T Levels focus on vocational skills and can help students into skilled employment, higher study or apprenticeships. Each T Level includes an in-depth industry placement that lasts at least 45 days. Students get valuable experience in the workplace; employers get early sight of the new talent in their industry.
This occupation is found in the construction and engineering sectors, with civil engineering technicians employed in a variety of organisation types and sizes. Civil engineering technicians will typically work for:
Civil engineering technicians support in the design, creation and connecting up of the world around us, making the villages, towns and cities work for the people that live in them, and are playing an ever increasing role in safeguarding and improving the environment into our future.
The broad purpose of the occupation is to support the planning, design, building, management, maintenance or dismantling of the built environment (such as buildings, structures, parks and public spaces, schools, offices, museums, hospitals) and infrastructure, such as transportation (road, rail, bridges, tunnels, ports and airports), water and waste management, marine and coastal engineering (irrigation systems, sustainable drainage systems (SuDS), flood, river and coastal defences), water and power supplies (utilities, hydropower, power stations, nuclear plants, on and offshore wind farms).
Civil engineering technicians assist in the preparation and production of plans, designs and documentation to relevant codes of practice and industry standards, such as Construction Design and Management (CDM) or the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB), to statutory and regulatory requirements, and in compliance with health, safety and wellbeing requirements.
They will use and apply engineering principles and techniques, carry out calculations and data analysis, prepare and produce sketches, diagrams, and models, to support technical problem solving and in the delivery of civil engineering designs and technical solutions. They use a range of tools and techniques, including digital techniques (such as CAD or BIM) to aid the visualisation, communication, measurement and assessment of civil engineering projects.
Civil engineering technicians will also be challenged to consider how they will support improvements to, or mitigate the effects of their work, on the environment, with civil engineering projects having to respond to United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, climate change acts, and environmental policies and legislation, including net-zero emissions, and an increasing drive for sustainability.
Civil engineering technicians will contribute to the planning, design, programming, and delivery of engineering activities to agreed timescales and budgets, using quality systems and risk assessment procedures to monitor and manage projects and their risks. Technicians may also assist in site inspections or surveys, report progress against project plans, or check specified technical aspects of site activities.
In their daily work, employees interact with their line manager, typically a senior civil engineer or site manager, to confirm programmes of work and agree individual responsibilities, which in turn support the delivery of wider plans across civil engineering teams; these teams could include engineers across a range of disciplines, from various employer types (e.g. clients, consultancies, contractors), and project managers, where their collective outputs will be used to produce civil engineering solutions that are fit for purpose, safe, secure, environmentally sustainable, and meet customer and industry specifications.
Technicians shall also have a mentor who will support them in the development of their career plans, maintenance of their personal and professional development, and in some cases, progression into more advanced roles, such as civil engineers or technical specialists.
Technicians may also be exposed to other professional disciplines, such as surveyors, environmental practitioners, architects, planners or legal teams. As well as liaising with internal colleagues across a variety of multidisciplinary areas, some technicians will also be responsible for working with customers, suppliers, and stakeholders or with representatives from appropriate regulatory bodies.
Civil engineering technicians, depending on their employer, will spend their time in an office environment, working on site, working remotely or a combination of these. There is also potential for visiting customers or suppliers.
Employees are responsible for assisting in the delivery of accurate and quality civil engineering solutions, ensuring they are within agreed time and resource limits, compliant with industry and regulatory standards, such as the Common Safety Method (CSM), and to specification. Civil engineering technicians must also comply with health and safety regulations, welfare, wellbeing, and environmental and sustainability policies. They will typically report to an engineer or project manager, normally as part of a cross functional team, the size of this team and responsibilities varying with the scope of the project and size of the employer.
Technicians are able to use their own judgement when undertaking the occupational duties and applying their technical knowledge, skills and behaviours in a range of contexts and environments. They also have a responsibility to plan and organise their own work and contribute to the management of projects using a variety of business processes, procedures, and methods of working. They are also responsible for their own continuing professional development and recognising their own obligations to society.
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Duty 1 Contribute to civil engineering solutions by preparing, producing and modifying engineering diagrams, drawings or models, documents and engineering specifications, to industry codes of practice, regulations, standards, and procedures |
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Duty 2 Assist in the development of civil engineering solutions, by collecting and interpreting technical information and data, carrying out calculations and analysing the outputs |
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Duty 3 Utilise digital technologies and techniques, such as Computer Aided Design (CAD) or Building Information Modelling (BIM), to prepare, produce and present civil engineering designs and visualisations in accordance with approved design procedures and systems |
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Duty 4 Ensure compliance with health, safety & welfare requirements, apply safe systems of work, such as Common Safety Methods (CSM), and identify hazards and mitigate risks in their own work |
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Duty 5 Comply with relevant legislation, regulations, policies, strategies, and technical guidance, such as such as Construction Design and Management (CDM) or Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB), ensuring they are interpreted correctly and communicated appropriately |
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Duty 6 Comply with environmental policies and practice sustainable principles, supporting the civil engineering projects they work on to assist in the achievement of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and net-zero carbon emissions |
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Duty 7 Use the quality management and assurance systems available to plan, manage, monitor and contribute to the delivery and implementation of civil engineering projects to specification, budget and agreed targets, respecting the need for the security of data and information |
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Duty 8 Communicate and liaise effectively with own project team, customers, internal or external stakeholders |
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Duty 9 Work reliably and effectively independently and as a member of a team, taking responsibility for their own work |
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Duty 10 Ensure compliance with equality, diversity & inclusion (EDI) and ethical standards |
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Duty 11 Maintain own learning and skills development by carrying out continuing professional development in line with professional codes of conduct and/or industry specifications and obligations |
K1: Appropriate engineering principles, underpinned by appropriate mathematical, scientific and technical knowledge and understanding, relating to civil engineering and the construction process
Back to Duty
K2: Appropriate civil engineering techniques and methods used to design, build and maintain infrastructure and buildings, the standards, contracts and specifications used, and their impact on the construction process
Back to Duty
K3: Key principles, techniques and methods of data and technical information collection, analysis and evaluation used in delivering civil engineering models, designs, and technical solutions
Back to Duty
K4: Technical drawings, modelling and designs, using computer-based software packages, such as Computer Aided Design (CAD) or Building Information Modelling (BIM), and their use in the sector
Back to Duty
K5: Statutory health, safety and welfare policies, procedures, and regulations, including risk management, in relation to civil engineering project delivery
Back to Duty
K6: Industry policies, standards, regulations and codes of practice, such as Common Safety Method (CSM), Construction Design and Management (CDM) or Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB), that must be adhered to in the civil engineering environment
Back to Duty
K7: Environmental policies and the principles of sustainable development, including those relating to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and net-zero carbon emissions, and their impact on the civil engineering projects
Back to Duty
K8: Understanding of equality, diversity and inclusion, and its impact on civil engineering solutions
Back to Duty
K9: Project management, quality management and assurance systems and continuous improvement as applied to civil engineering
Back to Duty
K10: Methods of communication and when to use them, including how to write technical reports and using appropriate engineering terminology and conventions
Back to Duty
K11: Ethical principles as applied to civil engineering and the security of data and information
Back to Duty
K12: The values and standards by which they maintain their personal, professional and technical knowledge and skills through initial professional development (IPD) and continuing professional development (CPD)
Back to Duty
S1: Apply appropriate civil engineering principles, techniques, and methods, including mathematical, scientific, and technical know-how, to civil engineering and the construction process
Back to Duty
S2: Apply key principles, techniques and methods of data and technical information collection, analysis, and evaluation to support the delivery of civil engineering models, designs, and technical solutions
Back to Duty
S3: Operate appropriate software packages for data gathering and analysis, such as Computer Aided Design (CAD) or Building Information Modelling (BIM), to create technical drawings, models and designs using relevant conventions and engineering terminology
Back to Duty
S4: Apply statutory health, safety and welfare policies, procedures, and regulations in the civil engineering environment, using risk management processes, procedures, and documentation
Back to Duty
S5: Support and contribute to the production or modification of civil engineering technical solutions in accordance with relevant industry standards, regulations, and procedures and codes of practice
Back to Duty
S6: Apply environmental policies and sustainable principles in civil engineering projects, recognising the need to reduce carbon use, lower emissions and plan for wider sustainability
Back to Duty
S7: Plan, carry out and manage own work in line with quality assurance, recognising the wider implications to customer needs, and within cost and resource limitations
Back to Duty
S8: Consider equality, diversity and inclusion in the delivery of civil engineering projects
Back to Duty
S9: Apply document control processes and procedures using the approved processes, maintaining quality compliance when creating or amending engineering documentation
Back to Duty
S10: Communicate using appropriate methods for the audience, and incorporate relevant and appropriate terms, standards, and data
Back to Duty
S11: Apply ethical principles to civil engineering projects, including the secure use of data and information
Back to Duty
S12: Plan, undertake and review their own professional competence, regularly updating and reviewing their CPD to improve performance
Back to Duty
B1: Comply with health, safety and welfare requirements, industry standards, statutory regulations, policies and codes of practice
Back to Duty
B2: Work independently, operating in a systematic, proactive, and transparent way, using resources effectively to complete tasks, knowing their limitations and when to ask for support or escalate
Back to Duty
B3: Applies a structured approach to problem solving with attention to detail, accuracy, and diligence
Back to Duty
B4: Is motivated when collaborating in teams, offering sensible challenge, reflects on and provides constructive feedback and contributes to discussions
Back to Duty
B5: Maintains professional and ethical working relationships with internal, external, and connected stakeholders
Back to Duty
B6: Takes responsibility for their own professional development, seeking opportunities to enhance their knowledge, skills, and experience
Back to Duty
Qualification type: T Level
Qualification level: 3
Awarding organisation: Pearson
Approval date: 01/04/2020
Available from: 01/09/2020
Occupational specialism: Civil engineering
Qualification type: TQ
Qualification level: 3
Awarding organisation: NOCN
Approval date: 07/03/2024
Occupational pathway: N/A
Qualification category: Occupational entry technical qualifications
Age range: Adults only
Work placement: No
ST0091 Civil engineering technician
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