WHAT DOES A GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEER DO?

Published: Apr 15, 2025 - The Geotechnical Engineer plans and executes projects in compliance with site specifications, as well as federal, state, and local regulations, while developing and enforcing construction procedures. This position evaluates materials, interprets and approves survey and design work, ensuring all construction plans meet specifications, design, and budget. This role supervises technicians and laborers, monitors environmental quality, and collaborates with civil and structural engineering departments on various projects.

A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Geotechnical Engineer

1. Geotechnical Engineer Duties

  • Geotechnical Analysis: Perform geotechnical analyses with computer models for pile and drilled shaft foundation capacities, slope/embankment stability, MSE wall foundation design, and foundation/embankment settlement estimates.
  • Geotechnical Reporting: Prepare geotechnical design and construction recommendation reports that include calculations and descriptions of modeling efforts with senior review.
  • Data Reporting: Prepare geotechnical data reports with site investigation information.
  • Subsurface Investigation: Scope, execute, and interpret subsurface explorations, with senior technical advice and review.
  • Technical Documentation: Assist with writing reports, cost estimating, specifications, and permit documents with senior technical advice and review.
  • Multi-sector Project Support: Work on projects across sectors, performing a variety of suitable tasks as projects demand.
  • Team Collaboration: Perform well in a variety of scenarios including working with several teams, contractors, and cross-discipline in-house designers, requiring minimal supervision.
  • Technical Presentation: Produce and deliver technical presentations to internal teams and external review boards.
  • Problem Solving: Assist in identifying, defining, and solving complex problems and risks that are, or have the potential to impact overall productivity as part of a multi-disciplinary geoscience team.
  • Team Leadership: Provide professional leadership and direction to the team of Ground Engineering professionals on multiple projects on topics related to geotechnical and geophysical engineering.
  • Risk Mitigation: Ensure that ground engineering risks on projects are identified and mitigated, making key engineering judgments, decisions, and recommendations that influence contracts exceeding €200 million.
  • Foundation Design Expertise: Provide expert advice and guidance on foundation selection, and geotechnical design and installation methodologies for foundations and cables.
  • Engineering Strategy Support: Input into engineering and risk mitigation strategies and support of certification through independent verification bodies.

2. Geotechnical Engineer Details

  • Project Management: Managing the delivery of projects to time and budget, ensuring an industry-leading standard of technical quality and compliance with internal management systems.
  • Team Mentoring: Managing, mentoring, and developing less experienced engineers and technicians within project teams, working with line managers to maximise training opportunities.
  • Client Relationship Development: Developing and maintaining client relationships through project work, including identifying and realising any potential business opportunities.
  • Bid and Tender Support: Assisting with the preparation of bids and tenders and supporting the Directors in pursuing business development opportunities.
  • Engineering Design and Assessment: Production of engineering design, assessment or checking work including preparation or checking of calculations, written reports, drawings, models, and other contract deliverables.
  • Technical Compliance: Ensure compliance with industry best practice and awareness of latest developments in technology, including assessment of the suitability of new technology to the project pipeline.
  • Innovation Leadership: Lead geotechnical joint industry innovation projects on behalf of the company and share the knowledge with the wider Ground Engineering Team and relevant internal stakeholders.
  • Offshore Wind Support: Support internal teams in establishing robust business cases for future offshore wind farm projects, identifying early ground risk and developing site investigation and geotechnical design strategies for optimal bids.
  • Knowledge Sharing: Ensure lessons learnt regarding offshore geotechnics are captured, shared, and applied through updating processes and procedures to ensure they are applied across the current and future projects as far as is feasible.
  • Field Investigation Planning: Plan and conduct field programs for geotechnical investigations and studies (including drilling and test pitting assessments).
  • Geotechnical Analysis: Complete with interpretation and documentation of results, on a wide variety of transportation, municipal, land development, and resource-related geotechnical and civil engineering projects.
  • Proposal Preparation: Prepare fee estimates and proposals for geotechnical projects, providing peer review of geotechnical reports.
  • Construction Review: Undertake construction reviews and maintain suitable documentation for projects requiring geotechnical sign-off in accordance with the Quality Management System.

3. Geotechnical Engineer Responsibilities

  • Project Execution: Plan and execute the project in accordance with site specifications and all Federal, State, and Local regulations.
  • Construction Procedures: Develop, implement, and enforce construction procedures.
  • Material Evaluation: Evaluate and recommend appropriate project materials.
  • Survey and Design Review: Interpret, review, and approve survey and design work.
  • Construction Compliance: Ensure that all construction plans meet specifications, design, and budget.
  • Schedule Management: Establish, monitor, maintain, and update construction work schedules and time frames.
  • Environmental Monitoring: Monitor air, water, and soil quality.
  • Soil Classification: Classify material excavated as per ASTM D2488 (applicant should have at least two years' experience classifying soil per ASTM D2488).
  • Team Supervision: Supervise technicians, operators, and laborers.
  • Task Flexibility: Perform additional tasks and assignments per the supervisor's direction.
  • Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work cross-functionally with civil engineering and structural engineering departments, assisting with land development, municipal, structural, and transportation projects.
  • Staff Mentoring and Recruitment: Mentor junior technical staff and assist in the recruitment of staff to align with overall strategy.

4. Geotechnical Engineer Job Summary

  • Staff Supervision: Supervising and training of staff geotechnical engineers.
  • Field Coordination: Coordination of field drilling crews and laboratory testing.
  • Soil and Rock Logging: Inspection and logging of soils and rock during subsurface drilling operations.
  • Equipment Operation: Operate relevant testing equipment.
  • Sample Collection: Collect soil, water, and air samples for construction quality control, identification of potential pollution sources, and verification of the effectiveness of remedial measures.
  • Data Compilation and Interpretation: Compiling field and laboratory data and providing evaluation and interpretation.
  • Report Development: Developing geotechnical and environmental reports.
  • Project Management Support: Working on multiple projects for multiple project managers within budgets and deadlines.
  • Regional Travel: Most of the work will be performed in Illinois, although some jobs may allow for paid travel outside of Illinois.
  • Client Interaction: Interacting with clients in a professional manner.
  • Site Representation: Represent Patrick in a safe and professional manner on assigned client sites.
  • On-the-Job Training: Training will be provided to the successful candidate to ensure success.

5. Geotechnical Engineer Accountabilities

  • Geotechnical Investigation: Plan and conduct geotechnical investigations and prepare Geotechnical Data Reports.
  • Subsurface Evaluation: Evaluate subsurface conditions, calculate bearing capacity and settlement for shallow foundations.
  • Seepage and Stability Analysis: Conduct seepage and stability analyses for dams, levees, tunnels, and natural and man-made slopes.
  • Finite Element Analysis: Conduct finite element analysis for soil-structure interaction of excavation supports and tunnels using commercially available software.
  • Deep Foundation Design: Design deep foundations for buildings, bridges, and major structures.
  • Seismic Risk Evaluation: Perform site-specific ground motion time history analysis and evaluate seismic risk and liquefaction potential.
  • Safety Inspection: Perform safety inspections for dams, floodwalls, and flood control levees.
  • Tunneling Data Analysis: Assist with geotechnical characterization for tunneling projects, including data evaluation and preparing data summary plots and histograms.
  • Geotechnical Documentation: Assist with the preparation of Geotechnical Baseline Reports and Geotechnical Design Memoranda.
  • Interdisciplinary Coordination: Coordinate with other in-house engineering disciplines.
  • Technical Specification Preparation: Prepares technical specification sections.
  • Budget and Schedule Input: Provides input to the development of engineering budget and schedule to meet requirements.