Senior QS; Defence

Position: Senior QS (Defence)
Location: Barrow in Furness

Senior Quantity Surveyor

Site-based in Barrow-in-Furness
Permanent, full-time
Circa £75,000 per annum, with flexibility for an exceptional candidate

Additional package including daily travel to and from site fully reimbursed, all reasonable expenses covered, private healthcare and a 4% employer pension contribution. Overnight accommodation options are also being considered.

Winsearch is proud to partner with a long-established specialist contractor looking to appoint an MRICS-qualified Senior Quantity Surveyor to support a major, long-term construction programme in Barrow-in-Furness.

The initial programme is expected to run for approximately six years, with further projects being pursued as part of the contractor’s plans to establish a substantial long-term presence in the area.

This is a senior, site-based commercial role requiring recent NEC contract experience and an advanced understanding of project costing. The successful candidate will take ownership of compensation events, project changes, cost build-ups and inflation or deflation adjustments across high-value packages.

The Role

You’ll lead the commercial management of roofing, cladding and associated construction packages across a large, highly regulated operational site.

The wider programme includes new-build and remediation works across storage facilities, specialist industrial buildings, hangar-style structures and supporting buildings. Packages will include several roofing and cladding systems, technically complex interfaces and some masonry solutions.

Reporting to senior commercial leadership, you’ll work closely with project teams, subcontractors, consultants and client representatives to maintain commercial control throughout procurement and delivery.

What You’ll Be Doing

Leading the commercial management of high-value construction packages
Preparing and agreeing commercial strategies
Administering NEC contracts and maintaining compliance with contractual timescales
Managing early warnings, project changes and compensation events
Producing detailed and properly substantiated compensation-event quotations
Assessing labour, plant, material, programme and access implications
Reviewing and validating estimates, cost build-ups and subcontractor pricing
Calculating and evidencing inflation and deflation adjustments
Managing subcontract procurement from enquiry through to appointment
Preparing and issuing Invitations to Tender
Negotiating subcontractor and supplier terms
Producing forecasts, cost reports and commercial updates
Managing valuations, applications for payment and subcontractor accounts
Monitoring committed costs, liabilities and anticipated final outcomes
Identifying commercial risks and recovery opportunities
Supporting dispute avoidance and contractual assurance
Maintaining accurate records to support commercial entitlement
Negotiating variations and final accounts
Liaising with the client, consultants, supply chain and internal teams
Mentoring junior commercial staff where required

What They’re Looking For

MRICS qualification
Significant experience as a Senior Quantity Surveyor or Commercial Manager
Strong and recent NEC contract experience
Detailed knowledge of early warnings, notices and compensation events
Strong project-costing and cost-build-up experience
Proven ability to price and negotiate high-value compensation events
Experience costing project changes and variations
Practical experience managing inflation and deflation within project costs
Commercial responsibility for high-value construction projects or packages
Background with a main contractor or specialist subcontractor
Strong subcontract procurement and negotiation experience
Ability to review and challenge estimates and commercial assumptions
Strong forecasting, reporting and…