What are the responsibilities and job description for the Heavy Highway Construction Chief Engineer position at HDJ & Associates, Inc.?
The Chief Engineer oversees all construction engineering activities for the company. This position is responsible for the planning, design, review, and approval of temporary works and engineering solutions for heavy highway projects, including bridges, roadways, and complex structural operations. The Chief Engineer provides technical leadership to project teams, ensures compliance with DOT and other regulatory requirements, and signs and seals engineering plans and calculations for the organization. The role also leads and mentors the engineering staff, builds technical capability across the company, and serves as the primary engineering representative to owners, agencies, and design partners.
NOTE: This is a succession hire. After a brief training and transition period, the selected candidate will assume the full responsibility of Chief Engineer.
Essential Functions & Responsibilities:
- Serve as the senior engineering authority, responsible for planning and designing temporary works to facilitate heavy highway construction projects, including bridges, roadways, and other structures.
- Lead, review, and approve engineering strategies for temporary works such as cofferdams, concrete forms, temporary supports, shoring, and demolition sequencing.
- Work directly with field personnel, providing practical guidance to ensure engineered plans are built safely and correctly.
- Establish and enforce engineering standards, procedures, and quality control processes across all projects.
- Provide executive‑level oversight of engineering risk, constructability reviews, and safety impacts associated with construction means and methods.
- Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local regulations, including PennDOT, PA Turnpike Commission, and OSHA requirements.
- Sign and seal engineering drawings, calculations, and technical documents as required by law and company policy (after transition to full Chief Engineer).
- Act as the primary engineering liaison with PennDOT, design engineers of record, owners, third‑party reviewers, consultants, and regulatory agencies.
- Oversee and mentor engineering staff, supporting in-house skills development, helping build technical capability and a long‑term succession pipeline for the company.
- Support preconstruction, estimating, and bid reviews by providing technical input, construction sequencing plans, and engineering risk evaluations.
- Work closely with project managers and field leadership to resolve complex technical issues and support successful project execution.
Additional responsibilities may be assigned by the Division Manager as needed.
Requirements
Qualifications:
- Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering with coursework or emphasis in steel and concrete structure design and geotechnical engineering (required).
- Professional Engineer (PE) license (required).
- Minimum of 10 years’ experience in the construction industry, preferably heavy highway or transportation infrastructure.
- PennDOT or Pennsylvania Turnpike experience preferred.
- Experience leading or overseeing engineering work for major DOT or infrastructure projects.
- Demonstrated ability to lead engineering teams or manage engineering programs/departments.
- Strong familiarity with structural and geotechnical analysis tools and CAD platforms, such as STAAD, AutoCAD, MathCAD, or similar.
- Mechanical aptitude and practical, hands‑on construction experience preferred.
- Private‑sector construction experience is helpful but not required.