Construction Estimator - 90386207 - Philadelphia

Amtrak; Philadelphia (Philadelphia County); On-site; USD 94,000 - 122,000; Full time

Job summary

Amtrak in Philadelphia is seeking a Lead Cost Estimator to prepare and manage cost estimates for mid-sized to large capital construction projects. You will collaborate with the Project Manager and team to define scope, schedule, and budget baselines, and ensure estimates align with established procedures and best practices.

The role emphasizes accuracy, governance, and continuous improvement of estimating processes, with on-site collaboration and travel as needed.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree required or equivalent combination of training, education and relevant experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
• 8+ years of relevant experience preferred
• 6 years of prior relevant experience required

Responsibilities

• Develop cost estimates for construction and engineering projects and programs.
• Perform QC checks on estimates prepared by fellow estimators.
• Develop cost estimates by identifying work packages, quantifying scope, and costing direct and indirect items.
• Apply cost escalation following estimating guidelines and support contingency development.
• Visit sites to gain knowledge of craft scopes and support estimate development.

Skills

Cost estimating

MS Excel

Communication

Risk assessment

Data analysis

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

InEight Estimate

Heavy Bid

Sage Timberline

RS Means

SQL

Job description

Select how often (in days) to receive an alert:

Date: Oct 19, 2026

Location: Philadelphia, PA, US, 19104

Company: Amtrak

Your success is a train ride away!

As we move America’s workforce toward the future, Amtrak connects businesses and communities across the country. We employ more than 20,000 diverse, energetic professionals in a variety of career fields throughout the United States. The safety of our passengers, our employees, the public and our operating environment is our priority, and the success of our railroad is due to our employees.

Are you ready to join our team?

Our values of ‘Do the Right Thing, Excel Together and Put Customers First’ are at the heart of what matters most to us, and our Core Capabilities, ‘Building Trust, Accountability, Effective Communication, Customer Focus, and Proactive Safety & Security’ are what every employee needs to know and do to be most impactful at Amtrak. By living the Amtrak values, focusing on our capabilities, and actively embracing and fostering diverse ideas, backgrounds, and perspectives, together we will honor our past and make Amtrak a company of the future.

Job Summary

Under the guidance of Cost Estimating management, the Lead Cost Estimator prepares cost estimates for mid-sized to large capital construction projects with moderate to high complexity. This role involves close collaboration with the Project Manager and other team members to develop and update project cost estimates. The Lead Cost Estimator adheres to established departmental procedures, guidelines, and best practices throughout the estimate development process and when documenting the basis of estimate, while also supporting management in the development and continuous improvement of existing procedures and practices. Additional responsibilities may be assigned as needed.

Essential Functions

• Must be able to work with the Project Manager and team to develop cost estimates supporting project budget baseline at various levels of project scope definition maturity.
• Collect estimate inputs such as project scope information, drawings, project schedule, execution strategies to support development of cost estimate.
• Develop and maintain basis of estimate document supporting development of project cost estimate.
• Perform QC checks on estimates prepared by fellow Estimators on the team.
• Develop cost estimate by identifying work packages, quantifying scope elements, estimating direct cost line items and construction indirect costs, and estimating project “soft” costs such as project management, construction management, etc.
• Performs review and assessment of cost estimates completed by others, providing feedback in prioritized and comprehensive format. Develops formal Cost Estimate Review Reports when required
• Apply appropriate cost escalation to estimate following business process estimating guidelines for Cost Flow and Escalation.
• Support development of project budget contingency to account for estimate uncertainties and potential project risks events
• Participates in risk evaluation sessions or pre-construction reviews, and ensures risks are documented and assessed in terms of probability and impact to enable project team development of risk mitigation plans and contingencies
• Develops cost estimates for construction and engineering projects and programs using the InEight Estimate application and Excel. Utilizes standard construction estimating principles, practices, and procedures, along with specialized knowledge in railroad disciplines - such as electric traction, signals, structures, track, or general construction - as appropriate to the scope of the estimate.
• Integrate cost and schedule data as well as information for vendors and external entities to facilitate schedule and budget performance reporting
• Support Cost Engineering and Scheduling teams with estimate data on regular basis
• Manages Project Controls data via EPPM (Masterworks), SharePoint or any other approved EPMO systems and tools
• Adheres to Amtrak Enterprise Project Management methodology and Engineering PMO procedures
• Visits future and ongoing construction project sites to support cost estimate development and gain knowledge of craft/discipline scope of work

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree required or equivalent combination of training, education and relevant experience may be considered in lieu of a degree. Plus,
• 8+ years of relevant experience preferred
• 6 years of prior relevant experience required

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree, or higher, in Science, Engineering, or Construction management.
• Experience developing estimates on large to mega capital construction projects in railroad environment.
• Experience in quantitative risk assessment cost estimates supporting contingency development.
• Capital construction experience in the rail industry.
• Experience with database management (SQL)

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Intermediate to Advanced skill level/knowledge in:
• Principles and practices of project cost estimating through all phases of the project lifecycle
• Reviewing and providing feedback on all aspects of project cost estimates developed by others.
• Business processes, techniques, and procedures related to cost estimating in large and/or complex capital construction projects
• Principles and practices of construction services and materials procurement
• Cost estimating methods and practices for projects in conceptual design phase through completion of detailed design
• Statistical analysis methods
• Integration of estimating and scheduling processes, tools, systems, and data.
• Common software tools used in project cost estimating (e.g., InEight Estimate (Hard Dollar), Heavy Bid, Sage Timberline, RS Means) in developing and maintaining cost estimates for large and/or complex construction projects and extracting data to generate analysis and status reports.
• Use of internal financial system data to determine benchmarking to validate and improve estimates.
• Advanced user skills in MS Excel for data analysis.
• Communicating complex information clearly and concisely, both orally and writing across all levels
• Objective evaluation of available information or differing points of view and making sound and timely decisions consistent with department strategic goals.
• Preparing and delivering effective presentations and/or training to diverse audiences.
• Office environment; exposure to computer screens. Wearing of required personal protective equipment for periodic visit and walking of active construction project sites.
• May require maintaining physical condition necessary for sitting, walking or standing for prolonged periods of time.
• Up to 25% travel

The salary/hourly range is $94,300.00 – $122,256.00. Pay is based on several factors including but not limited to education, work experience, certifications, etc. Depending on an employee’s assigned worksite or location, Amtrak may consider a geo-pay differential to be applied to the employee’s base salary. Amtrak may offer additional incentive and pay programs to recognize and reward our employees, including a short-term incentive bonus based upon factors such as individual and company performance that is commensurate with the level of the position.

Health and Wellbeing Financial and Retirement Work and Family Life Support

Health, Dental, and Vision Insurance 401K with Employer Match Generous Paid Time Off

Wellness Programs Railroad Retirement Benefits Paid Caregiving Days and Backup Care

Health Savings Account Public Service Student Loan Forgiveness Fertility and Family Building Benefits

No-cost Personal Health Advocate Student Loan Assistance Adoption and Surrogacy Assistance

Medical Plan Opt-out Credit Tuition and Education Reimbursement Paid Family Leave

Life Insurance Rail Pass Privileges

Short- and Long-term Disability Insurance Employee Assistance Program

No-cost Financial Advisor Sessions Commuter and Flexible Spending Accounts

Requisition ID:167456

Work Arrangement:06-Onsite 4/5 Days
Relocation Offered:No
Travel Requirements:Up to 25%

You power our progress through your performance.

We want your work at Amtrak to be more than a job. We want your career at Amtrak to be a fulfilling experience where you find challenging work, rewarding opportunities, respect among colleagues, and attractive compensation. Amtrak maintains a culture that values high performance and recognizes individual employee contributions.

Amtrak is committed to a safe workplace free of drugs and alcohol. All Amtrak positions requires a pre-employment background check that includes prior employment verification, a criminal history check and a pre-employment drug screen.

Candidates who test positive for marijuana will be disqualified, regardless of any state or local statute, ordinance, regulation, or other law that legalizes or decriminalizes the use or possession of marijuana, whether for medical, recreational, or other use. Amtrak's pre-employment drug testing program is administered in accordance with DOT regulations and applicable law.

In accordance with DOT regulations (49 CFR § 40.25), Amtrak is required to obtain prior drug and alcohol testing records for applicants/employees intending to perform safety-sensitive duties for covered Department of Transportation positions. If an applicant/employee refuses to provide written consent for Amtrak to obtain these records, the individual will not be permitted to perform safety-sensitive functions.

In accordance with federal law governing security checks of covered individuals for providers of public transportation (Title 6 U.S.C. §1143), Amtrak is required to screen applicants for any permanent or interim disqualifying criminal offenses.

Note that any education requirement listed above may be deemed satisfied if you have an equivalent combination of education, training and experience.

Amtrak is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race/color, to include traits historically associated with race, including but not limited to, hair texture and hairstyles such as braids, locks and twists, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth and related conditions, such as lactation), national origin/ethnicity, disability (intellectual, mental and physical), veteran status, marital status, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, genetic information, citizenship or any other personal characteristics protected by law.