The Technical Services Unit (TSU) engages in multidisciplinary design, assessments and advisory work, and manages relationships with other technical stakeholders such as specialist design firms for high-risk structures.
The Technical Services Unit office is based in Nairobi, and personnel may be required to travel extensively to other UNOPS locations.
The Technical Services Unit (TSU) currently provides design services for infrastructure works to Project Managers. Recently, the team has expanded its offering to include consulting services such as assessments, feasibility studies and advisory services on a wide range of infrastructure types.
The TSU currently has 19 permanent and 80+ retainer personnel, including architects, civil engineers, structural engineers, mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, quantity surveyors, GIS and specialist infrastructure advisors (for dams, ICT, safeguards, biomedical work, inter alia) and CAD technicians, as well as support personnel. Current projects are underway / imminent in Kenya, Somalia, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Zambia, Mozambique and Nigeria. In addition, the unit supports a range of projects outside Africa, for example, in Haiti, Ukraine, and Papua New Guinea.
The TSU is a business unit of the Multi-Country Office and operates under the direction of the Director for the East and Southern Africa Office (ESAMCO). TSU has recently been tasked with securing personnel to support the important work of the Sanitation and Hygiene Fund, a project of UNOPS.
Under the overall supervision of the TSU Quantity Surveyor, the Quantity Surveyor will give his/her technical expertise as required to provide input to bills of quantities, estimates, local insights and evaluations for infrastructure works, conduct assessments and or monitor site works, evaluate variations and provide high-quality related documentation.
Specifically, the incumbent will be responsible for the following substantive tasks. The tasks would involve the following, but not limited to:
Responsible for the timely preparation and review of the BoQs, specifications and related documents and ensuring they meet the quality standard requirements.
Responsible for the preparation of preliminary cost estimates for project proposals
Responsible for the preparation of the engineer’s estimates and will be responsible for withholding this from contractors to avoid collusion.
Providing advice during the post-tender and construction stage when requested by the Client.
Carrying out site inspections and assessments as needed and preparing subsequent reports.
Carrying out valuations of works and preparing subsequent reports.
Carrying out any relevant administrative and operational efforts of the project as requested by the Unit Manager.
Responsible for carrying out financial evaluations of tenders.
Responsible for developing the unit rate systems for the project area. He/she shall maintain a register of unit rates of materials and labour for the preparation of cost estimates.
Actively engage in knowledge sharing and improving professional skills.
An agreed task order including the scope, deliverables and the maximum time duration will be agreed upon by the Technical Services Unit and the Quantity Surveyor prior to commencement of each and every assignment. He/she is responsible for ensuring timeous delivery of services as defined in the task order.
