and promptly raise change notifications, including providing any necessary supporting documentation and estimates.


• Interface with all disciplines to develop clash‑free designs.


• Interface with other departments to obtain input for discipline designs and drawings.


• Maintain close coordination with other engineering disciplines, Planning, fabrication, Marine, and Project Management teams, as required.


• Document substantive communications and forward copies to the Discipline Lead Engineer and Discipline Manager.


• Prepare estimates for bid proposals, including technical query reviews, execution statements, and man‑hour estimates, identifying software requirements and any other project‑specific requirements.


• Raise technical queries to obtain missing information, clarify work scope, and maintain preferred procedures, specifications, standards, practices, and operational requirements.


• Prepare, review, and (as Lead Engineer) approve engineering design basis, philosophies, and technical specifications.


• Participate in finalizing deliverable lists and deliverables, ensuring compliance with specifications and functional integrity.


• Review project schedule and fabrication schedule, construction sequence, milestones, and engineering scope.


• Attend project kickoff and review meetings, vendor meetings, engineering meetings, and offshore site surveys, as required.


• Provide technical direction and review of Designers producing products related to Construction Support Engineering.


• Assist in providing necessary design inputs to other disciplines to enable them to proceed with their deliverables.


• When assigned, assist procurement personnel in procuring discipline equipment, materials, and services; ensuring that work produced complies with Customer objectives and procedures. Procurement assistance includes preparing, reviewing, and (as Lead Engineer) approving requisitions, evaluating technical quotations, preparing queries and compiling bid tabulations and recommendations.


• Review and (as Lead Engineer) approve design verification through single‑discipline check / inter‑discipline check (IDC).


• Provide technical support to all fabrication queries, including identifying defect/rectification requirements.


• Keep the Discipline Manager apprised of all activities and concerns, technical, budgetary and manpower related.


• Assist in providing inputs for actual, planning, and forecasting progress reports including associated productivity.


• Present issues and problems to Customers in a timely manner and assist the Lead Engineer in negotiating resolution in accordance with project and company requirements.


• Perform (as required) Technical Quality Audit reviews in accordance with MDR Global Procedures.


• Assist Lead engineer with responses to Customers and other agencies on their review and approval.


• Capture lessons learned and enter into MDR’s Lessons Learned system.


• Guide less experienced engineers on procedures, standards, worksheets, design calculations, software, requisitions, technical bid evaluations, technical queries, etc.


• Supervise and guide assigned engineers and coordinate with Lead Designers for Discipline engineering and design deliverables.


• Responsible for the engineering integrity of the assigned work area.


• Monitor costs of own work processes.


• Assist in the maintenance of departmental technical guidelines and standard calculation notes.


• Participate in development and maintenance of Global Procedures, Software, and Standards.


• May participate in standards development committees or task groups such as API.


• Develop communication and presentation skills (e.g., write technical papers, participate in conferences and/or seminars, present design solutions, and/or present topics at ‘lunch and learn’).


• Identify and provide training to staff in specific techniques and proprietary software.


• Provide information on employee performance to the Discipline Manager.


• Assist the Discipline manager in interviewing job applicants.


• Perform, review, and (as Lead Engineer) approve designs, analyses, evaluations, calculations, and procedures such as:

• Erection sequences for jackets, topsides, and other structures.


• Loadout procedure and guidance during the operations.


• Construction lift analyses and procedures for activities such as floatovers, stackings, rollups, etc.


• Weighing Procedures.


• Design and detailing of miscellaneous fabrication yard items.


• Crane arrangements and rigging arrangements.


• Trailer arrangements/operations.

Assist in coordinating critical operations pre‑activity meetings and attend yard critical operations.

When acting as Lead engineer, in addition:

• Act as a discipline point of contact in communications and meetings with customer counterparts.


• Ensure substantive communications are documented.


• Prepare bids and projects discipline engineering budget and execution plans.


• Identify project staff needs based on knowledge of individual engineer’s skill sets and provide requests to the discipline manager.


• Plan, organize, and assign tasks, responsibilities, and man‑hour budgets to the discipline team, and verify tasks are completed within budgets.


• Plan discipline deliverable schedule/register compliant with the overall execution plan.


• Prepare work forecasts identifying change management plans, corrective action, and real‑time schedule.


• Provide discipline inputs for actual, planning, and forecasting progress reports including associated productivity.


• Alert the project team of any deviation from the scope or a need for a change order.


• Monitor KPI measurement results and take corrective action as necessary to improve Discipline performance, including performance at interfaces with others.


• Coordinate with other Discipline Lead Engineers and Designers to ensure timely receipt of necessary design inputs.


• Review and approve requisitions, technical quotation evaluations, and queries, compiled bid tabulations, and coordinate with Procurement to expedite vendor documents as required.


• Lead the Discipline team during project audits (internal, Customer and third‑party technical audits) and Design reviews.


• Review comments from Customers and other agencies on documents and drawings produced by the team, and resolve/give guidance on their update and incorporation.


• Assist the Discipline manager in the preparation of quarterly forecasts and manpower planning.


• Anticipate project engineering needs and plan accordingly.


• Assist the Discipline manager in the Performance Evaluation of project team members.

Reports to: Manager (Construction Support Eng)

Liaise With: All Engineering disciplines, Fabrication Dept, Marine Dept, Safety Dept, Project Management Team, Document Control, Project Planner, Project Cost Controller, QC and Certification Group, Procurement Group, Subcontractors, Vendors, and Customers

Supervises: Senior Engineers and Engineers

QUALIFICATIONS

Essential Qualifications and Education

• Bachelor's Degree in Naval Architecture, Civil/Structural/Mechanical Engineering (Master’s is a preference).


• 15–20 years of experience in oil and gas with a major contractor or consultant predominantly performing construction and installation design.


• Detailed knowledge of design techniques and analysis methods, and detailed knowledge of the theory, content, and application of standards, codes, and guidelines as applicable.


• Knowledgeable in project coordination and execution skills.

ABOUT US

Our ingenuity fuels daily life. Together, we’ve forged some of the most trusted partnerships across the energy value chain to make what was once just an idea a reality: laying subsea infrastructure thousands of feet below sea level, installing platforms hundreds of miles from shore, using our expertise to design and build offshore wind infrastructure, and reshaping the onshore landscape to deliver the energy products the world needs safely and sustainably.

For more than 100 years, we've been making the impossible possible. Today, we're driving the energy transition with more than 30,000 of the brightest minds across 54 countries.