Aquatec is Australia’s leading advisor and innovator in water, wastewater, and odour management solutions.

We're more than a company — we're a catalyst for positive change in the water industry.

With over 30 years of local and international experience, we design, build, and deliver end-to-end solutions across a wide range of environmental sewerage and water infrastructure systems. Our projects span large-scale developments, councils, water authorities, developers, and a strong network of retail and channel partners.

At Aquatec, we're passionate about collaboration, innovation, and excellence. Our people are at the heart of our success, and we’re proud to offer a culture that fosters both professional and personal growth.

We partner with government, business, and residential clients to tackle the water challenges our communities face — today and into the future. As a recognised leader in water infrastructure, we’re committed to delivering long-term, sustainable solutions that improve both infrastructure and the quality of life for communities everywhere.

Join us and be part of a team that’s reshaping the future of the water industry.

The Role

We are seeking a technically accomplished and program-minded Lead Design Engineer to head up Aquatec’s engineering delivery across major Tier 1 water infrastructure projects.

This role plays a critical leadership function within our national Project Operations group, providing end-to-end oversight of engineering outputs across civil, mechanical, structural, process and electrical disciplines. As Lead Engineer you will own the design governance framework, ensuring that our solutions are constructible, regulator-ready, and aligned to the high-performance expectations of Tier 1 D&C contracts.

You will lead a team of 5–10 engineers and coordinate closely with procurement, delivery, and client stakeholders to ensure timely, cost-effective and risk-mitigated outcomes across our most complex infrastructure projects.

Key responsibilities include, but aren’t limited to:

• Lead integrated, multidisciplinary design solutions across Tier 1 D&C contracts, ensuring compliance with technical, safety and regulatory standards.

• Develop and enforce engineering governance and QA frameworks aligned with water authority specifications and site delivery constraints.

• Drive constructability and lifecycle thinking into all engineering outputs, from concept to final issue.

• Coordinate design delivery programs, ensuring alignment to staging plans, procurement schedules and project critical paths.

• Act as the primary technical interface for clients (e.g. Sydney Water, Yarra Valley Water), principal contractors, consultants and suppliers.

• Translate client design intent into actionable scopes while managing variations, emerging risks and approval pathways.

• Mentor and develop a multidisciplinary engineering team, managing workflow allocation, resourcing plans and external consultant performance.

• Lead and facilitate constructability reviews, risk assessments and technical workshops with internal and external stakeholders.

• Interface with site, procurement and manufacturing teams to align engineering deliverables with real-world delivery expectations.

• Maintain clear and current reporting on design progress, technical risks and engineering performance across the program.

 About You

You are a technically strong and delivery-focused engineer with proven experience in the water infrastructure sector, particularly on high-value or complex D&C projects. Your leadership strengths lie in coordination, decision-making, risk mitigation and stakeholder influence.

You know how to bridge the gap between technical detail and practical application, driving outcomes that meet not just compliance standards, but also construction and commercial realities.

You’re passionate about quality, team development, and building systems that scale. Whether you’re leading workshops, reviewing documentation, or aligning scope changes, you maintain focus on delivering safe, efficient and regulator-approved infrastructure.

To be successful in this role, you will have:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering (Civil, Mechanical, or related discipline)

• 8+ years’ experience in engineering leadership roles within Tier 1 or large Tier 2 infrastructure contractors

• Proven success delivering major water and wastewater infrastructure projects (pump stations, pressure mains, treatment plants, etc.)

• Experience working in Design & Construct (D&C) delivery environments, with an understanding of procurement, staging and client-side engagement

• Deep understanding of Australian codes, water authority specifications and safety/environmental compliance requirements

• Ability to lead multidisciplinary engineering teams, internal and external

• Strong experience with constructability reviews, sequencing inputs and site support during delivery

• Experience with collaborative delivery models (e.g. ECI, Alliance) is highly desirable

• Proficiency in design management and project tracking tools such as MS Project, Navisworks, or BIM platforms

• CPEng registration or eligibility highly regarded

• PMP or formal project management accreditation (desirable)

If this opportunity aligns with your experience and aspirations, we’d love to hear from you. Please apply with your resume and cover letter to join a collaborative, high-performing team that’s shaping the future of water infrastructure design.