The continuous growth of EDF Power Solutions, along with the increasing complexity and size of projects, brings light to the need for a common approach to establish and ensure steadiness and consistency, leverage on the projects volumes and capitalize on experience in real time.
As a response to that, EDF Power Solutions is seeking a Quality Engineer – Civil Works (M/F) with substantial experience in large scale Energy Projects to oversee the quality of all civil, structural and geotechnical works of on-shore wind project in Egypt nearby Ras Shukeir, and ensure that works are executed in accordance with the approved design, the EPC Contract, the applicable codes and standards and EDF Power Solutions quality requirements.
The scope covers earthworks, access roads and crane platforms, wind turbine foundations (anchor cage / embedded ring, reinforcement, mass concrete and grouting), cable trenches and duct banks, substation and O&M building civil works, together with the associated materials control, laboratory testing and survey control.
The Quality Engineer – Civil Works (M/F) is meant to be permanently based at site.
The position reports to the Construction Quality Manager, while maintaining a functional link with the Projects Delivery Director and the EDF Power Solutions quality corporate team
Main responsibilities
The Quality Engineer – Civil Works (M/F) will undertake the responsibilities, tasks and duties listed below:
Quality planning and documentation:
- Review and approve the EPC Contractor and subcontractors Quality Plans, Inspection and Test Plans (ITPs), method statements and quality procedures before the start of each civil activity;
- Verify that ITPs define clear hold points, witness points and acceptance criteria aligned with the contract specifications, the approved-for-construction drawings and the WTG supplier foundation requirements.
- Ensure that only the latest approved revision of drawings and specifications is used in the field and that document control procedures are respected.
- Maintain the civil quality documentation: inspection requests, inspection reports, test certificates, material approvals, as-built records and the quality dossier.
Earthworks, access roads and crane platforms:
- Monitor site clearing, excavation, cut and fill, subgrade preparation and layer-by-layer compaction.
- Witness field density tests, plate load tests, CBR, proctor and moisture content and compare results to the specified compaction criteria.
- Inspect access roads and crane platforms for bearing capacity, grading, cross-fall, drainage, geotextile placement, aggregate gradation and layer thickness, to ensure they can withstand heavy-haul and main crane loads.
- Verify the construction of culverts, drainage channels, retaining structures and erosion control measures.
Wind turbine foundations (critical scope):
- Act as the quality lead for turbine foundations: excavation approval, verification of the founding level against the geotechnical design assumptions, blinding concrete and waterproofing where required.
- Inspect reinforcement fabrication and installation: bar grade, diameter, spacing, cover, laps, couplers and congested zones, against approved bar bending schedules and mill certificates.
- Verify installation, levelling, alignment and verticality of the anchor cage or embedded ring in accordance with the WTG supplier tolerances, with survey records signed off before concreting.
- Verify formwork geometry and stability, and check embedded items, earthing connections, ducts and conduits before releasing the pour.
- Control mass concrete pours: mix design approval, batching plant audits, delivery tickets, slump and temperature checks, cube sampling, placement, vibration, pour sequencing and curing.
- Review thermal control plans and temperature monitoring for mass concrete in hot weather conditions to limit early-age cracking.
- Witness grouting of the tower base interface and bolt tensioning or post-tensioning activities where applicable.
- Verify backfilling, compaction and final levels around completed foundations.
Substation, buildings and cable trenches:
- Inspect civil works of the HV substation: transformer foundations and oil containment, equipment plinths, cable trenches, earthing civil interfaces and fencing.
- Inspect the O&M building and control room: structural concrete, masonry, waterproofing, finishes and embedded services.
- Control cable trench and duct bank installation: depth, bedding, sand cover, warning tape, protection tiles, separation distances and backfill compaction.
- Verify civil works for overhead line foundations where included in the scope.
Materials control, testing and survey:
- Approve sources and suppliers of cement, aggregates, admixtures, reinforcement steel, structural steel, geosynthetics, grouts and precast elements and review mill test certificates.
- Coordinate and witness laboratory tests: concrete compressive strength, sieve analysis, Atterberg limits, chloride and sulphate content, rebar tensile and bend tests.
- Maintain a material traceability register and ensure that no unapproved or non-conforming material is used on site.
- Verify survey control plans, setting-out and as-built surveys performed by qualified surveyors using calibrated equipment.
Non-conformance, reporting and handover:
- Raise, track and close Non-Conformance Reports (NCRs) and corrective and preventive actions with a clear root cause analysis.
- Review proposed repair methods, concessions and technical queries and escalate significant deviations to the designer and the Owner’s Engineer.
- Conduct regular quality walkdowns, surveillance and audits of the contractor and subcontractors.
- Prepare weekly and monthly quality reports with KPIs: NCR open/closed rate, first-time-right inspections, test failure rate and overdue actions.
- Manage civil punch lists and compile the final civil quality dossier for handover; support lender, insurer and independent engineer audits.
- Promote a proactive Health and Safety culture and stop any activity that presents a risk to people, the environment or the integrity of the works.
The position contributes to feeding EDF group with major quality related learning from large scale wind construction and will provide direct benefit to the community of international construction and quality engineers
QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE
The successful candidate should have a bachelor’s degree in civil or structural engineering with minimum 7 years of experience in civil quality control or quality assurance in construction, including at least 4 years on Energy projects and especially wind, projects in construction. Hands-on experience on wind turbine foundations, mass concrete and heavy reinforcement works is strongly preferred. A proven successful previous experience in MENA is a must
COMPETENCIES:
- Project quality management: quality plans, ITPs, NCR and corrective action management
- Technical Management: strong knowledge of wind turbine foundation design and construction (gravity or rock-anchored), mass concrete, geotechnics, access roads and crane platforms.
- Contract Management understands interactions between contract specifications, EPC quality obligations and project quality requirements
- Experience in management of multi split construction contracts is a plus
HARD SKILLS:
- In-depth knowledge of ACI 318, ACI 301, ACI 305, ACI 306 and ACI 207 (mass concrete) and of ASTM / BS EN standards for concrete, aggregates, reinforcement, soils and geosynthetics..
- Strong knowledge of the Egyptian Code of Practice for concrete and soil mechanics and of local regulations.
- Ability to read and interpret structural, geotechnical and foundation drawings and bar bending schedules.
- ISO 9001 Lead Auditor certification and ACI Concrete Field Testing Technician Grade I (or equivalent) are a plus.
- Proficiency in MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint…) and in document management and quality software tools (Aconex, SharePoint…).
- NEBOSH or IOSH certification is a plus. CPR and First Aid certification, or willingness to obtain
- Fluency in English is required. Arabic and French are real assets.
SOFT SKILLS:
Interpersonal:
- Integrity and independence, with the firmness to enforce quality requirements while keeping constructive relationships with contractors
- Flexibility to interact and travel within multicultural and sometimes complex environments, with people coming from various levels of the Business environment (contractors, supervisors, engineers, project managers, executives…)
- Collaborative and co-operative style: able to work as a team even in remote/virtual conditions
- Ability to work in high stress situations (tight schedule, concrete pour windows, extreme weather)
- Consultative in nature and in duties
Technical:
- Field oriented, willing to work in desert and high temperature conditions
- Networking and communication skills: ability to coordinate inspectors, surveyors, laboratories and construction teams
- Ability to summarize and support the project decision-making process through a pragmatic and practical approach
- Ability to teach concepts and transfer quality knowledge to site teams
- Ability to translate quality jargon into simple concepts and clear reports
Professional:
- Ability to adapt and prioritize tasks and workloads in accordance with project operational constraints
- Persuasive power and influence: manage stakeholder’s expectations by tailoring communications and reporting
- Thoroughness and organizational skills: good assessment capabilities, able to suggest improvements for activities involving itself and others
- Deadline-driven, results-oriented, and able to manage multiple work fronts and priorities simultaneously.
