Data Centre Design Manager

Remote Europe | Occasional Travel | Permanent A leading international organisation is seeking an experienced Project Design Manager to join a major European data centre programme. This is a fully remote opportunity, with candidates able to be based anywhere in Europe. The role will involve occasional travel to project locations, client offices and key design or technical meetings as required.

We are looking for an established Project Design Manager, Senior Design Manager, Data Centre Design Manager, Engineering Design Manager or Technical Design Manager with a proven track record of delivering large-scale, technically complex data centre projects. This is a senior appointment offering the opportunity to become involved at an early stage of a major data centre development and take genuine ownership of the design-management process.

The Role As Project Design Manager, you will lead and coordinate the multidisciplinary design process across a complex data centre development, working at the interface between client stakeholders, consultants, contractors, specialist suppliers, construction and commissioning teams. This is not simply a design-review position. You will be expected to actively lead design management, challenge technical solutions, manage complex interfaces and drive critical design decisions through to resolution.

The position is remote, making it suitable for experienced professionals based anywhere in Europe who are comfortable managing international and geographically dispersed project teams. Occasional travel will be required for key project meetings, design workshops, technical reviews and site activities.

Key Responsibilities Lead the multidisciplinary design management process across a major data centre programme. Manage design development from early design stages through detailed design, construction, commissioning and handover. Coordinate interfaces across CSA, Architectural, Structural, Mechanical, Electrical, Controls/BMS and Commissioning disciplines. Manage external designers, engineering consultants, contractors and specialist suppliers. Establish design deliverables, responsibilities, priorities and programme requirements. Monitor design progress against the project programme and identify delays, dependencies and technical risks.

Lead design reviews, technical workshops, coordination meetings and constructability reviews. Review drawings, specifications, technical submissions, design packages and consultant deliverables. Ensure designs are coordinated, technically robust, buildable and aligned with project requirements. Identify design risks, clashes, gaps and interface issues before they impact construction. Drive technical issues and design decisions through to resolution. Challenge consultants and contractors where required and identify opportunities for design optimisation, risk reduction and value engineering.

Coordinate closely with project management, commercial, construction and commissioning teams. Support design change control and assess programme, technical and commercial impacts. Ensure effective transition of design information into procurement, construction, commissioning and handover. Provide clear design reporting and communicate key risks, decisions and dependencies to senior stakeholders. Candidate Profile We are looking for an established Project Design Manager / Senior Design Manager with significant experience managing complex multidisciplinary design packages within the data centre sector.

You should have:
Significant experience in Project Design Management, Design Management, Engineering Management or Technical Project Management. Direct data centre project experience – essential. Experience delivering hyperscale, colocation or major enterprise data centre developments. Strong understanding of the complete data centre design and delivery lifecycle. Proven experience managing multidisciplinary design teams and external consultants. Strong understanding of CSA and MEP interfaces, critical power, cooling, resilience and redundancy.

Experience managing design programmes, technical dependencies, deliverables and design risk. Experience taking projects from design development through construction, commissioning and handover. Strong understanding of constructability and the relationship between design decisions and site delivery. Technical credibility and confidence to challenge consultants, designers and contractors at senior level. Strong stakeholder-management and…