Sterile Construction Project Manager

About the Role

The Sterile Construction Project Manager acts as the owner representative, ensuring the general contractor (GC) adheres to its schedule, cost, and bid commitments. This role focuses on verifying the GC's delivery while maintaining agreed-upon processes. It involves managing four critical control processes: weekly schedule verification, cost and change control, the Request for Information (RFI) process with the engineering team, and field verification of completed work. The position is a one-year engagement on a sterile fit-out project for a pharmaceutical manufacturing client, requiring an immediate start.

Responsibilities

• Hold the GC accountable to its contract, bid, and scope of work, flagging discrepancies between the bid and actual work or billing.
• Lead weekly progress meetings with the owner and GC, tracking action items to closure.
• Escalate risks related to quality, cost, schedule, safety, and turnover before they impact commissioning or qualification.
• Verify weekly updates to the construction schedule, including progress, forecast dates, and logic changes.
• Field verify completed activities as reported.
• Challenge unsupported GC forecast and completion dates.
• Require and track recovery plans for delayed activities.
• Ensure the schedule reflects equipment deliveries, utility tie-ins, commissioning, CQV turnover, and operational readiness milestones.
• Enforce formal change control, ensuring no scope, cost, or schedule changes without documented review and owner approval.
• Evaluate change order requests for entitlement, pricing, and schedule impact before recommending approval.
• Maintain a change log and track committed costs against the bid and budget.
• Validate pay applications against actual installed work.
• Manage the RFI process between the GC and engineering team for design questions on installed work.
• Ensure RFIs are complete, routed correctly, and answered within agreed timelines.
• Maintain an RFI log, follow up on overdue responses, and identify potential cost or schedule impacts.
• Manage shop drawings, submittals, and procurement tracking alongside RFIs.
• Review in-progress work and photos against specifications, drawings, and approved shop drawings.
• Ensure field documentation supports System Turnover Packages to prevent delays in qualification.
• Coordinate with stakeholders including GC, trade contractors, design team, equipment vendors, CQV, Quality, Operations, EHS, IT, automation, and facility personnel.

Qualifications

• Experience in construction management and project management, specifically in GMP-regulated construction.
• Experience in sterile fill and pharmaceutical manufacturing facility construction.
• Knowledge of pharmaceutical process equipment installation.

Additional Skills

• Familiarity with process and mechanical systems (e.g., ASME B31.3, weld documentation).
• Understanding of clean utilities and containment (WFI, clean steam, process gases, CIP, SIP).
• Experience with controls and equipment (BMS, EMS, process controls, room pressure monitoring, commissioning readiness).
• Knowledge of regulatory and documentation practices (cGMP per 21 CFR 210 and 211).
• Experience with cleanroom and occupied facility work (gowning, airlocks, contamination control).
• Familiarity with ISPE Baseline Guides and Good Practice Guides for sterile facility design and operation.

Work Environment

This fully on-site position is located at a large pharmaceutical company in King of Prussia, PA. The role offers long-term project stability through 2028, working on a significant life sciences construction project. The environment includes a large campus with substantial capital investment, providing high visibility and direct interaction with owner leadership and decision-makers. The location is commutable from Philadelphia, South Jersey, Wilmington, Delaware, and Baltimore.

Job Type & Location

Contract position based in King of Prussia, PA.

Pay

$65.00 - $95.00/hr. Compensation depends on qualifications, skills, experience, job knowledge, geographic location, internal equity, and other job-related factors.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital coverage
• 401(k) Retirement Plan with pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions
• Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for employee and dependents)
• Short and long-term disability
• Health Spending Account (HSA)
• Transportation benefits
• Employee Assistance Program
• Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation, or Sick Leave)