Senior Quantity Surveyor - Structural Steel

Location: Leeds
Salary: Competitive, depending on experience
Job Type: Permanent, Full Time

When you're delivering complex structural steel projects, commercial performance depends on someone who understands the whole process, from contract award and procurement through to fabrication, installation and final account.

We're looking for an experienced Senior Quantity Surveyor to join an established structural steel and construction business delivering technically demanding projects across the UK.

This is a senior, hands-on commercial position where you'll take responsibility for allocated projects, protecting margins, managing contractual obligations and ensuring the business receives its full commercial entitlement.

You'll work closely with Project Managers, Estimators, Engineers, Detailers, Procurement, Production and Site teams, giving you visibility across the complete project lifecycle.

The Role

You'll take full commercial responsibility for your allocated projects from contract award through to completion and final account.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Managing the commercial performance of structural steelwork and construction projects.

• Establishing and maintaining project budgets, cost plans and commercial controls.

• Monitoring project performance against budget and forecasting final costs and margins.

• Preparing and maintaining accurate CVRs, cost reports and cash-flow forecasts.

• Identifying commercial risks and opportunities at an early stage.

• Providing regular commercial reporting to senior management.

• Working closely with Project Managers and operational teams to ensure commercial objectives are achieved.

• Identifying opportunities for value engineering and cost savings.

• Reviewing contract documentation and identifying key commercial obligations.

• Protecting the company's contractual position and ensuring full commercial entitlement is recovered.

• Managing variations, claims, compensation events and extensions of time where applicable.

• Preparing, submitting and negotiating applications for payment.

• Reviewing and agreeing client valuations.

• Managing contractual correspondence and commercial notices.

• Identifying potential disputes and working proactively to resolve issues.

• Supporting contract negotiations and assessing commercial risks on new projects.

Procurement & Subcontract Management

You'll also have responsibility for the commercial management of subcontractors and suppliers.

This will include:

• Preparing and issuing subcontractor and supplier enquiries.

• Analysing quotations and making commercial recommendations.

• Negotiating subcontract and supplier terms.

• Placing and managing subcontract orders.

• Monitoring subcontractor performance and financial position.

• Managing subcontractor valuations, payments, variations and final accounts.

• Ensuring procurement decisions remain aligned with project budgets and programme requirements.

Client & Final Account Management

Building strong commercial relationships is an important part of the role.

You'll:

• Develop relationships with main contractors, clients and professional teams.

• Attend commercial and project meetings.

• Present commercial information to clients and senior stakeholders.

• Negotiate valuations, variations, claims and final accounts.

• Prepare and negotiate project final accounts.

• Ensure all variations, claims, losses and expenses are captured.

• Maximise recovery and minimise commercial leakage.

• Agree subcontractor and supplier final accounts.

• Ensure projects are commercially closed out accurately and efficiently.

What We're Looking For

You'll already have significant experience working as a Quantity Surveyor or Senior Quantity Surveyor within the UK construction industry.

We're looking for someone with:

• Proven commercial management experience across live construction projects.

• Experience managing projects from contract award through to final account.

• Strong understanding of project cost control, forecasting and commercial reporting.

• Experience managing variations, valuations, applications for payment and final accounts.

• Strong contract administration and negotiation skills.

• Experience managing subcontractors and suppliers.

• Excellent understanding of commercial risk and margin protection.

• Strong communication and stakeholder-management skills.

• Excellent attention to detail and organisational ability.

• Strong Microsoft Office and Excel skills.

Structural Steel Experience

Experience within one or more of the following would be particularly advantageous:

• Structural steelwork

• Steel fabrication

• Steel erection and installation

• Specialist subcontracting

• Architectural metalwork

• Rail structures

• Industrial structures

• Major construction projects

• Design-and-build projects

• Precast concrete

• Specialist engineering and construction packages

A background working for a steelwork contractor, specialist subcontractor or major construction contractor would be particularly relevant.

Contract Experience

You should have a strong understanding of UK construction contracts.

Experience with any of the following would be advantageous:

• JCT

• NEC

• Subcontract agreements

• Framework agreements

• Bespoke main-contract terms

Strong knowledge of contractual notices, variations, payment mechanisms, claims and final accounts is highly desirable.

Qualifications

Ideally, you'll have:

• Degree, HNC or HND in Quantity Surveying, Commercial Management, Construction Management or a related discipline.

• MRICS or working towards chartership would be advantageous but is not essential.

• Relevant industry experience will be considered alongside formal qualifications.

Why Consider This Role?

This is more than a traditional Quantity Surveyor position.

You'll have genuine ownership of the commercial performance of your projects and will work alongside the teams responsible for design, detailing, procurement, fabrication and installation.

That means your commercial decisions will be closely connected to what is actually happening on the project - from changes in design and procurement through to programme, fabrication and site installation.

You'll also have the opportunity to work on technically challenging projects across a range of sectors, giving you exposure to more than standard construction packages.

What You Can Expect

• Senior-level responsibility across major structural steel projects.

• Full commercial involvement from contract award through to final account.

• Close involvement with project, engineering, production and site teams.

• Exposure to technically complex structural steel and construction projects.

• Competitive salary package.

• 25 days' holiday plus Bank Holidays.

• Group personal pension scheme.

• Access to Medicash.

• Life Assurance.

• Employee assistance support.

• Career progression within an established specialist construction and engineering business.

The Person We're Looking For

You might currently be working as a Senior Quantity Surveyor, Quantity Surveyor, Senior Commercial Manager or Commercial Surveyor within structural steel, specialist subcontracting or major construction.

You'll be commercially astute, confident negotiating with clients and subcontractors, and comfortable challenging costs where necessary.

Most importantly, you'll have the confidence to protect margins, maximise commercial entitlement and identify risks before they become expensive problems, while maintaining strong long-term relationships with clients and project teams.

If you're looking for a senior commercial role where you can take genuine ownership of complex structural steel projects, this could be an excellent opportunity.