Structural Engineer

UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve sustainable development.

UNOPS areas of expertise cover infrastructure, procurement, project management, financial management and human resources.

Working with us

UNOPS offers short- and long-term work opportunities in diverse and challenging environments across the globe. We are looking for creative, results-focused professionals with skills in a range of disciplines.

Diversity

With over 4,000 UNOPS personnel and approximately 7,000 personnel recruited on behalf of UNOPS partners spread across 80 countries, our workforce represents a wide range of nationalities and cultures. We promote a balanced, diverse workforce — a strength that helps us better understand and address our partners’ needs, and continually strive to improve our gender balance through initiatives and policies that encourage recruitment of qualified female candidates.

Work life harmonization

UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands.

Afghanistan

With more than 20 years of experience in the country, UNOPS Afghanistan focuses on providing maximum support to the Government and people of Afghanistan through delivery of projects and services in line with the government’s national priorities. The UNOPS Afghanistan Country Office (AFCO) serves as an organizational mechanism to deliver a range of projects for which UNOPS has been designated as the implementation agency. At present, UNOPS AFCO is implementing a number of projects in a range of sectors including infrastructure (roads, bridges, justice and security, health, and water supply) development, procurement services, HR services, capacity building, and humanitarian protection, amongst others, on behalf of the Government of Afghanistan, the international donor community, and other UN agencies.
The functional objective of UNOPS AFCO is to contribute to the achievement of the development outcomes sought by the Government of Afghanistan. The aim of UNOPS AFCO is to provide efficient and cost-effective implementation services on behalf of all our partners to support the reconstruction and development of the country. UNOPS AFCO’s mission is to exceed the expectations of all stakeholders in the delivery of AFCO’s services, at all times, in all places, in all circumstances, in order to improve significantly the lives of all Afghans in need.

The Structural Engineer will report to the Senior Civil Engineer as her/his primary supervisor. Working as part of the AFCO Design Management Team (DMU), the Structural Engineer will provide support on structural design and calculation to the AFCO projects, in close coordination with the engineering team. 

The Structural Engineer shall apply her/his professional knowledge to produce the structures design – including calculations, technical reports, drawings and technical specifications – according to the applicable design standards. That design shall be developed based on the Client´s requirements as well as the existing conditions – in case of rehabilitation of existing structures – and/or the ground conditions. The design shall be developed according to the engineering principles of efficiency and economy of resources.

She/he will be expected to, but not limited to, perform the following duties and responsibilities:

• Perform site visits  to assess the existing site conditions and the impact of the proposed structures.

• Coordinate with the Site investigation/Geotechnical company in order to obtain the necessary data for the design purposes;

• Instruct the site surveyors to determine the topographic survey needed for the structures design;

DESIGN and CONSTRUCTION SUPPORT

• Support in the development of the design, calculations, drawings, technical specifications and quantities of vertical and horizontal structures and support the review of designs and estimations of all RCC structures;

• Produce and support the review of calculation of quantities, estimation and preparation of Bill of Quantities for all structures; 

• Provide structural design supports to Architect, mechanical, electrical and water design engineers, and confirm the coordination of different design details;

• Review and provide inputs on sub-soil investigations for design purposes, construction mix designs and material submissions as per the contract terms and conditions;

• Providing technical support on the implementation of works involving large scale vertical and horizontal RCC structures, and buildings renovation;

• Support, review and provide inputs on improving existing practices of local contractors and conventional methodology for the implementation of works involving large scale vertical and horizontal RCC structures; make suggestions that will increase efficiency, safety and productivity through good practices and troubleshooting methods;

• Produce drawings, technical documentation and BoQs for all RCC structures to ensure they are in accordance with established and applicable international standards;

• Provide support on coordination of the fabrication process, including launching and placing;

• Oversight of QA/QC site visits and materials testing reports to ensure sampling, testing and inspection of materials are carried out regularly and works are implemented in compliance with the approved design technical specifications;

• Support the engineering team for approval of design changes as deemed necessary;

• Provide capacity building and institutional strength to the engineering team and/or other teams requested by UNOPS;

• Provide technical advice and assistance to contractors to ensure that economical and quality materials are purchased;

• A Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering field is required. A Master's Degree in Civil Engineering or similar field is preferred.

• At least 2 years’ experience as a Structural Engineer, dealing with large-scale RCC structures construction project(s) is required.

• Previous experience working with the UN, particularly UNOPS, is advantageous.

• Experience mentoring and providing capacity building in technical aspects of structural engineering and construction is advantageous.

• Proficient in design software such as SAP2000, SAFE, E-TABS, STAAD, CSiBridge, GEO5, TEKLA Connection Designer, AutoCAD, and other structural design software.

• Proven knowledge of large scale RCC structural components and applicable constructability issues on a construction site.

• Proven knowledge of applying the seismic factors in the structures design.

• Working knowledge of MS Office packages (MS Project especially), with advanced Excel skills is an asset.

• Demonstrated ability to train and build capacity of counterparts is an asset.

• Able and willing to travel to all provinces within Afghanistan

• Excellent English skills, both written and verbal required.

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few Mandatory Courses (around 4 hours) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS.
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.  

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns. Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.