You will be joining the Bridges and Structures Team at Dorset Council and helping to maintain not only Dorset Highways' bridges but also some of its culverts, retaining walls and other structures.
The team delivers maintenance projects and new structures from inception through to construction and regular inspections are the foundation of that process. As a key member of the team, you will be inspecting, monitoring, and reporting on the condition of structures to help the team identify and prioritise the need for maintenance or replacement.
You will play an important role in ensuring Dorset's bridges and structures remain in a good, safe condition and are fit for purpose to enable the public to travel safely around the county and to support the local economy.
We encourage hybrid and flexible working that supports a healthy work-life balance.
What will you be doing?
As an Inspector you will be undertaking inspections of road bridges, footbridges, culverts, retaining walls and vehicle restraint systems and your inspections will be the first step in the process of maintaining or replacing a structure.
You will be the Bridge Team's eyes and ears on the ground.
As such the majority of your work will be out in the field so there is a significant amount of travel, for which a Dorset Council van will be provided to you.
One day a week you will work in the office or from home, collating the previous week's reports and photographs and planning your routes for the coming week.
As part of that you will meet with engineers, usually via Microsoft Teams, to talk through your findings and highlight any issues, which will help determine which structures are a priority for work.
You will be one of two Inspectors working closely together but a significant amount of time will be working on your own on the smaller structures. You will come together as a pair for the larger bridges and for those which have safety aspects such as being confined spaces or which need access by boat or a MEWP.
There will occasionally be a requirement to work during an evening or at night in order to utilise traffic management for your safety on busy, high speed or traffic sensitive roads.
About you
Prior knowledge of bridges and structures or of construction techniques would be an advantage but is not essential as training and mentoring will be given. You will undertake a Bridge Inspector training course, which is currently run twice a year as a 6 day online course, and also be expected to work towards gaining an accredited qualification under the Bridge Inspector Certification Scheme (BICS).
Inspections are all about observation so you should be observant and inquisitive with an eye for detail.
You should be comfortable working in and around water which is often quite deep or fast flowing and may require you to wear a drysuit. You should also be comfortable working in small, enclosed spaces, or at height or on the highway.
A lot of time you will be working alone and unsupervised, often in remote locations and in less than perfect weather conditions, so you must be comfortable working outdoors, on your own and will be expected to show a high degree of integrity and diligence, organisation and self-discipline.
The role can be physically demanding as some locations are remote or difficult to access and require crossing rough terrain, climbing riverbanks or ladders. Some require entering manholes or crawling through pipes and culverts so you must be physically able to meet those demands.
You should be confident in communicating, in writing and verbally to record and discuss your inspections, sometimes with people outside Dorset Council.
You may be questioned by the public on site and some structures require access through private property, so you must be able to converse confidently and politely with the public.