Senior Infrastructure Estimator

Company Overview

Our client is a leading international project management and cost consultancy, advising major public and private sector clients on the commercial and delivery aspects of significant capital investment. Their service offering spans cost management, project management, programme advisory and commercial assurance, provided exclusively from the client side.

The business works across a broad and deliberately diversified portfolio including data centres, life sciences and pharmaceutical facilities, commercial development, residential, hospitality and infrastructure. That breadth has proved a genuine strength, allowing them to move resource and expertise between sectors as investment cycles shift and providing consultants with exposure that few single-sector practices can match.

Within the Irish market they hold a well-established position built on long-standing client relationships and repeat instruction on major capital programmes. Infrastructure in particular represents a substantial and expanding element of the practice, supported by sustained public capital investment and a national pipeline of transport, water, energy and utilities programmes.

Culturally, this is a consultancy that invests in its senior technical people. Career development is structured, chartership and continuing professional development are actively supported, and there is a clear expectation that strong performers progress rather than plateau. The senior estimating function carries real visibility internally, as early cost advice is frequently what secures and retains the practice’s most significant client relationships.

Working Environment & Projects

You will lead estimating and early-stage cost advice on major infrastructure programmes, working across sectors that typically include transport and roads, rail, water and wastewater, energy and utilities, and associated heavy civils. Instructions range from order-of-cost studies at feasibility stage through to detailed estimates supporting business case approval, procurement and tender evaluation.

This is a client-side environment, which changes the nature of the work considerably. Rather than pricing to win, you will be establishing what a scheme should genuinely cost, testing that view against benchmark data and market intelligence, and defending it to clients, funders and approval bodies. The influence attached to that position is significant, since early estimates frequently determine whether a programme proceeds at all.

You will work alongside cost managers, project managers, planners and risk specialists as part of an integrated commercial team, and engage directly with client organisations, design teams and contractors. Public sector infrastructure work brings its own framework of approval gateways, funding scrutiny and procurement rules, adding a layer of rigour that is a defining feature of the sector.

Working arrangements are hybrid, combining Dublin office presence with flexibility to work remotely, alongside periodic client and project site visits. Workload is varied by design — senior estimators here typically carry several live commissions at differing stages rather than being tied to a single scheme for extended periods.

Responsibilities

• Lead the preparation of estimates and order-of-cost studies for major infrastructure programmes from feasibility through to tender stage
• Develop and maintain benchmark cost data, rate libraries and market intelligence to underpin estimate accuracy
• Produce detailed measured and elemental estimates, including quantification from drawings and models
• Prepare and present cost plans, estimate reports and option appraisals to clients and approval bodies
• Assess and quantify risk and contingency allowances, contributing to quantified risk assessment where required
• Support procurement and tender processes, including tender analysis, price reconciliation and value-for-money assessment
• Advise clients on cost drivers, buildability, value engineering opportunities and market conditions
• Work alongside cost managers, project managers, planners and risk specialists across integrated commercial teams
• Support business case development and funding submissions with robust, defensible cost advice
• Mentor and develop junior estimating and cost management staff within the team

What You Need

• Proven experience as an Estimator or Senior Estimator within infrastructure, heavy civils or major capital works
• Strong quantification and measurement capability, with the ability to build estimates from first principles
• Sound understanding of infrastructure cost drivers across transport, water, energy or utilities projects
• Experience preparing and presenting cost advice to client, funder or approval body audiences
• Degree in Quantity Surveying, Civil Engineering, Construction Economics or a related discipline preferred
• Chartered status (MSCSI / MRICS) or working towards chartership preferred
• Confident communicator, comfortable defending a cost position under scrutiny
• Client-side consultancy background is beneficial but not essential — strong contractor-side estimators are equally welcome
• Familiarity with CostX, Candy or similar estimating software and with Irish Public Works Contract, NEC or FIDIC forms is beneficial but not essential

What You'll Get in Return

A salary of €120,000 is on offer alongside a comprehensive package including pension, healthcare, bonus and professional subscriptions, with hybrid working arrangements and structured support towards chartership and continuing professional development. The consultancy has a defined progression framework, and this position sits on a clear path towards associate and director level for the right individual.

Beyond the package, the sector exposure here is unusually valuable. Senior estimating experience across major Irish infrastructure — particularly where it encompasses public capital programmes, funding scrutiny and approval gateway processes — remains a scarce and highly transferable credential, and it holds its value across both consultancy and client organisations.

The diversity of the practice also means genuine optionality: estimators here build exposure across data centres and life sciences alongside their core infrastructure work rather than being confined to a single sector for the length of their career.

How to Apply

To explore this opportunity in confidence, please forward your CV or project profile to [email protected] or contact 07481 954446 for an initial confidential discussion.