Design and Admin Support

Full-Time Remote Role | Australian Construction & Engineering Business

We are looking for a technically capable Construction Estimating & CAD Support Assistant to work directly with the owner of a growing Australian construction, structural steel, civil and manufacturing business.

This is "not a general virtual assistant position"

A strong understanding of construction drawings, estimating and CAD drafting is a key requirement of the role. General business and administrative support will also form part of the position, but we are specifically looking for someone with enough construction knowledge to understand the work they are assisting with.

The successful applicant will ideally have a background in civil engineering, structural engineering, drafting, quantity surveying, construction estimating or a closely related field

You will work directly with the business owner across estimating, design, tenders, project tracking, procurement and general business administration.

Key Responsibilities

Your responsibilities will include:

• Assisting with construction estimating and quantity take-offs
• Reading and interpreting detailed structural, civil and architectural drawings
• Reviewing engineering drawings, specifications and tender documentation
• Measuring quantities from drawings for steel, concrete, earthworks, civil works and other construction items
• Assisting with preparation of tender estimates and pricing schedules
• Obtaining and comparing supplier and subcontractor quotations
• Identifying discrepancies, missing information and potential issues within drawings and specifications
• Preparing and modifying AutoCAD drawings
• Producing basic structural, civil and fabrication drawings from sketches or instructions
• Updating drawings following design changes
• Understanding dimensions, sections, elevations, details and construction terminology
• Assisting with preliminary design development and preparation of information for engineers
• Maintaining tender and project trackers
• Following up outstanding quotations, drawings, approvals and project information
• Preparing spreadsheets, schedules and comparison tables
• Assisting with procurement and material enquiries
• Drafting professional email s and correspondence
• Researching construction products, suppliers, technical information and project requirements
• Organising project files and documentation
• General administrative support to the business owner

The role will be varied. You may spend part of the day doing a quantity take-off from structural drawings, then modify a CAD drawing, obtain supplier pricing, update a project tracker and prepare correspondence to a client or engineer.

Construction & Technical Skills

Applicants should have a genuine understanding of construction and engineering drawings.

You should be comfortable reading:

• Site plans
• General arrangement drawings
• Structural plans
• Civil drawings
• Sections and elevations
• Structural steel details
• Concrete and footing details
• Reinforcement drawings
• Drainage and civil details
• Fabrication drawings

You should understand common construction terminology and be able to determine what is actually required to build a project from the drawings and specifications provided

We do not require you to be a qualified structural engineer, but we do expect you to have enough technical understanding to confidently work with engineering information and recognise when something does not appear correct or when further information is required.

CAD Capability

CAD competency is an important part of this position.

Ideally you will be highly competent in AutoCAD or similar professional drafting software and capable of:

• Reading existing DWG drawings
• Creating drawings from sketches and mark-ups
• Modifying structural and civil drawings
• Producing plans, elevations, sections and details
• Working accurately with dimensions, levels and scales
• Managing drawing layers and layouts
• Preparing drawings suitable for review by engineers, clients and construction staff

Experience with structural steel, concrete, precast, civil infrastructure or fabrication drawings would be particularly valuable.

Experience with software such as AutoCAD, Civil 3D, Revit, Tekla, SolidWorks or similar packages would also be highly regarded.

Estimating Capability

You should be comfortable working with numbers and extracting information from construction documentation.

Ideally you will have experience with:

• Quantity take-offs
• Material schedules
• Bill of Quantities
• Steel quantities
• Concrete quantities
• Earthworks and civil quantities
• Comparing supplier quotations
• Building up construction costs
• Excel-based estimating
• Tender documentation

You do not necessarily need to be an experienced senior estimator, but you must have the technical ability to understand drawings and develop strong estimating skills.

Essential Requirements

• Strong construction or engineering knowledge
• Ability to confidently read structural and civil drawings
• CAD drafting experience
• Excellent written English
• Excellent spoken English
• Strong numerical skills
• Very high attention to detail
• Strong Microsoft Excel skills
• Excellent computer and internet research skills
• Highly organised
• Able to manage multiple priorities
• Able to work independently without constant supervision
• Comfortable communicating directly with Australian engineers, suppliers, contractors and staff
• Reliable internet connection and professional home working environment
• Available and responsive during Australian business hours, generally between 7:00am and 5:00pm AEST as required

Ideal Background

We would particularly like to hear from applicants with qualifications or experience in:

• Civil Engineering
• Structural Engineering
• Civil or Structural Drafting
• Construction Estimating
• Quantity Surveying
• Construction Management
• Structural Steel Detailing
• Precast Concrete
• Civil Infrastructure
• Building or Engineering Design

Previous experience working remotely for an Australian construction, engineering or manufacturing company would be highly regarded.

The Person We Want

We are ultimately looking for someone who can become a technical right-hand person to the business owner.

The objective of this position is to take work off the owner's desk.

You will suit this role if you:

• Can look at a set of drawings and understand what is being built
• Notice details and inconsistencies that other people miss
• Can complete a take-off accurately
• Are comfortable working with technical information
• Can turn a sketch or mark-up into a professional CAD drawing
• Ask intelligent questions when something does not make sense
• Can investigate a problem and come back with an answer
• Keep track of outstanding tasks without needing constant reminders
• Are comfortable moving between estimating, drafting, projects and administration
• Take ownership of tasks and follow them through to completion
• Want to understand how the entire business operates rather than perform one narrow function

We don't expect you to know everything immediately.

We do expect you to have a solid technical foundation in construction and the ability and willingness to learn quickly.

Working Hours

This is intended to be a full-time, long-term remote position based in the Philippines.

Because you will be working directly with an Australian business owner, you must be available and responsive during our working day, generally between 7:00am and 5:00pm Australian Eastern Time (AEST/AEDT).

Exact normal working hours can be agreed with the successful applicant, but substantial overlap with Australian business hours is essential.

How to Apply

Please provide:

1. Your CV/resume
2. A short introduction explaining your construction and technical experience
3. Details of your estimating and quantity take-off experience
4. Details of your CAD experience and the software packages you use
5. Examples of structural, civil or construction drawings you have personally produced
6. Examples of estimates or quantity take-offs you have completed, if available
7. Your expected monthly salary in PHP
8. Your availability to commence

Email directly to ----------

Important: Please describe one construction project where you personally had to read engineering drawings and either prepare a quantity take-off, estimate or CAD drawing.

Applicants who cannot demonstrate genuine construction drawing and CAD experience are unlikely to be suitable for this position.

Shortlisted applicants will be asked to complete a short practical test involving construction drawings, quantity take-off and CAD drafting.

We are looking for someone interested in a long-term role who can develop into a key technical and administrative support person within the business.