Freelance Piping Design Draftsman Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Overview

We are seeking an experienced Piping Design Lead to join our engineering team in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. This position will lead piping design activities forindustrial projects supporting the refining, petrochemical, chemical, energy, and manufacturing sectors.The Piping Design Lead will be responsible for directing piping design execution, coordinating multidisciplinary interfaces, and ensuring project deliverablesare accurate, constructible, and completed in accordance with client standards, project requirements, schedules, and budgets. The successful candidate willprovide technical leadership to piping designers, work closely with engineering and project management teams, and support projects from conceptualdevelopment and front-end engineering through detailed design, and construction.

Responsibilities Develop equipment layouts, piping layouts, plot plans, piping plans, sections, details, and isometric drawings. Lead the development and maintenance of three-dimensional plant models. Establish piping routing concepts that address process requirements, operability, maintenance access, safety, constructability, and cost. Review process flow diagrams, piping and instrumentation diagrams, line lists, equipment data, vendor drawings, piping specifications, and project designcriteria. Coordinate piping design requirements with process, mechanical, civil, structural, electrical, instrumentation, stress, and construction disciplines. Coordinate equipment locations, nozzle orientations, pipe-rack layouts, access requirements, maintenance clearances, and support locations. Work closely with piping engineers and stress analysts to implement flexibility requirements, support recommendations, and special design considerations. Lead model reviews and participate in interdisciplinary design, constructability, operability, and safety reviews. Identify and resolve design conflicts, model interferences, incomplete information, and constructability concerns. Plan, organize, and coordinate the work of piping designers and drafters. Develop and maintain piping design execution plans, work-hour estimates, staffing requirements, schedules, and deliverable lists. Assign work, establish priorities, monitor progress, and ensure piping design activities remain aligned with project objectives. Ensure piping systems comply with applicable codes, client specifications, project standards, and good engineering practices. Review piping drawings, isometrics, models, material takeoffs, and other deliverables for accuracy, completeness, consistency, and constructability. Establish and enforce project-specific piping design standards, drafting practices, and model-management procedures. Participate in site visits, field walkdowns, laser scanning activities, and the collection of existing facility information. Lead brownfield design efforts involving tie-ins, equipment replacements, piping modifications, and work within operating facilities. Coordinate field measurements and validate existing conditions prior to completing design deliverables. Support the development of piping material quantities and construction estimates. Review vendor drawings and equipment documentation for dimensional and piping-interface requirements. Support project managers with scope development, proposals, design schedules, progress reporting, change management, and forecasting. Communicate directly with clients regarding design status, technical issues, schedule impacts, and required decisions.

Qualifications Associate degree, technical diploma, or equivalent training in piping design, drafting, engineering technology, or a related field is preferred. Minimum of ten years of relevant piping design experience, including experience leading piping design teams or major work packages and five years of working as a supervisor Experience supporting industrial, refining, petrochemical, chemical, energy, or manufacturing facilities is strongly preferred. Extensive experience developing piping layouts, equipment arrangements, pipe racks, piping plans, sections, details, and isometric drawings. Strong knowledge of piping design principles, plant-layout practices, constructability, maintenance access, and equipment-clearance requirements. Experience with brownfield projects, field investigations, tie-ins, and modifications to existing operating facilities. Proficiency with AutoCAD Plant 3D or similar three-dimensional plant-design software. Experience with AutoCAD, Navisworks, point-cloud applications, laser-scan data, and model-review software. Ability to interpret piping and instrumentation diagrams, process flow diagrams, line lists, piping specifications, equipment data sheets, vendor drawings,and stress-analysis recommendations. Demonstrated ability to lead, mentor, and coordinate designers across multiple project disciplines. Strong understanding of interdisciplinary interfaces and model-coordination requirements. Ability to identify design risks, resolve technical conflicts, and make sound design decisions with limited supervision. Strong written, verbal, organizational, and client-communication skills. Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced project environment. Strong attention to detail and commitment to design quality, safety, and constructability. Must be able to visit industrial project sites, climb stairs and ladders, and perform field walkdowns as required