Mid Hudson Energy Transition

Contractor Consultant (Owner's Representative / Technical Advisor)

Mid Hudson Energy Transition Kingston, New York, United States

About this position

The Organization

Mid-Hudson Energy Transition, Inc. (MHET) is a not-for-profit community-based organization headquartered in Kingston, NY, that empowers municipalities, their residents, and businesses to own and share renewable energy, create healthier buildings, and join in community wealth-building to strengthen the resilience of the Hudson Valley in the face of climate change. We engage and build on the active involvement of communities, with particular emphasis on low-income and communities of color that are being harmed first and worst by climate change.

Contractor Consultant

(Owner's Representative / Technical Advisor)
Summary:
We are seeking to engage 1-3 Contractor Consultants to support our team on a part-time, as-needed basis for complex residential and small-scale construction projects. This role functions as an "owner's engineer" / technical advisor, providing expert-level review, on-site oversight, and quality assurance support to ensure contractor work aligns with scope, standards, and best practices.
This is a flexible, hourly contract role averaging ~10-20 hours per month, with variability depending on project load and complexity.

Job Responsibilities

• Conduct property assessments and site visits to evaluate existing conditions, identify project needs, and develop detailed scopes of work for contractor bidding.
• Prepare clear, comprehensive scopes of work that outline required repairs, upgrades, materials, and project expectations.
• Review contractor quotes and bids for completeness, accuracy, and value comparison
• Identify scope gaps, inconsistencies, overages, and potential cost risks
• Evaluate proposed materials and methods for durability, code compliance, and appropriateness
• Flag red flags in pricing, sequencing, or contractor assumptions
• Support scope refinement prior to contract execution

Construction Oversight / Field Support

• Observe work in progress and flag issues related to quality, safety, or scope deviation
• Ensure adherence to approved plans, specifications, and contract terms
• Provide real-time technical guidance when issues arise in the field
• Document findings and recommend corrective actions when needed

Project Closeout / Review

• Review invoices for alignment with completed work and contract terms
• Support punch-list development and final quality assurance checks
• Confirm completion meets agreed-upon scope and standards

Ideal Background

We are open to a range of professional backgrounds depending on project needs. Ideal candidates may include a combination of:

• General Contractor (GC) with strong field and estimating experience
• Licensed Architect or Architectural Associate
• Home Inspector / Building Inspector / Property Assessment Inspector
• Building Science professional or Building Scientist (building envelope, moisture, energy systems, performance-based design/retrofits)
• Licensed NYS Mold and/or Asbestos Specialists

Additional highly relevant experience

• Construction project management experience across residential retrofit or weatherization work
• HVAC, roofing, electrical, or multi-trade "systems thinker" experience
• Experience enforcing contractor scopes, specs, and agreements

Key Skills & Qualities

• Strong construction and building systems knowledge (residential preferred)
• Ability to evaluate multiple trades holistically (HVAC, electrical, envelope, roofing, etc.)
• Strong judgment in identifying risk, quality issues, and cost inefficiencies
• Comfortable reviewing technical documents, bids, and scopes
• Field experience with ability to assess work in real time
• Strong communication skills- able to translate technical issues into clear guidance
• Detail-oriented but practical ("knows what actually matters in the field")
• Willingness to collaborate with contractors while holding standards firmly
• Flexible, responsive, and able to serve in an on-call capacity

Engagement Structure

• Hourly contract position (independent contractor)
• Estimated 10-20 hours/month, variable based on project pipeline
• Preferred on-call availability during business hours for high-priority or complex builds
• Work includes both desk review (quotes/invoices/docs) and field visits
• Time tracked and invoiced monthly