Senior Civil Engineer SME - AI Data Centers
Jacobs · Lawrence, KS · 1 mo ago
Engineering$169k–$233k/yrFull-time
About the role
This job opportunity is available at ANY location in the United States. Ideally, selected candidates will be near a JACOBS U.S. based office, but we intend to hire the "best" candidates.
Responsibilities
- Civil Site Design & Technical Leadership
- Lead civil site engineering across the full design lifecycle for multi-building hyperscale campus programs — from site selection and feasibility through construction documents, permit applications, and construction administration
- Design and govern stormwater management infrastructure for large impervious-surface campuses
- Design heavy-duty pavement systems for campus roads, diesel fuel delivery routes, cooling tower crane access pads, transformer pad access, and security perimeters — accounting for extreme axle loads and repetitive heavy vehicle cycles unique to mission-critical facility operations
- Develop and maintain Jacobs civil engineering design standards, grading and drainage specification templates, standard detail libraries, and stormwater BMP criteria for the data center practice — ensuring consistency and quality across a national project portfolio
- Mentor mid-level and junior civil engineers across the practice — developing technical depth, standards fluency, and project leadership capability
- Permitting, Entitlements & Regulatory Strategy
- Lead land use entitlement strategy for greenfield and adaptive-reuse hyperscale campus sites — rezoning applications, conditional use permits, site plan approvals, and variance requests — working closely with owners, land use counsel, and local planning authorities to protect schedule and maximize development yield
- Direct NPDES Construction General Permit compliance strategy for large disturbed-area programs, including SWPPP development, BMP selection, QSP coordination, inspection program design, and regulatory agency response
- Navigate state-specific regimes including Virginia VSMP, AZPDES, Texas CGP, and similar frameworks with schedule-sensitive permit sequencing strategies
- Lead Clean Water Act Section 404 and Section 401 permitting for sites with jurisdictional wetlands, waterways, or Waters of the U.S. — including wetland delineation coordination, permit application strategy, mitigation planning, and agency negotiation to protect program schedule
- Navigate floodplain permitting, LOMR/CLOMR applications, and endangered species Section 7 consultations for complex hyperscale site development programs in regulated markets
- Develop early-release civil permit packages — rough grading permits, land disturbance permits, and utility installation permits — sequenced to support fast-track Design-Build and EPCM construction schedules while full entitlement packages are advanced in parallel
- Serve as the civil SME interface with Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJ), state regulatory agencies, utility providers, and local planning bodies throughout design, permitting, and construction administration phases
Requirements
- Civil PE License Active Professional Engineer (Civil) license in at least one US state; NCEES Record maintained; willingness to obtain reciprocal licensure in additional states as project needs require.
- PE sign-off authority is required at SME level — this is a hard requirement.
- Experience 15 or more years of civil engineering experience, including 8 or more years leading site civil design for large-site industrial, technology campus, or mission-critical facility programs.
- Candidates with strong adjacent-sector depth (pharmaceutical campus, power facility, military installation) who can demonstrate the transferability of their large-site civil skills are encouraged to apply.
- Civil 3D Expert proficiency in AutoCAD Civil 3D — corridor modeling, grading surfaces, pipe network design, and plan/profile sheet production for large campus programs.
- Civil 3D is the production standard for Jacobs data center civil work.
- Deep working knowledge of stormwater management design including SWPPP development, post-construction BMP design (ponds, bioretention, underground detention), and hydraulic modeling.
- Experience navigating NPDES permitting and state-level land disturbance regulatory programs.
- Demonstrated experience coordinating civil site scope with structural, MEP, and electrical disciplines — including utility routing conflict resolution, foundation clearance coordination, and underground ductbank integration in a multi-discipline delivery environment.
Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering from an accredited institution.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills; demonstrated ability to present to clients, AHJs, and multi-discipline project teams and to represent the civil engineering scope in pursuit presentations and proposal development.
- Ideal candidate will have:
- Master of Science in Engineering
- Experience with Virginia VSMP, AZPDES, Texas Construction General Permit, or other complex multi-agency regulatory frameworks for large land disturbance programs.
- Design-Build or EPCM delivery experience — having served as civil engineer of record or civil lead on a DB or EPCM contract, with experience developing early-release grading permit packages and integrating with GC-led construction teams.
- Direct experience on hyperscale or colocation data center campus programs at 50+ acres, including pad elevation strategy, phased grading, and campus-scale utility systems.
- CFM (Certified Floodplain Manager), ENV SP (Environmental Professional), QISP or QSP designation supporting stormwater compliance program leadership.
- LEED AP or sustainability-related credential; familiarity with how site civil design contributes to LEED BD+C certification for large campus programs.
- Experience with Section 404/401 and USACE permitting for jurisdictional wetlands or Waters of the U.S. on large development programs.
- Navisworks multi-discipline model coordination experience for underground utility conflict resolution.
- Bluebeam Revu proficiency for document review and markup workflows.
Skills
- Multi-Discipline Collaboration
- Stormwater & Drainage
- Communication
- Geotechnical Investigation
- Regulatory Compliance
- Project Management
- Technical Governance
- Site Selection & Feasibility
- Permitting & Entitlements
- Site Utility Design
- Site Grading & Drainage
- Site Utilities
- Site Infrastructure Design
- Site Development
- Site Planning
- Site Engineering
- Site Coordination
- Site Design
- Site Construction Administration
- Site Permitting
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site Planning
- Site Development
- Site Management
- Site Supervision
- Site Inspection
- Site Monitoring
- Site Testing
- Site Evaluation
- Site Assessment
- Site Analysis
- Site Review
- Site