Head of Design

Role overview

This is a permanent senior leadership opportunity in Ireland with a leading MEP / building services organisation. The position supports a major healthcare-focused project and requires someone who can steer multidisciplinary design activity, uphold technical standards, and keep deliverables practical, coordinated, and ready for construction.

The working pattern is four days in the office or on the project and one day working from home.

Key responsibilities

• Set and lead the overall MEP design direction while maintaining strong technical control.
• Oversee the coordination of mechanical, electrical, BIM, and other specialist design inputs.
• Examine specifications, calculations, schematics, submissions, and associated design risks.
• Work closely with consultants, contractors, commercial stakeholders, BIM specialists, and delivery teams.
• Ensure the design is compliant with requirements, well coordinated, constructible, and commercially sound.
• Support offsite MEP delivery methods, including DFMA, modularisation, installation planning, commissioning, and handover.
• Serve as the most senior technical design point of authority on the project.

Ideal background

This role is best suited to a seasoned design leader such as a Head of Design, Design Director, Technical Director, Associate Director in building services, MEP Design Manager, Building Services Lead, or a Senior Principal Engineer ready for the next step.

Strong leadership experience in MEP / building services design is essential, ideally gained within a consultancy or a design-led contractor environment.

Relevant project exposure

Experience in one or more of the following areas would be especially useful: healthcare and hospitals, clinical environments, life sciences, pharma, cleanrooms, data centres, mission-critical facilities, energy centres, plantrooms, low-carbon building services, offsite MEP, prefabrication, DFMA, and BIM / Revit coordination.

Additional information

This is a full-time permanent role based in County Dublin, Ireland. Healthcare project experience is helpful but not mandatory; the key requirement is strong MEP design leadership. Interested senior candidates are encouraged to express interest for a confidential discussion.