Senior Tailing Engineer

Copper Quail; Sandton; On-site; ZAR 1,200,000 - 1,600,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Travel opportunities across Africa

Professional growth

Job summary

Copper Quail, a premier engineering consultancy in South Africa, is seeking a senior-tailings engineer based in Rivonia. The role involves overseeing tailings storage facilities, return water dams, and related infrastructure, with travel across SA, Tanzania, and West Africa.

The candidate should have 7+ years of tailings experience, a BEng/BScEng in Civil Engineering, and be registered with ECSA. Postgraduate geotechnical exposure and proficiency in GeoStudio/Plaxis are highly valued.

Qualifications

• Must hold a BEng or BScEng in Civil Engineering and be a registered Professional Engineer (ECSA).
• Postgraduate geotechnical experience is advantageous.
• Strong knowledge of soil mechanics, CPTu testing, and soil/tailings lab testing.
• Experience with limit equilibrium and numerical slope stability analyses.

Responsibilities

• Planning and scheduling of projects.
• Supervise tailings storage facilities and return water dams design and audits.
• Coordinate site inspections across Africa (SA, Tanzania, West Africa).
• Mentor graduates and junior engineers; delegate tasks.
• Manage client relationships and source new work.
• Prepare proposals and manage subcontractors/sub-consultants.
• Stay updated on tailings industry developments.

Skills

Critical thinking

Fluent English

Time management

Mentoring

Client relationships

Attention to detail

Planning

Education

B Eng or BSc Eng in Civil Engineering

Postgraduate geotechnical experience

Professional Engineer (ECSA)

Tools

GeoStudio

Plaxis

Slide

AutoCAD Civil 3D

Job description

Sandton, South Africa | Posted on 09/05/2026

Copper Quail’s objective is to become a trusted partner within our clients’ organizations in Africa, understanding not only the people at their heart, but also their culture and ethos. We are Recruitment Advisors, specializing in Executive Search, Contingency Recruitment, Headhunting, Outsourced Labour and training. Using our significant market knowledge across, experience and judgement to help our clients employ the best qualified individuals for each position in Africa.

We’re known for our successful track record, responsiveness and discretion. We have a high performance culture and employ only experienced recruiters. These knowledgeable professionals provide a high level of service, deliver effective solutions and foster successful relationships through regular conversations with clients and candidates.

Job Description

A premier engineering consultancy is seeking to employ a senior-level, self-motivated tailings engineer with more than 7 years of tailings-related experience on a full-time basis, based in Rivonia. The engineer will contribute to new and existing projects and assist project managers and project directors with the surveillance of existing tailings storage facilities and the design of new ones, as well as return water dams.

Key Responsibilities

• Planning and scheduling of projects
• Compilation of proposals and appointment of sub-contractors and sub-consultants
• Surveillance of tailings storage facilities and return water dams
• Performing as and/or assisting the Engineer of Record (EoR) in carrying out annual audit inspections on tailings storage facilities and return water dams
• Travel to sites, predominantly South Africa, Tanzania, and West Africa, to conduct site inspections related to monitoring and construction management
• Driving and managing the design of new tailings storage facilities, return water dams, or associated infrastructure, together with travelling to site to conduct field investigations relevant to the project
• Performing and overseeing stability analysis of various facilities and types of residue
• Transfer of knowledge and delegating work to a team of graduate, junior, and intermediate-level engineers
• Managing projects and reporting back to project managers and directors
• Keeping up with the latest developments in the tailings industry and expanding the internal knowledge base

Preferred Skills & Attributes

• Strong critical thinking and problem-solving abilities
• Excellent communication skills, fluent in English
• Dynamic, self-motivated, with a willingness to take responsibility and ownership of tasks
• Ability to manage client relationships, source new work, and promote service offerings
• Effective time management and strong attention to detail
• Strong mentoring, organizational, and planning skills

Requirements

• More than 7 years of tailings engineering experience
• B Eng or BSc Eng in Civil Engineering
• Postgraduate experience in geotechnical engineering will be advantageous
• Registered as a Professional Engineer with ECSA
• Strong fundamental understanding and knowledge of soil mechanics
• Strong fundamental understanding and knowledge of CPTu testing and interpretation
• Strong fundamental understanding and knowledge of related laboratory testing of soils and tailings material
• Strong understanding of the various types of engineering contracts
• Experience in geotechnical investigations
• Experience in Tailings Dam Breach Assessments
• At least 5 years of experience with limit equilibrium and numerical slope stability and seepage analysis, with a strong understanding of software such as GeoStudio, Plaxis, or Slide
• Proficiency in MS Word, MS Excel, MS Outlook, MS PowerPoint, and MS Projects / Primavera
• Proficiency in AutoCAD Civil 3D or Modelmaker