Engineer IV (Lead Mechanical Engineer) will be responsible for the day to day efforts to accomplish project specific goals for multiple (3 - 10+), simultaneously executed, small to medium sized (typically $25M to $10MM) capital projects. Candidate should be comfortable working with minimal supervision in a refinery environment. Primary responsibilities Home office for this person will be in Deer Park, TX.
* Significant experience with rotating equipment aspects such as bearings, shafts, seals, vibration analysis, and lubrication.
* Expertise in mechanical sealing systems for rotating equipment, troubleshooting, and improvements. Proven experience in fluid systems analysis using software calculation tools such as Pipe-Flo.
* In-depth understanding of the interdependence and relationship between various disciplines with emphasis on discipline interfaces and information flow.
* The Lead Mechanical Engineer has the primary responsibility to support execution of Capital and Expense Projects from front end development (Assess, Select, Define phases) to detailed design and construction (Execute phase) including procurement, cost control and schedule management.
* Accountable for delivering projects safely, within defined scope, budget, and schedule expectations.
* Ability to support several projects simultaneously with competing priorities in various execution phases on a variety of manufacturing processes.
* Develops Equipment Specifications and Work Packages in collaboration with Client Operations, Process Engineering and Other Discipline Representatives.
* May participate in hazard analyses, conducts safety and environmental evaluations of projects, and prepares information for permitting.
* Works with Project Controls to develop project cost estimates and schedules for each phase and for final project funding.
* Conducts required project reviews (internal and external) ensuring the proper client technical authority approves the design including the appropriate technical authority of equipment specification and drawings.
* May interface with construction crews during construction phase to provide and receive input relative to accuracy of drawings, coordination of shutdowns and to expedite the timely and efficient completion of the project.
Relocation & Expat Resources – Education. Planning. Information, Inspiration, How-To Guides and Tools for Trailing Spouses, Accompanying Partners, and Families in Transition and
College, Employment and Career Issues, Essential Documents, Expat Packages, Financial Plan, Financial Records, Money & Finance, Planning, Schools, Uncategorized
Relocating plays havoc with your money; the cost of moving, the unpredictable expenses, the loss of local financial history and the soaring banking costs all make creating a relocation budget the greatest work of fiction since Harry Potter.
Despite the uncertainty, financial preparation and clarity is vital to a successful global transition, because if you think cultural orientation is challenging enough, try learning the Mandarin for “Why has my card been declined?”.
So for those of you considering (or already) living overseas, here’s part one of the commonsense rules to follow for creating a relocation financial plan.
– including rent or mortgage, property tax and insurance and security services. While this may seem low, it gives you greater financial flexibility, so when other unexpected costs crop up, you are well prepared.
It’s especially relevant for homebuyers – while corporate assignment contracts often include a buyout policy, in the current financial climate you may get offered far less than you expect, or even be ineligible for the program. Check the fine print carefully before you buy if you may need assistance when selling or if you move on short notice – but for maximum security the less income you have tied up in property when you lead a nomadic life, the better. Read The Golden Rules of Expat Housing – Buying a Home.
Expatriate taxes are complicated and while you need a qualified tax professional to oversee them, but don’t just relinquish responsibility.
Their priority will be to complete your taxes in a timely and accurate manner, but they have a wealth of information and experience relating to your tax breaks and liabilities for future plans and destinations and can help you avoid making costly mistakes. Higher education and retirement costs continue to rise, and with expat life comes the uncertainty of where these costs will be incurred and what support (if any) is available locally.
Most locations have tax free savings or investment policies for retirements, college funds etc., but you need to get independent expert advice to help you make the right choices. My personal favorite? Grant Thornton, for their knowledgeable, down to earth, easy to understand approach.
Changing location means fluctuating expenses – often much larger than you expect. Healthcare, school and college fees, retirement, cost of living and tax liabilities all vary hugely between locations and having a financial cushion can be the difference between all going well, all going into debt or all going without.
Don’t confuse this with your emergency savings account (for more on that, see part 2); this fund is purely to manage expat related expenses that you can’t accurately predict. Anything from last minute flights home, the extra security deposit because of your pets or extra tutoring for your children – all are common expenses that most of us will have to cough up at one point or another, so forewarned is forearmed.
Once the dust has settled in your new home, add up how much you spent relocating – it doesn’t need to be accurate to the last penny, just a rough estimate. Divide this figure by the length of the assignment in months, and set up an automated bank transfer to a separate ‘transfer expenses’ account.
If the amount seems terrifying, don’t panic. Even $100 per month over the course of a 2 year assignment will net over $2400, enough to handle most short term expenses. The key to remember is that something is better than nothing, and the earlier you start, the bigger your cushion will be.
For a guide to cost of living expenses, use Xpatulator.com as a starting point but remember to take into account your individual family needs. While local clothing or groceries may be cheap, your preferred brand of breakfast cereal, school wear or laundry detergent may be far more expensive than the index suggests.
The days of the longterm expat living in one location for 10 years or more are over – nowadays, the trend is for shorter term assignments or moving the long term employee onto local, local plus or ‘expat lite’ programs. These packages may look seductive on paper, but they are designed to reflect the actual cost of living rather than as a perk.
While your income seems larger in the short term, you are exposing yourself to longer term financial challenges (potential loss of spousal income, international college fees, privatized healthcare and changing pension benefits to name a few), so explore the long term impact of your assignment and budget accordingly before you assume your increased income is disposable.
Children, College, Education, Expat Life & Laughter, Extracurricular Activities, Managing the Transition, Parenting, Planning, Schools, The Trailing Spouse
Update – He has just received his PSAT results (yet another test of which we have very little knowledge) and apparently his results were considerably better than his grades predicted. He is now avidly consulting college resources to explore his career options, with the current frontrunner being anesthesiologist. The reason for this? “It’s well paid, and you get to sit down and read magazines”. I can sense a visit to the career counselor coming on, lest he be unleashed on the health service..
We had a particularly interesting moment with the Wiggy One this week. Normally very mellow, he occasionally explodes into a seething mass of hormones, hair, uncoordinated limbs and spectacular examples of poorly thought out accusations.
The latest detonator was the high school ‘Grade Point Average’ system. For the non-US expats amongst us, college entry in the US is based on academic scores over the high school period across the classes. An A requires an above 90% score for the class, and gives you a 4.0 GPA; a B is 80 – 90% and scores a 3.0, and so on. Sadly for all concerned, this level of academic scrutiny is carried out for the next three years, during which they are going through puberty, growth spurts, acne and obsession with all things Xbox, so the potential for disaster is huge.
Needless to say, the grades that prompted the explosion were not A’s. Nor were they B’s. They appear somewhat later in the alphabet, and are usually associated with profanity. Which is exactly the unguarded response that they triggered in the Other Half at the dinner table when we finally learned of their existence.
Parentline, an excellent British parenting resource (which sadly does not have a toll free number for expatriates, but really should have) recommends staying calm in these moments, and maintaining channels of communication with the Tasmanian Devil formerly known as Tom. (They also don’t specifically refer to him by name, but I’m thinking of suggesting it for future advisory publications.) So I took a deep breath, washed it down with a large amount of gin, and reminded him that the longer he took to inform us of these small hiccups in his school transcript, the less able we were to help him resolve the issue, and the fewer choices he would have down the line when he was applying to college. (Excellent Mother Moment, even if I do say so myself).
His response showed the maturity, wisdom and critical thinking skills that can only be gained by an expensive, global, carefully chosen and often privately funded education, which has been our highest priority throughout our expatriate journey. It showed passion, attention to detail and considerable volume. And it took us a little by surprise.
Quite what he felt would happen to those ‘college years’ should he chose not to attend is a mystery. Maybe they give out scholarships for excessive hair growth or ability to sleep for extended periods, without the necessity of attending an institute of Higher Learning? He appears to be under the impression that work and/or college are optional extras only to be attempted as a last resort between editions of Call of Duty, and that living with your parents is a long term life plan.
So I’m off to see the school Career Counselor today. We obviously need to start with the basics. Like ‘Where do Mummy and Daddy go when they leave for the day?’ and ‘How does money work?’
Accompanying Partner, Building a support network, Children, Extracurricular Activities, Family, Friends and Family, Integrating Into a New Culture, Managing the Transition, Parenting, Planning, The Trailing Spouse
There is a code of parenting solidarity, that guides our behavior in those early years. It’s there for a reason – to provide a large group of people who will provide support, comfort, alcohol and surveillance services through your child’s teenage years. For those of you who may not be familiar with this unspoken code, here it is…
Thou shalt not post pictures of home-made birthday cake excellence on Facebook, so that my children spot them and spend the next ten years bringing up my own birthday cake inadequacies.
Thou shalt not point out that your child is walking and talking while mine has spent the last three hours with his hands down his trousers.
When spying my child indulging in antisocial activities in public, thou shalt utter the words “her mother will be very cross when she finds out about that”; implicitly underlining that a) I am the all seeing, attentive parent, and b) I have high behavioral standards. It is irrelevant whether you believe this or not, and extra credit is given for saying it when other parents are present.
When spying my child inappropriately dressed, thou shalt sing out in a helpful tone “Would you like me to call your mother to drop off your sweater / trousers / anything that doesn’t look like a Britney Spears outfit?”, thus communicating to the child that a) she’s busted; b) you are willing to go there; and c) there are eyes everywhere. Extra credit is given for not telling me about inappropriate attire unless there is a repeat occurrence.
When my teenage child makes an inappropriate remark, thou shalt enter into a lengthy and awkward story about your own teenage angst, preferably with reference to kissing. The mental picture of adults ever indulging in such behavior is enough to silence any outburst, and serves as a cruel and unusual punishment which rarely has to be repeated.
When my child comes looking for sympathy about my latest parenting gaffe, thou shalt listen kindly and then retell the story about how said child once had diarrhea next to the deli counter in a crowded supermarket, and until roles are reversed, the balance was still tipped in my favor.
When my child comes looking for support in opposition to the latest parenting policy, thou shalt listen sympathetically, nod furiously, make noises of agreement, and then reiterate policy without the benefit of parent type shrieking. Extra credit is given if child thanks you for being so reasonable and fails to notice that it is the same policy.
When my child leaves home, thou shalt not mention how many times I uttered the words “I can’t wait for them to leave home” and instead hand over tissues and gin to drown my sorrows.
Should my child get married, thou shalt attend the wedding without publicly mentioning the pant fumbling, the diarrhea, the inappropriate clothing or the teenage years. Extra credit is given for having photographic evidence for use in ensuring timely Christmas visits etc.
Catering primarily to those in the military, the United States Automobile Association – USAA – offers many different insurance options and services for those in the service.
Originally founded in 1922, USAA’s services can help to cover everything in your life, whether it’s something long-term or one of your many everyday needs.
Find one of their many different insurance options for life, home, automobile and health. In addition, you can also find banking and financial solutions, retirement options and more.
Best of all, joining won’t cost you a penny, and many of their services can get you USAA discounts on other things in your life.