Operations & Maintenance Manager – Water Treatment
Location: London
Our client is looking to appoint an experienced Operations & Maintenance Manager to support the safe and efficient delivery of works within a live water treatment environment.
This is a key role within a major infrastructure programme, focused on ensuring all construction, commissioning and integration activities are fully aligned with operational requirements, treatment process integrity and safe systems of work within a functioning plant environment.
The successful candidate will quickly develop a detailed understanding of the treatment process and operational constraints on site, acting as the operational lead across design reviews, technical assessments, commissioning integration and handover activities.
This position would suit someone with a strong operational background in water treatment who is confident working across multiple stakeholders in a live plant environment.
Key Responsibilities
- Develop and maintain a strong understanding of the treatment process, plant layout and operational constraints within a live water treatment works.
- Lead the operational review and validation of P&IDs, GA drawings and 3D models to ensure designs align with operational requirements and site conditions.
- Act as the operational authority when assessing the impact of design changes, temporary works and construction activities on live operations.
- Review contractor and designer documentation including RFIs, TQs, method statements, commissioning plans and O&M manuals.
- Identify and resolve gaps between design intent and operational, maintenance and safety requirements.
- Drive practical improvements to enhance operability, maintenance access, asset reliability and long-term performance.
- Ensure all documentation supports successful commissioning, handover and long-term operation in line with client and regulatory expectations.
- Manage the operational interface between designers, contractors and client stakeholders throughout design, construction and commissioning phases.
- Attend and contribute to design reviews, coordination meetings, constructability workshops and programme planning sessions.
- Provide technical guidance around operational risk, outage planning and construction sequencing within a live treatment plant.
- Support contractor inductions and accompany site visits where required.
- Review early works activities including surveys, trial holes, utility searches and temporary works proposals.
- Assess construction methodologies and survey outputs for operational and asset protection risks.
- Ensure operational risk mitigation measures are embedded within project delivery and safe systems of work.
- Develop maintenance strategies, asset hierarchies and performance standards aligned with asset management frameworks.
- Support operational readiness activities ahead of commissioning and takeover.
- Lead handover processes including training, spares, documentation reviews and defect management.
Requirements
- 8+ years’ experience within water treatment operations, asset management or capital delivery support.
- Previous experience working within or alongside live operational water or wastewater treatment environments.
- Strong understanding of water treatment processes, hydraulic systems and operational control philosophies.
- Proven experience reviewing and interpreting engineering drawings and technical documentation including P&IDs and GA drawings.
- Experience supporting commissioning, handover and operational readiness on complex infrastructure projects.
- Background in O&M leadership, interface management or transition from construction into operations.
- Good understanding of UK water industry standards, asset management principles and regulatory requirements.
- Able to work autonomously within a complex, multi-stakeholder environment.
- Pragmatic and solutions-focused with strong operational risk awareness.
- Strong communication skills with the ability to challenge, influence and collaborate effectively across project teams.
This is an excellent opportunity to join a major infrastructure programme delivering critical upgrades within a complex live operational environment.