Job  Description
Industry: Construction & Trades - Architecture & Planning
Job Category: Engineering

Role: Heavy Highway Construction Chief Engineer
Location: New Kensington, PA
Salary: $160,000 – $190,000 annually (Market Range)

About the Company

Our client is a well-established heavy civil construction contractor specializing in large-scale transportation infrastructure projects, including highways, bridges, roadway improvements, and complex structural construction. The company has earned a strong reputation for engineering excellence, safety, and delivering high-quality public infrastructure projects. This position is a succession hire for a key executive engineering leadership role.

Position Summary

The Chief Engineer will lead the company's construction engineering program and provide technical leadership for heavy highway, bridge, and transportation infrastructure projects. Following a structured transition period, the selected candidate will assume full responsibility as Chief Engineer, including signing and sealing engineering plans and serving as the organization's senior engineering authority.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead all construction engineering activities for heavy highway and bridge projects.
• Design, review, and approve temporary works including cofferdams, shoring, falsework, concrete forms, temporary supports, and demolition sequencing.
• Provide engineering guidance to field teams to ensure safe and efficient project execution.
• Establish engineering standards, quality control procedures, and technical best practices.
• Perform constructability reviews, engineering risk assessments, and safety evaluations.
• Ensure compliance with PennDOT, Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, OSHA, and applicable federal, state, and local regulations.
• Sign and seal engineering drawings, calculations, and technical documents following the transition period.
• Serve as the primary engineering liaison with owners, consultants, regulatory agencies, and design partners.
• Mentor and develop engineering staff while strengthening the company's technical capabilities.
• Support estimating, bidding, preconstruction planning, and construction sequencing.
• Partner with project managers and field leadership to resolve complex technical challenges.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Civil Engineering.
• Active Professional Engineer (PE) License.
• Minimum 10 years of heavy highway, bridge, or transportation construction engineering experience.
• Strong experience in temporary works engineering and structural design.
• Experience leading engineering teams or engineering departments.
• PennDOT or Pennsylvania Turnpike project experience is highly preferred.
• Proficiency with STAAD, AutoCAD, MathCAD, or similar structural analysis software.
• Estimating and bid support experience is preferred.
• Strong mechanical aptitude and practical construction knowledge.
• Must be authorized to work in the U.S. without current or future visa sponsorship.
• Must pass a pre-employment background check and drug screening.

Ideal Candidate

Please prioritize candidates with:

• Active PE License.
• Heavy highway and bridge construction experience.
• PennDOT or major DOT infrastructure project experience.
• Leadership experience managing engineering teams.
• Expertise in temporary works engineering and structural design.
• Experience signing and sealing engineering documents or the ability to assume that responsibility after the transition period

Security Clearance Required: No
Visa Candidate Considered: No
Compensation
Base Salary - USD $160,000 to $190,000

Full-time
Benefits - Full
Relocation Assistance Available - No
Commission Compensation - No
Bonus Eligible - No
Overtime Eligible - No
Interview Travel Reimbursed - No
Candidate Details
Seniority Level - Mid-Senior
Management Experience Required - No
Minimum Education - Bachelor's Degree
Willingness to Travel - Occasionally