Senior Project Engineer

Management Performance Associates; Starkville (MS); On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Management Performance Associates is seeking a Senior Project Engineer in the Starkville, MS area to lead a portfolio of chemical and specialty-chemical projects from concept through commissioning and start-up. You will manage scope, schedule, and budget, and coordinate across Operations, Environmental, Safety, and vendors to ensure successful delivery.

The role requires hands-on plant experience, strong problem-solving skills, and the ability to travel to job sites.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in chemical or mechanical engineering.
• 8+ years in engineering with PM, plant ops, or process design.
• Experience managing capital projects from cradle to grave, including scope, schedule and budget.

Responsibilities

• Manage an individual portfolio of projects from concept through commissioning and start-up.
• Develop scope, schedule and budget; monitor costs and execution.
• Coordinate with Operations, Environmental, Safety, contractors, vendors and other stakeholders.
• Provide plant support through troubleshooting, improvement work, and pilot facilities as needed.

Skills

Project management

Leadership

Cross-functional coordination

Communication

Problem solving

Budgeting

Travel willingness

Industrial troubleshooting

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Chemical/Mechanical Engineering

Tools

Microsoft Office

P&IDs/PFDs experience

VBA programming

Job description

Our client is a manufacturer of water treatment chemicals and other specialty chemicals. The company’s corporate project group supports capital and improvement projects across several manufacturing facilities in the United States. This Senior Project Engineer will manage an individual portfolio of projects from initial concept through commissioning and start-up.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering or Mechanical Engineering.
• At least 8 years of engineering experience with a focus on project management, plant operations, or process design.
• Experience independently managing capital and improvement projects from cradle to grave, including scope, schedule, budget, and execution.
• Experience with projects typically ranging from $1 million to $15 million, with the ability to support occasional larger projects.
• Hands‑on experience with cost estimating, FEED, preliminary P&IDs and PFDs, equipment and vendor selection, procurement, construction oversight, commissioning, and start‑up.
• Strong knowledge of mass and energy balances, hydraulic analysis, equipment sizing, process modeling, and heat‑transfer calculations.
• Ability to provide plant support through process troubleshooting, improvement work, and pilot‑facility activities as needed.
• Proven leadership and decision‑making skills with the ability to coordinate Operations, Environmental, Transportation, Safety, contractors, vendors, and other project stakeholders.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to provide clear project updates, schedules, cost reports, and technical information.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office; VBA programming knowledge is a plus.
• Strong organization, time management, and adaptability, along with a willingness to travel to job sites and work in a hands‑on manufacturing environment.
• Ability to work around industrial equipment, climb stairs and ladders, wear required PPE, perform prolonged desk and computer work, and lift up to 25 pounds as needed.

This position is located in the Starkville area, part of Mississippi’s Golden Triangle. The area offers a university‑town atmosphere with access to dining, arts, college sports, and outdoor recreation, with Columbus and West Point nearby.