Senior Plumbing and Hydraulics Services Engineer

Tēnei tūranga – About the role

The Senior Plumbing and Hydraulic Services Engineer will lead the provision of technical building performance advice to support work across MBIE on complex issues in relation to the Building Code, compliance documents, policy, and enquiries. You will work closely with relevant standards committees and represent New Zealand’s interests at international plumbing regulatory forums.

The Senior Plumbing and Hydraulic Services Engineer will be advising across a range of subject matter relating to building and construction, the Building Code, compliance documents, policy settings, and technical solutions. This role directly supports the strategic priorities of the Building System Performance Branch.

As a Senior Plumbing and Hydraulic Services Engineer in the Building Performance team, you will provide advice in response to complex technical matters at a national level, including:

• Leading the development and review of New Zealand Building Code performance settings.
• Developing and maintaining quantified performance criteria such verification methods and acceptable solutions.
• Updating the Building Code and supporting public consultations, participating in Standards development.
• Leading developments of other technical guidance and building performance clarification documents related to the performance of buildings and their elements.
• Other technical matters related to developing and maintaining New Zealand’s building regulatory system, such as representing New Zealand on standards committees.
• Providing technical advice in your areas of expertise to support our Minister and the development of policy for building and construction portfolio.

Maintain a technical relationship with key sector participants such as Standards New Zealand, Master Plumbers, Engineering New Zealand, Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Board, and other sector technical representative organisations.

You will be working closely with the Manager for Building Performance along with other senior staff in Building Performance and Engineering team and across MBIE in developing and implementing the strategy for the building regulatory system.

You will be part of a multi-national and multi-cultural team that embrace our cultural and individual identities bringing them and our experiences as part of the holistic view of buildings and the building regulatory system.

Ngā herenga – Requirements of the role

Personal specifications

• Tertiary/Trade qualification in plumbing, hydraulic services design, or building services engineering.
• Ten years' experience in plumbing and hydraulic services design, consenting, construction, or inspection.
• Excellent knowledge of industry and legislation including the Building Act, Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Act, Building Code and supporting legislation.
• Holistic understanding and knowledge of the inter-connectedness of different aspects of building performance and of the Building Code, and how they interact with each other.
• Have a practical and theoretical understanding of New Zealand and international construction methodologies.
• A systems thinker able to consider the detail and apply it to see the bigger picture of parts working together.
• Ability to provide specialist technical building advice on complex matters of national significance in a clear manner.
• Ability to understand technical issues in the wider strategic context and priorities, and the ability to apply foresight and judgement when assessing technical issues and solutions.
• Ability to quickly assimilate new information and areas of work.
• Can-do attitude.
• Ability to quickly establish and build strong working relationships.
• Good communication skills - able to communicate knowledge with technical and non- technical audiences.
• Proven ability to develop trust and credibility with managers and staff.
• Understanding of where the team fits in delivering outcomes for MBIE.
• Excellent written and oral presentation skills - effective writing skills are a key competency.
• Ability to integrate and balance statutory and specialist technical information and present them with simplicity and clarity that can be understood by a range of audiences.
• Ability to think through ambiguous and conflicting requirements and solve problems pragmatically, effectively, and promptly.
• Ability to play a key role in a self-motivated, high-performing, professionally respected, multi-disciplinary technical team.
• Must have the legal right to live and work in New Zealand.

Takohanga tuhinga o mua – Key accountabilities and deliverables

Strategic direction

• Uses advanced critical thinking, reasoning and judgement to identify technical issues.
• Understands the strategic context, current agenda and priorities and applies foresight and judgement to identify what is important for the technical area in the medium and long term.
• Shapes an ambiguous, complex or unclear technical issue into a problem; identify its root causes; explore and evaluate relevant information and integrate it into the development of options.
• Carries out complex research to inform more complex technical issues.
• Draws on expert knowledge for different technical areas as well as broad knowledge from other domains, and critically uses evidence and information from multiple and diverse sources to draw inferences, assess implications, and come to conclusions for advice on impacts.
• Uses judgement to identify and assess options against the desired outcomes, identify their cost-effectiveness and impact, identify risk and effective mitigation strategies, work comfortably with uncertainty and ambiguity, and make innovative, practical and durable recommendations without the total picture.
• Determines research required to meet the regulatory framework in the technical area.
• Holds and develops, through an outward-looking approach, relationships with external stakeholders, delivery agencies and government agencies, understands their different perspectives, and is able to manage differences of views and reflect them in advice.
• Uses intellectual capability to work with multiple complex ideas in parallel as well as being able to integrate multiple concepts and pathways and deal comfortably with ambiguity.
• Provides authoritative technical advice that recognises the choices and constraints decision-makers face, anticipates needs, predicts and plans for potentially controversial or politically sensitive issues, and presents frank advice even if that tests decision-makers views and preferences.
• Scopes research, writes tender documents and at times leads the evaluation panel in technical area.
• Provides high level contract monitoring and project management.

Support regulatory framework

• Uses expert knowledge to help inform decisions on shaping the policy, operational and strategic functions.
• Uses judgement and deep technical expertise to advise on regulatory framework and relevant legislation.
• Informs and supports interpretation of and changes to the regulatory framework and relevant legislation.
• Conducts research into complex issues and produces technical advice and evidence to support policy positions and manage regulatory risk.
• Presents information and actively works with staff in other MBIE branches, government and external agencies.
• Manages information and data appropriately.
• Provides quality assurance, expert technical advice, supervision, guidance, coaching and mentoring and on-the-job training to team members.
• Represents MBIE and New Zealand’s interests nationally and internationally in their area of technical expertise, contributing and influencing. 

Delivery

• Plans and manages work, develops and maintains relationships with colleagues and stakeholders.
• Works with minimal direction and guidance on what is required and is confident working on new, difficult or unusual assignments.
• Uses project planning and management techniques to effectively carry out the agreed work in technical areas, using initiative to resolve most conflicts, manage risks and coordinate work with others.
• Works with little guidance on the overall technical objectives, within the resources available and provides timely reports on progress.
• Leads multiple pieces of work concurrently and actively and independently plans and manages work load.
• Takes a leadership role in cross-MBIE and cross-government projects.
• Chairs and contributes to meetings, including where matters are complex or sensitive, require negotiation or solutions.

Monitoring and compliance

• Contributes to the development an effective compliance strategy model for the effective regulation under the relevant legislation.
• Leads the implementation of compliance solutions in alignment with the compliance strategy.
• Helps build an effective intelligence network to inform evaluation feedback loops of the efficacy of implemented policy.
• Develops reporting and monitoring tools to gather information as well as the effectiveness of compliance activities against objectives.
• Determines appropriate enforcement.

Wellbeing, health and safety

• Displays commitment through actively supporting all safety and wellbeing initiatives.
• Ensures own and others safety at all times.
• Complies with relevant safety and wellbeing policies, procedures, safe systems of work and event reporting.
• Reports all incidents/accidents, including near misses in a timely fashion.
• Is involved in health and safety through participation and consultation.

Tō tūranga i roto i te Manatū – Your place in the Ministry

The Senior Plumbing and Hydraulics Services Engineer position reports into the Manager Building Performance within the Building System Performance branch. The branch sits within the Building, Resources and Markets group.

More information about MBIE’s structure

To mātou aronga – What we do for Aotearoa New Zealand

Hīkina Whakatutuki is the te reo Māori name for the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment. Hīkina means to uplift. Whakatutuki means to move forward, to make successful. Our name speaks to our purpose, Grow Aotearoa New Zealand for All.

To Grow Aotearoa New Zealand for All, we put people at the heart of our mahi. Based on the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi / The Treaty of Waitangi, we are committed to upholding authentic partnerships with Māori.

As agile public service leaders, we use our breadth and experience to navigate the ever-changing world. We are service providers, policy makers, investors and regulators. We engage with diverse communities, businesses and regions. Our work touches on the daily lives of New Zealanders. We grow opportunities (Puāwai), guard and protect (Kaihāpai) and innovate and navigate towards a better future (Auaha).

Ngā matatau – Our competencies

Cultivates innovation We create new and better ways for the organisation to be successful by challenging the status quo generating new and creative ideas and translating them into workable solutions.

Nimble learning We are curious and actively learn through experimentation when tackling new problems by learning as we go when facing new situations and challenges.

Customer focus We build strong customer relationships and deliver customer-centric solutions by listening and gaining insights into the needs of the communities we serve and actively seeking and responding to feedback.

Decision quality We make quality and timely decisions that shape the future for our communities and keep the organisation moving forward by relying on an appropriate mix of analysis, wisdom, experience, and judgement to make valid and reliable decisions.

Action oriented We step up, taking on new opportunities and tough challenges with purpose, urgency and discipline by taking responsibility, ownership and action on challenges, and being accountable for the results.

Collaborates We connect, working together to build partnerships with our communities, working collaboratively to meet shared objectives by gaining trust and support of others; actively seeking the views, experiences, and opinions of others and by working co-operatively with others across MBIE, the public sector and external stakeholder groups.

Te Tiriti o Waitangi

As an agency of the public service, MBIE has a responsibility to contribute to the Crown meeting its obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Te Tiriti). Meeting our commitment to Te Tiriti will contribute towards us realising the overall aims of Te Ara Amiorangi – Our Path, Our Direction, and achieve the outcome of Growing New Zealand for All. The principles of Te Tiriti - including partnership, good faith, and active protection – are at the core of our work. MBIE is committed to delivering on our obligations as a Treaty partner with authenticity and integrity and to enable Māori interests. We are committed to ensuring that MBIE is well placed to meet our obligations under the Public Service Act 2020 (Te Ao Tūmatanui) to support the Crown in strengthening the Māori/Crown Relationship under the Treaty and to build MBIE’s capability, capacity and cultural intelligence to deliver this.

Mahi i roto i te Ratonga Tūmatanui – Working in the public service

Ka mahitahi mātou o te ratonga tūmatanui kia hei painga mō ngā tāngata o Aotearoa i āianei, ā, hei ngā rā ki tua hoki. He kawenga tino whaitake tā mātou hei tautoko i te Karauna i runga i āna hononga ki a ngāi Māori i raro i te Tiriti o Waitangi. Ka tautoko mātou i te kāwanatanga manapori. Ka whakakotahingia mātou e te wairua whakarato ki ō mātou hapori, ā, e arahina ana mātou e ngā mātāpono me ngā tikanga matua o te ratonga tūmatanui i roto i ā mātou mahi.

In the public service we work collectively to make a meaningful difference for New Zealanders now and in the future. We have an important role in supporting the Crown in its relationships with Māori under the Treaty of Waitangi. We support democratic government. We are unified by a spirit of service to our communities and guided by the core principles and values of the public service in our work.

What does it mean to work in Aotearoa New Zealand’s Public Service?(external link) — Te Kawa Mataaho The Public Service Commission