Civil & Structural Design Assurance Lead

About Ethos

Ethos is a collaborative team of engineers, consultants, and creative thinkers designing and delivering data centre and energy infrastructure across the world's most dynamic markets. As a multidisciplinary consultancy, we combine technical expertise, creativity, and integrated delivery to lead complex, mission-critical projects.

Built on strong relationships, clear leadership, and a can-do mindset, Ethos is entering an exciting phase of growth, expanding our capabilities and taking on increasingly high-impact projects across EMEA and beyond.

• Provide independent technical review and assurance of Civil & Structural engineering designs across programme-managed projects.

• Review design information at the relevant RIBA/HOAI stages and agreed client design gateways, including concept, developed, technical and construction-stage design information as applicable.

• Review Civil & Structural design strategies and systems, including the optimal structural design grid, structural framing and stability concepts, foundation strategies, building structural systems, plant support structures, equipment plinths and structural interfaces, roof structures and externally located plant, and structural openings and penetrations.

• Review civil and site elements, including ground and site development considerations, earthworks and levels, roads, access and hardstanding, below-ground drainage and infrastructure, and temporary or enabling works where relevant to the permanent design.

• Review Civil & Structural specifications, reports, drawings, calculations and schedules, and coordination with architectural, MEP and other engineering disciplines.

• Assess whether the design is appropriate for the relevant project stage and sufficiently developed to meet the stage deliverables and client requirements.

• Undertake structured technical peer reviews of designs produced by internal Civil & Structural teams and appointed external Civil & Structural design partners, applying experienced engineering judgement to challenge the design.

• Identify design gaps, technical inconsistencies, coordination issues, incomplete design development, potential constructability concerns, departures from the agreed design basis, potential non-conformances, areas where further technical justification is required, unresolved interfaces, and design decisions that may adversely impact programme, cost, operation or future maintainability.

• Challenge the design constructively and independently while maintaining a collaborative relationship with the responsible designers, communicating required actions clearly and appropriately.

• Understand the Civil & Structural requirements contained within the client’s project governance framework, employer’s requirements, technical standards and project-specific design requirements.

• Ensure that the appropriate Civil & Structural reviews, technical submissions and design-stage gateways have been addressed prior to project progression.

• Work closely with the Programme Management Team to ensure Civil & Structural design assurance activities are incorporated into the overall project programme and design delivery schedule.

• Provide the Client Partner and Programme Management Team with visibility of significant technical concerns, unresolved issues and emerging Civil & Structural risks.

• Review projects against the applicable local design and compliance requirements identified by the appointed local Civil & Structural partners and project teams, and ensure that evidence of compliance has been appropriately incorporated into the design.

• Support the Programme Management Team in maintaining the highest standards of Civil & Structural design quality across the programme, ensuring designs have completed the appropriate technical review and QA processes before recommendation for client issue.

• Maintain clear records of reviews undertaken, comments raised, technical risks identified, non-conformances, required actions, responsible parties and close-out status.

• Track significant technical comments through to resolution, confirming when review comments have been satisfactorily addressed and escalating unresolved technical risks where necessary.

• Identify recurring design quality issues and provide feedback to the Client Partner, Programme Management Team and engineering leadership.

• Use lessons learned from project reviews, and provide technical input into lessons-learned reviews, to drive continuous improvement and greater consistency across future projects.

• Review the interfaces between Civil & Structural engineering and the wider multidisciplinary design, including architecture, mechanical, electrical, fire and geotechnical engineering, utilities and infrastructure, BIM and digital engineering, and specialist vendor and contractor-designed elements, identifying interface risks or coordination gaps that could impact the quality or delivery of the overall design.

• Participate in multidisciplinary design reviews where Civil & Structural input is required.

• Work across multiple projects and accounts simultaneously, prioritising reviews in accordance with project programmes and client delivery requirements.

• Engage early with Programme Managers and design teams to understand upcoming Civil & Structural deliverables and review requirements.

• Support the Client Partner in identifying key Civil & Structural design risks across the overall programme.

• Where appropriate, assist Programme Management in assessing the capability, performance and technical quality of external Civil & Structural design partners.

About You

• A senior Civil & Structural engineer who is comfortable acting as an independent technical reviewer of designs produced by other experienced professionals.

• Someone who identifies design risk and communicates technical concerns clearly and constructively, while maintaining collaborative relationships with the responsible designers.

• Someone who understands the distinction between design assurance and design ownership.

• Degree in Civil Engineering, Structural Engineering or a closely related engineering discipline.

• Minimum 10 years’ professional Civil & Structural design experience.

• Strong background in multidisciplinary building and infrastructure design.

• Demonstrable experience reviewing technically complex Civil & Structural designs.

• Experience working across multiple project stages and managing design interfaces.

• Data Centre, mission critical or manufacturing experience would be desirable.

• Chartered Engineer status with Engineers Ireland, ICE, IStructE or another recognised professional engineering institution is desirable.

• Strong understanding of the design process from concept through detailed design and construction.

• Strong understanding of engineering quality assurance and technical review processes.

• Ability to interrogate engineering drawings, models, calculations, specifications and technical reports.

• Ability to identify design risk.

• Strong written and verbal communication skills.

• Ability to communicate technical concerns clearly and constructively.

• Ability to engage confidently with senior engineers, external consultants, project managers and client representatives.

Why Join Us?