Design Manager

Design Manager – Construction / Civil Engineering

Location: North East
Employment Type: Permanent
Salary: Competitive salary + package
Sector: Construction / Civil Engineering / Design Management

Fulcrum Recruitment is working with a well-established North East construction and civil engineering group that is looking to appoint a Design Manager to join its internal Design Department.

This is a permanent opportunity with a successful regional business delivering construction, civil engineering, building services, fabrication, facilities management, fire engineering, plant, transport and foundations services across the wider group.

The business has a strong North East footprint, supported by regional offices across Tyneside / Gateshead, Teesside and Yorkshire. It is also employee-owned, with a people-focused culture built around integrity, pride, passion, quality and innovation.

The Role

As Design Manager, you will report to the Head of Design Team and take responsibility for managing individual schemes from a design coordination and technical information perspective.

The role will involve coordinating information between external consultants, internal departments, clients, local authorities and wider project stakeholders. You will help ensure design information is issued, reviewed, approved and delivered in line with programme requirements.

The Design Team supports the wider group across structural and civil engineering, construction, building services, facilities management, structural steel detailing, design coordination, architectural support and quality assurance.

This would suit an experienced Design Manager, Design Coordinator, Technical Coordinator, Technical Manager or construction professional with strong design coordination experience across construction, civil engineering, infrastructure or building-related projects.

Project Types

From a civil engineering perspective, the business typically delivers civil engineering and groundworks packages supporting industrial and commercial units, schools, education projects, healthcare schemes, hospitals, wider enabling works and infrastructure packages.

Works can include earthworks, drainage, external works, groundworks and associated civil engineering packages. Project values can range from smaller works through to multi-million-pound schemes, with multiple live projects running at any one time.

The business operates across both main contractor and subcontractor work, including projects delivered directly for end clients and packages delivered for major Tier 1 contractors.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage the design process across individual schemes, coordinating technical information between external consultants and internal departments.
• Ensure design information, drawings, approvals and revisions are issued to relevant teams within agreed timeframes.
• Coordinate planning, building control, warranty, building regulations and local authority approvals where required.
• Manage Section Agreements, service applications, planning conditions, bonds, warranties, guarantees and related legal / technical requirements.
• Identify the need for external consultants, agree scope of service, fees, timescales and deliverability.
• Produce and manage design programmes, highlighting key dates, critical path items and approval requirements.
• Provide technical support during feasibility, pre-construction and construction phases.
• Support the internal design team, quality reviews, QEMS compliance and continuous improvement across systems, processes and project delivery.

Candidate Requirements

• Previous experience in design management, design coordination, technical coordination or a similar role within construction, civil engineering or a related built environment discipline.
• Strong understanding of construction design information, consultant coordination, approvals, technical submissions and design programme management.
• Experience coordinating external consultants, internal teams, local authorities, building control, warranty providers and project stakeholders.
• Ability to manage competing deadlines, identify design risks and ensure technical information is issued accurately and on time.
• Good understanding of planning conditions, building regulations, warranties, service applications and Section Agreements would be advantageous.
• Strong communication, organisation and coordination skills, with the ability to work across multiple internal departments and external teams.
• Practical, solutions-focused approach with a commitment to quality, collaboration and continuous improvement.

The Opportunity

This is an excellent opportunity to join a well-established, employee-owned construction and civil engineering group with a strong regional presence and a varied workload.

The business offers exposure to a broad range of project types, from smaller works through to multi-million-pound schemes, with the opportunity to support both construction and civil engineering teams across the wider group.

The role would suit someone who enjoys design coordination, technical problem-solving and working closely with internal and external teams to ensure projects are properly planned, coordinated and delivered.

Package

The package includes a competitive salary and wider company benefits. The role also offers long-term stability, varied project exposure, strong regional workload, employee ownership culture and the opportunity to develop within a respected North East construction and civil engineering group.

For further information on this opportunity, please contact David Fletcher of Fulcrum Recruitment.