Project Planning & Controls Specialist

The Opportunity

Hitachi Energy are looking for a Project Planning & Controls Specialist to join us within our HVDC (High Voltage Direct Current) business.

Please note we are unable to provide visa sponsorship for this position (including post study visa). Please note this is a home based role with the requirement to attend office/s or customer locations, when required.

HVDC is a product group in Hitachi Energy, which develops, manufactures and sells direct current transmission systems on a global market. HVDC technology is used to transmit electricity over long distances and for power transmission via submarine cables. It is also used to connect power systems.

In this exciting role, you are the one, who has the expert knowledge of project controls and who is responsible for the planning, scheduling, monitoring and controlling processes of our delivery projects.

You will be a major contributor to the development of the Project Baseline (scope of work, cost and schedule) and have the leading role at project launching stage, and on an ongoing basis, for the setting up of tools. You'll provide the Project Manager, and the Line Managers with Earned Value Management Analysis, reliable and comprehensive information about the project status: schedule, progress, planned, actual, forecast, resources and productivity, trends, and risks.

• Analyse project requirements with project team, check that all essential work activities have been identified in sufficient detail to serve as a basis for developing realistic project schedules.
• Define, jointly with the project team, project work and cost breakdown structure, develop and maintain properly linked, required resource loaded/integrated, baseline and current schedules that provide time phased baseline, actual and forecast data for project.
• Monitor project progress and regularly analyze project critical paths to ensure all critical path activities and project milestones are progressed to the plan, notify project team of any deviations or scheduling issues, and provide input for optimizing resources.
• Issue progress reports, program updates and productivity data on a regular basis and as requested by customers and stakeholders.
• Contribute to Tenders and Project for HVDC Projects.
• Responsible for establishing baseline criteria to plan and schedule workload relative to various engineering projects.
• Prepares project planning and scheduling status reports and recommends remedial actions.
• Carries out necessary preplanning to examine scope of work and services, work breakdown structure, engineering quality and quantities, financial and contractual obligations and division of responsibility to control and report on planning and scheduling activities.
• Works with third parties to ensure plans are realistic and achievable; analyses third party contractor progress information.

• You hold an Engineering degree in relevant field and have experience of working as a Project Planner in an EPC Company or similar.
• Thorough understanding of logical sequencing and interfacing of project execution activities in EPC energy projects
• Experience with HVDC projects will be an added advantage.
• Experience in planning and cost control on lump sum projects or equivalent and ability to lead project controls activities in multi-location EPC projects.
• Experience to plan activities and to monitor execution schedules and physical progress in all project phases.
• Ability to highlight key issues and to communicate them to management and other stakeholders.
• You see yourself as a team player, with team management and leadership skills.