Project Engineer

SUMMARY

The Project Engineer serves as the mill's primary capital-project resource, independently leading projects from scope development and budgeting through procurement, installation, commissioning, and closeout. The role combines project management, engineering judgment, vendor and contractor management, commercial negotiation, and cost control in a lean manufacturing organization. The role requires a solid engineering background with the ability to apply multi discipline judgment across electrical, mechanical, and process systems. The Project Engineer reports to the Engineering and Maintenance Manager and works closely with mill leadership, production, maintenance, vendors, and contractors.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Own the full lifecycle of assigned capital and major maintenance projects, with accountability for approved scope, budget, schedule, safety, quality, performance verification, and closeout.
• Lead planning and execution for major outages and complex equipment installations, by coordinating operations, maintenance, engineering, contractors, vendors, and safety resources against an integrated plan.
• Develop project scopes, cost estimates, schedules, cash-flow forecasts, risk registers, execution plans, commissioning plans, and acceptance criteria appropriate to project size and complexity.
• Manage project financial performance by tracking commitments, actual spending, forecasts, and variances against capital authorizations and annual budgets; communicate material variances and implement corrective actions.
• Lead vendor and contractor sourcing and negotiations, including pricing, payment terms, warranties, delivery commitments, performance guarantees, scope clarifications, and change-order protections, coordinating with Legal and internal stakeholders as appropriate.
• Hold vendors and contractors accountable to defined technical, safety, quality, schedule, cost, documentation, and performance requirements; resolve scope gaps while minimizing avoidable change orders, downtime, and risk.
• Apply engineering judgment to equipment selection, design review, specifications, installation requirements, troubleshooting, and plant integration; provide or coordinate electrical, mechanical, process, controls, and other discipline expertise as required.
• Use CAD and other engineering tools to develop or review layouts, equipment modifications, and drawings; ensure approved changes are reflected in controlled as-built records at closeout.
• Identify and implement capital and process improvements with documented impact on safety, reliability, throughput, quality, cost, energy use, maintainability, or other defined operating objectives.
• Operate with a high degree of independence in a flat organizational structure, prioritizing competing needs, making day-to-day project decisions within delegated authority, and escalating material risks or commitments appropriately.
• Communicate project status, decisions, risks, forecast changes, and stakeholder actions at an appropriate cadence to support timely decision-making.
• Provide engineering and project-management support for production, safety, quality, and reliability issues using structured problem solving and documented recommendations.
• Special projects and assignments as business dictates.
• Responsible for the maintenance, creation and control of all personally identifiable information or any other information protected by any Confidentiality or Privacy Standards or Company Policies that you have access or knowledge of, including but not limited to any state or federal regulations including HIPAA.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

• N/A
• This position has no direct reports but is expected to lead cross-functional project teams and direct vendor and contractor work within assigned project scope.

SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Mechanical, Chemical, or another relevant engineering discipline (e.g. Marine Engineering) required.
• Minimum of 5 years of progressively responsible engineering and/or capital project management experience in a manufacturing environment strongly preferred. Paper, pulp, containerboard, or other continuous-process manufacturing experience is preferred; transferable industrial manufacturing experience will be considered.
• Demonstrated ownership of significant capital projects, including scope, budget, schedule, vendor/contractor performance, installation, commissioning, and closeout. Experience with major plant outages or shutdown execution is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated vendor and contractor management capability, including negotiation of price, terms, warranties, performance guarantees, scope, and change orders.
• Strong capital budgeting, estimating, cost-control, forecasting, and financial tracking skills, including the ability to identify and act on meaningful variances.
• Working knowledge of industrial equipment and systems. Knowledge of electrical power distribution, motors, drives, controls, instrumentation, and equipment integration is strongly preferred.
• Proficiency with project scheduling and productivity tools such as MS Project, Excel, Word, Outlook, and CAD. Experience with Maximo or a comparable CMMS/EAM system is preferred.
• Excellent analytical, planning, organizational, troubleshooting, and risk-management skills, with the judgment to independently resolve ambiguous or cross-functional project issues.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills and the ability to work effectively with operations, maintenance, leadership, vendors, contractors, and technical specialists.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently, manage multiple priorities, and take ownership of outcomes in a lean, hands-on organization where the role may span project management, engineering, commercial, and operational responsibilities.
• Knowledge and application of safe work practices and applicable OSHA requirements in an industrial environment.
• PMP or other recognized project-management certification is preferred but not required.
• Willingness and ability to support nights, weekends, shutdowns, and call-in needs when required by project execution or mill operations. Limited travel may be required.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

• Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. The role requires regular access to an operating industrial facility and the ability to move between office, project, and production areas as needed to inspect work, coordinate installation activities, and support project execution.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

• 24/7 manufacturing plant
• Work is performed in both office and active industrial manufacturing environments that may be hot, humid, cold, dusty, and noisy.
• Work may require access to confined spaces and elevated areas in accordance with site safety procedures and applicable training requirements.
• Required PPE may include safety glasses, hearing protection, hard hat, steel-toed footwear, and other protection appropriate to the work area.
• Major outages and project installations may require extended or non-standard hours to support execution, startup, and commissioning.

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS

• PMP or comparable project-management certification is preferred.

OTHER DUTIES

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

This company is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, and other legally protected characteristics.