Principal Piping Designer – Contract (Outside IR35)
Location: Aberdeen | Hybrid (minimum 3 days in office)
A respected engineering consultancy is seeking a Principal Piping Designer to shape complex brownfield projects across the Oil & Gas and wider Energy landscape. From Concept through FEED to Detailed Design, Construction and Commissioning, your fingerprints will be on work that truly moves the sector forward.
Note: This position requires attendance at the Aberdeen office at least three days per week.
The Opportunity
You will guide plant layout and piping design using the latest digital and CAD technologies, steering a team toward precision, safety, and excellence. Reporting to the Lead Piping Engineer, you’ll ensure every deliverable meets the highest standard.
What You’ll Be Trusted With
- Leading and mentoring a team of piping designers to deliver on time and within budget
- Owning all plant layout and piping design outputs - 3D models, isometrics, GAs, plot plans, and pipe supports
- Planning resources, tracking manhours, and feeding into design progress reports
- Raising risks, identifying scope change, and driving solutions early
- Conducting site surveys where required (CSCS, CCNSG or equivalent may be needed)
- Championing Health, Safety, Sustainability and Environmental standards across all activities
- Chairing model and client design reviews with clarity and authority
- Collaborating across disciplines to achieve integrated, constructible designs
What Sets You Apart
- Proven leadership of small design teams in high-stakes project environments
- Deep expertise in piping design and plant layout within Oil & Gas or Energy
- Experience spanning front-end layout through brownfield modifications to AFC deliverables
- Strong command of layout principles balancing safety, operability, maintenance, and constructability
- Working knowledge of major codes including American Society of Mechanical Engineers B31.3 and relevant UK legislation
- Confidence interpreting stress reports and embedding them into design
- Skilled in reviewing vendor data and approving technical deliverables
- Advanced CAD capability - fully conversant with AVEVA E3D, AutoCAD, Navisworks, and laser point cloud data