SENIOR ESTIMATOR
Marine & Heavy Civil Construction | North Vancouver, BC
Location: North Vancouver, BC
Type: Full-Time, Permanent
Work Arrangement: On-Site (1 day WFH after probation period)
Compensation: $120,000 – $140,000 CAD base
Bonus: Annual performance-based bonus eligible
Benefits: Comprehensive health and wellness, company-paid RRSP, fitness stipend
Start: Immediately | 3 openings available
THE OPPORTUNITY
This is a senior estimating role within one of British Columbia's most recognized specialty contractors, a family-owned group with a standing history delivering landmark marine, heavy civil, and industrial infrastructure projects across Canada. They hold one of the largest marine and heavy lift fleets on the West Coast and have built some of the most technically complex projects in the country.
The estimating team is growing. A newly appointed Estimating Manager is actively building structure, process, and permanent senior capacity, this hire is the cornerstone of that effort. They need someone who has genuinely spent their career estimating and who is ready to own large, complex bids independently while helping develop the estimators around them.
If marine and heavy civil estimating is your craft, not a line on your resume, this is the role.
What Sets This Opportunity Apart
- Fully integrated group: marine construction, deep foundations, industrial, and fabrication all in-house
- Structured, supportive estimating team under a manager with multinational mega-project experience
- Company-paid RRSP (no employee matching required), bonus eligibility, annual fitness stipend, and 14 statutory holidays
- Growth role with clear runway into broader estimating leadership
WHAT YOU WILL DO
Reporting to the Estimating Manager, you will lead the full bid lifecycle on complex marine, piling, and heavy civil construction projects, from tender receipt through submission. You will work largely independently on major pursuits, coordinating with Operations, Project Management, Engineering, and Procurement teams, and presenting your work directly to senior leadership.
Estimating & Bid Leadership
- Lead complex tenders through the full bid lifecycle, accuracy, competitiveness, and on-time delivery are non-negotiable
- Review and analyze tender documents to identify risks, opportunities, and constructability considerations specific to marine and heavy civil environments
- Prepare detailed quantity take-offs, comprehensive cost estimates, and bid submissions for lump-sum, design-build, and construction management projects
- Prepare risk assessments and recommend appropriate contingency strategies
- Coordinate and review subcontractor and supplier quotations, ensure scope clarity and alignment before submission
- Manage RFIs and tender clarifications through to resolution
- Support procurement and buy-out planning during the tender phase
- Participate in site visits, pre-bid meetings, and project review sessions as required
- Present bid recommendations to senior management and defend your numbers with clarity and confidence
- Support project handover to Operations following successful bid awards
Process, Data & Continuous Improvement
- Maintain and update pricing databases, labour rates, equipment costs, and productivity metrics
- Track project outcomes and integrate lessons learned into future pricing strategies
- Work within established estimating templates and processes, and contribute to improving them
Leadership & Mentorship
- Provide mentorship, guidance, and technical support to junior estimators
- Review estimates prepared by other team members and ensure quality and accuracy
- Step in to lead the estimating function when the Estimating Manager is unavailable
- Contribute to a structured, high-performance team environment
WHO THEY ARE
This role has one non-negotiable: your estimating experience must be in marine construction, heavy civil infrastructure, or closely related sectors. Residential, commercial, and electrical estimating backgrounds are not transferable and will not be considered. Equally important, your resume must reflect actual estimating work, not project management or operations with 'estimator' appended to a title.
Experience
- 8–10 years of total construction experience, with meaningful years in a senior estimating capacity
- Demonstrated ability to independently manage estimates and tenders from receipt through submission
- Proven experience in one or more of the following sectors:
- Marine construction: pile driving, wharves, docks, marine terminals, dredging (first priority)
- Heavy civil infrastructure: bridges, highways, major earthworks
- Deep foundations, piling, shoring, or excavation
- Industrial construction: terminals, port facilities, LNG, bulk handling systems
- Experience supporting projects ranging from capital works to large-scale infrastructure bids
- Background in proposals for provincial or federal clients, ability to produce and lead full technical proposal packages
Education
- Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering, Construction Management, or related discipline
- Engineering Technology diploma or equivalent technical education considered
- P.Eng. designation is an asset
- Mechanical engineering background considered where construction estimating experience is strong
Technical Skills
- Proficiency with HeavyBid estimating software, or demonstrated ability to learn quickly
- Advanced Microsoft Excel skills (estimating in this sector ultimately lives in numbers and linked sheets)
- AutoCAD and MS Project proficiency
- Strong ability to interpret engineering drawings, specifications, schedules, and contract documents
- Knowledge of union agreements, wage structures, and regional cost considerations in BC construction
What This Team Is Looking For
The Three Must-Haves
- Real estimating experience, not change orders, not project management. The resume must show time spent building estimates, owning bids, and submitting tenders.
- Technical writing and communication, you will interface with provincial and federal clients, prepare full proposal packages, and call clients to clarify scope. You need to be able to write and speak with precision.
- Strong with numbers and analytical thinking, you own the math, you defend it to leadership, and you can rationalize risk with data.
Culture Fit — How This Team Operates
- Come with problems and solutions. The manager will help you solve it, but not if you arrive empty-handed.
- Own your work. Management will ask you why a number is what it is. You need to be able to answer.
- No ego. Estimating is a discipline. The most experienced people on this team are still learning.
- Results matter more than hours. If you deliver, you will be treated with flexibility and respect.
- Think ahead. This team uses data, weather patterns, productivity rates, lessons learned, to price risk properly.
Pay: $130,000.00-$140,000.00 per year
Ability to commute/relocate:
- North Vancouver, BC: reliably commute or plan to relocate before starting work (required)
Application question(s):
- Have you independently managed the full bid lifecycle (take-offs, subcontractor pricing, bid submission, and bid review meetings)?
- How soon could you start if selected?
- Have you estimated marine construction projects?
- Have you estimated bridge projects?
- Have you prepared estimates using HeavyBid?
- Have you led or participated in bid review meetings with senior leadership?
- Have you mentored junior estimators?
Willingness to travel:
Work Location: In person
