Project Controls Specialist

Caterpillar Brazil; Houston, Northern (TX, KY); Hybrid; USD 113,000 - 169,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision benefits

401(k) savings plans

Health Savings Account (HSA)

Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs)

Career Development

Incentive bonus

Tuition Reimbursement

Parental leave

Job summary

Caterpillar Inc. is seeking a Project Controls Specialist to support planning, scheduling, cost control, and reporting for BOP scope across oil & gas and power generation projects. The role ensures accurate performance tracking, forecasting, and risk identification across multi-discipline activities.

The position involves onsite collaboration with engineering, procurement, and construction teams, with focus on utilities, interconnects, and plant infrastructure to deliver value and reliability.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or 3-5 years’ experience desired.
• Experience in cost control, project planning, or material planning within a manufacturing or project-based environment preferred.
• Strong analytical problem-solving skills, ability to use and communicate statistical and problem-solving tools including root cause analysis and corrective action skills.
• Well-developed interpersonal skills strongly preferred in dealing with sensitive issues, developing others, and reaching consensus on specific actions, inside and outside of Solar.

Responsibilities

• Develop, maintain, and update integrated project schedules for BOP scope.
• Coordinate with engineering, procurement, and construction teams to ensure schedule alignment.
• Identify critical path activities, float erosion, and schedule risks.
• Support lookahead planning and construction sequencing.
• Track project budgets, commitments, actuals, and forecasts for BOP scope.
• Support development and maintenance of cost reports, cash flow forecasts, and estimate-to-complete (ETC).
• Monitor cost performance and identify variances against baseline budgets.
• Establish and maintain progress measurement systems for engineering, procurement, and construction.
• Produce biweekly and monthly reports including progress curves, earned value metrics, and variance analysis when required.
• Support client and internal reporting requirements.
• Support risk identification, quantification, and mitigation tracking.
• Maintain risk registers and contribute to schedule and cost risk analysis.
• Track and evaluate change orders and scope growth, assessing schedule and cost impacts.
• Work closely with project managers, construction teams, and discipline leads to ensure alignment across all BOP systems (e.g., electrical, piping, utilities, interconnects).
• Coordinate across multiple workstreams including gas supply, cooling systems, substations, and plant infrastructure.

Skills

Planning & Scheduling

Cost Control

Progress Measurement

Risk & Change Mgmt

Interface & Coordination

Analytical skills

Communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Job description

Career Area: Strategy. Job Description: Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc. When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other. We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it.

The Project Controls Specialist will support planning, scheduling, cost control, and reporting for balance of plant (BOP) scope across oil & gas and power generation projects. This role is responsible for ensuring accurate project performance tracking, forecasting, and risk identification across multi-discipline engineering, procurement, and construction activities. The ideal candidate brings strong experience in industrial infrastructure projects, with a focus on utilities, interconnects, and supporting systems associated with power and energy facilities.

Key Responsibilities

Planning & Scheduling

• Develop, maintain, and update integrated project schedules for BOP scope.
• Coordinate with engineering, procurement, and construction teams to ensure schedule alignment.
• Identify critical path activities, float erosion, and schedule risks.
• Support lookahead planning and construction sequencing.

Cost Control

• Track project budgets, commitments, actuals, and forecasts for BOP scope.
• Support development and maintenance of cost reports, cash flow forecasts, and estimate-to-complete (ETC).
• Monitor cost performance and identify variances against baseline budgets.

Progress Measurement & Reporting

• Establish and maintain progress measurement systems for engineering, procurement, and construction.
• Produce biweekly and monthly reports including progress curves, earned value metrics, and variance analysis when required.
• Support client and internal reporting requirements.

Risk & Change Management

• Support risk identification, quantification, and mitigation tracking.
• Maintain risk registers and contribute to schedule and cost risk analysis.
• Track and evaluate change orders and scope growth, assessing schedule and cost impacts.

Interface & Coordination

• Work closely with project managers, construction teams, and discipline leads to ensure alignment across all BOP systems (e.g., electrical, piping, utilities, interconnects).
• Coordinate across multiple workstreams including gas supply, cooling systems, substations, and plant infrastructure.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or 3-5 years’ experience desired.
• Experience in cost control, project planning, or material planning within a manufacturing or project-based environment preferred.
• Strong analytical problem-solving skills, ability to use and communicate statistical and problem-solving tools including root cause analysis and corrective action skills.
• Well-developed interpersonal skills strongly preferred in dealing with sensitive issues, developing others, and reaching consensus on specific actions, inside and outside of Solar.

Summary Pay Range: $112,704.00 - $169,056.00

Compensation and benefits offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, job level, market location, job-related knowledge, skills, individual performance and experience. Please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Caterpillar.

Benefits:

• Medical, dental, and vision benefits*
• Paid time off plan (Vacation, Holidays, Volunteer, etc.)*
• 401(k) savings plans*
• Health Savings Account (HSA)*
• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs)*
• Health Lifestyle Programs*
• Employee Assistance Program*
• Voluntary Benefits and Employee Discounts*
• Career Development*
• Incentive bonus*
• Disability benefits Life Insurance Parental leave Adoption benefits Tuition Reimbursement *
• These benefits also apply to part-time employees

This position requires working onsite five days a week.

Visa Sponsorship is not available for this position.

Caterpillar is an Equal Opportunity Employer, Including Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities.

Powering the future through innovative, sustainable energy solutions.

Solar Turbines Incorporated, headquartered in San Diego, California, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc. Solar manufactures the world’s most widely used family of mid-sized industrial gas turbines, ranging from 1 to 39 megawatts. More than 16,000 Solar units are operating in more than 100 countries with more than 3 billion operating hours. Solar is a leading provider of energy solutions, featuring an extensive line of gas turbine-powered compressor sets, mechanical drive packages, and generator sets. Solar’s customers put the company’s products to work in many areas, including production, processing and pipeline transmission of natural gas and crude oil, and generation of electricity and thermal energy for processing applications, such as manufacturing chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and food products. Solar’s foundation is people and Solar’s culture is one where individual contributions are valued, diversity in the workplace is encouraged, and safety is emphasized in all aspects of the business. Solar Turbines is comprised of a dedicated and multi-talented workforce of more than 9,000 employees with decades of experience working as a global team.