Fire & Life Safety Transportation Practice Lead

At HDR, our employee-owners are fully engaged in creating a welcoming environment where each of us is valued and respected, a place where everyone is empowered to bring their authentic selves and novel ideas to work every day. As we foster a culture of inclusion throughout our company and within our communities, we constantly ask ourselves: What is our impact on the world?

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Each and every role throughout our organization makes a difference in our ability to change the world for the better. Read further to learn how you could help make great things possible not only in your community, but around the world.

HDR’s Fire & Life Safety (FLS) team provides essential consulting and design expertise across a variety of sectors, with a strategic emphasis on transportation infrastructure. Our portfolio includes highways, roads, tunnels, transit systems, freight rail, aviation, maritime, and more. As demand for our services continues to grow, we are seeking a Senior Fire & Life Safety Engineer to lead and expand our transportation-focused FLS practice.

In this role, you will serve as a senior consultant and technical lead for the design, optimization, and construction administration of Ventilation and Fire & Life Safety systems for complex infrastructure projects. These projects include transit and highway tunnels, overbuilds, utility corridors, and industrial, commercial, and process facilities. You will collaborate with FLS leads across HDR, supporting internal teams and external clients, while managing both standalone FLS projects and contributing to interdisciplinary efforts. Your expertise will help advance our design capabilities and support the growth of our tunnel ventilation and underground engineering practice.

You will also play a key role in mentoring junior engineers, supporting business development initiatives, and contributing to pursuit and proposal strategies. Working alongside HDR’s FLS Director, you will help build and lead a team of transportation-focused FLS professionals. This position is ideal for a self-motivated, technically strong leader who values collaboration, team development, and the opportunity to make a lasting impact within a top-tier, employee-owned A/E firm.

The Team:

You’ll join HDR’s rapidly growing FLS team, a collaborative group of professionals providing integrated support on complex projects across the U.S. and globally. Our specialists work closely with architects, engineers, planners, and clients to deliver innovative, code-compliant, and performance-based fire and life safety solutions across the transportation industry and other market sectors.

HDR maintains a global presence with more than 200 offices worldwide. While we prefer this position to be based in the New York / New Jersey area to support key regional and national projects, we are open to other office locations for highly qualified candidates, particularly those with tunnel ventilation or transportation expertise.

As part of our team, you will thrive in a supportive, growth-focused environment that encourages knowledge sharing, mentorship, and professional development. You will also have the opportunity to help shape the future of HDR’s FLS transportation practice on a national and global scale.

Success in this role will require the ability to:

• Know your strengths, foster relationships, and be a proactive communicator.
• Share our desire to grow our FLS team globally.
• Collaborate in a Team environment with a positive and helpful attitude.
• Be highly motivated, constantly seek improvement in how we do things, and be willing to take on new challenges. 
• Be able to manage multiple projects immediately, including developing proposals, project planning, staffing, and successful delivery of projects through independent work and engaging other FLS teammates.
• Cultivate good working relationships with project managers, project teams, FLS teammates, and other clients as we grow our team.
• Effectively network with other fire and life safety industry professionals.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead technical design and optimization for ventilation and fire/life safety systems across transit and highway tunnels, stations, and underground facilities
• Lead the development, design, and execution of fire and life safety strategies for transportation infrastructure projects, including tunnels, stations, and underground facilities.
• Oversee the technical delivery of tunnel ventilation and fire protection systems, including suppression, detection, mass notification, and emergency egress for transportation systems.
• Foster the growth of the FLS team by providing mentorship, training, and ensuring ongoing professional development aligned with industry best practices and emerging technologies.
• Coordinate with multidisciplinary teams to ensure the accurate modeling, integration, and optimization of fire/life safety and tunnel ventilation systems, ensuring compliance with codes and regulations.
• Act as the Engineer of Record for fire and life safety projects, including leading project teams and ensuring effective risk and quality management.
• Develop and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders, including transportation agencies, contractors, architects, engineers, and regulatory bodies.
• Lead and collaborate on business development efforts, including client engagement, proposal development, and strategies to secure new projects in the transportation sector.
• Create and manage design criteria manuals, technical reports, specifications, and detailed engineering calculations for system sizing, HVAC loads, pressure losses, and more.
• Provide senior-level consulting on the design and implementation of fire protection systems and emergency response protocols.
• Support the commissioning and construction administration phases of projects, ensuring quality and adherence to safety standards.
• Help identify market trends and business opportunities and contribute to expanding the company's FLS presence in the transportation sector.
• Represent the company in industry forums, conferences, and technical publications, further establishing thought leadership in fire and life safety for transportation systems.

Minimum Qualifications: 

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Fire Protection Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field, with 20+ years of experience in tunnel ventilation or fire and life safety (FLS).
• Professional Engineer (PE) license in at least one U.S. state, with a willingness to obtain registration in others.
• Expertise in NFPA standards (e.g., NFPA 130, NFPA 502) and other regulatory requirements for tunnel and underground space fire/life safety.
• Extensive background in systems engineering, integration, equipment testing, and implementation, with experience in modeling software for code compliance and occupant tenability.
• Proven project management experience, including leading multidisciplinary teams, preparing technical reports, and mentoring less experienced engineers, designers, and technicians.
• Strong business development skills, including client relationship management, proposal development, and strategy execution to secure new projects, particularly in large-scale transportation infrastructure (rail, aviation, highways, maritime).
• Demonstrated ability to manage financial aspects of projects, including budgeting, resource allocation, and ensuring profitability.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to cultivate strong relationships with project managers, clients, and team members.
• A proactive, enterprising attitude, and commitment to contributing to a dynamic, employee-owned culture.
• Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to manage multiple, complex projects effectively.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in establishing or directly working with Transportation Fire & Life 
• Collaborative experience with National Tunnel and Underground Engineering Practice leaders to recommend risk management and quality plans for projects.
• Active membership in relevant professional organizations and participation in national societies and regulatory committees.
• Published technical papers in journals, conferences, and seminars.
• Proven ability to build and maintain strong client relationships, ensuring satisfaction and fostering ongoing partnerships.

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