Mechanical Leader – FPSO / Offshore Oil & Gas Project

Location: France (Paris/Pau region) with international travel as required
Contract Type: Long-term Contract (12 months renewable)
Work Pattern: Residential, Monday to Friday

Overview

We are seeking an experienced Mechanical Leader to join a major offshore oil & gas development project during the engineering, construction, commissioning, and start-up phases. This is a high-profile role within a multi-disciplinary project team delivering a large-scale deepwater FPSO development.

The successful candidate will provide mechanical discipline leadership, ensuring that maintenance, reliability, availability, and integrity requirements are fully integrated into project design and execution. The position will play a key role in preparing the asset for safe and efficient operations through first oil and beyond.

Key Responsibilities

HSE & Asset Integrity

• Demonstrate exemplary commitment to HSE, ethics, and compliance standards.
• Ensure facility conformity, certification, and integrity requirements are met.
• Support implementation and monitoring of Safety Critical Element (SCE) maintenance strategies.
• Act as a guardian for safety-critical mechanical systems and equipment.

Mechanical Maintenance & Reliability

• Develop and implement operations and maintenance strategies aligned with production objectives.
• Review and approve maintenance philosophies, spare parts strategies, criticality analyses, and maintenance plans.
• Ensure reliability, availability, maintainability, and lifecycle cost objectives are achieved.
• Review equipment obsolescence risks and propose mitigation solutions.
• Manage maintenance engineering activities and provide technical support for operational issues.
• Oversee spare parts management, stock optimisation, and maintenance documentation development.

Project & Engineering Support

• Review and comment on engineering documentation related to maintenance and mechanical disciplines.
• Participate in design reviews, 3D model reviews, lifting and handling studies, and vendor package assessments.
• Support integrated package testing and commissioning planning activities.
• Contribute to commissioning strategies and operational test procedures.
• Participate in technical evaluations of contractor personnel and engineering deliverables.
• Identify design improvements and recommend practical solutions to enhance operational performance.

Commissioning & Start-Up

• Support mechanical commissioning and start-up activities.
• Ensure efficient handover of systems from construction and commissioning teams to operations.
• Verify that mechanical systems meet performance, integrity, and operational readiness requirements.
• Support development of long-term maintenance and operational excellence strategies.

Digitalisation & Performance Improvement

• Champion digital solutions and maintenance system optimisation initiatives.
• Ensure effective use of maintenance management systems and performance monitoring tools.
• Develop discipline reporting and performance tracking processes.

Candidate Requirements

Qualifications

• Degree or diploma in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline.
• Fluent English, both written and spoken.

Experience

• Minimum 15 years of total professional experience.
• At least 12 years within the oil & gas, energy, or heavy industrial sector.
• Minimum 10 years in mechanical engineering, maintenance, reliability, or asset integrity roles.
• Strong experience supporting offshore production facilities, FPSOs, or major capital projects.
• Previous involvement in commissioning and start-up phases of large-scale projects.
• Experience working within multinational, multidisciplinary project environments.

Technical Skills

• Strong understanding of rotating and static mechanical equipment.
• Expertise in maintenance engineering, reliability, integrity management, and lifecycle asset management.
• Knowledge of criticality analysis, maintenance planning, spare parts optimisation, and risk-based maintenance methodologies.
• Familiarity with Computerised Maintenance Management Systems (CMMS/CMIMS).
• Experience with Power BI, Excel, PI Systems, or similar digital performance tools is advantageous.
• Strong understanding of international industry standards and operational best practices.

Personal Attributes

• Strong leadership and stakeholder management skills.
• Excellent communication and reporting abilities.
• Proactive problem-solver with a continuous improvement mindset.
• Able to work effectively across engineering, operations, commissioning, and contractor teams.
• Strong organisational skills and ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced project environment.

What's on Offer

• Opportunity to work on a major international offshore development project.
• Long-term contract with potential for extension.
• Exposure to all phases of project delivery, from detailed engineering through commissioning and start-up.
• Collaborative international environment with significant technical and leadership responsibility.