Job Description

Lead Projects That Help Protect Communities

At SEM Fire & Rescue, the projects we deliver have a genuine purpose.

For more than 65 years, SEM has designed and manufactured specialised fire and rescue vehicles used by emergency services across Australia and internationally. From frontline firefighting appliances to specialised emergency response vehicles, our work supports the people who protect communities when they need it most.

Based in Ballarat and part of the Australian-owned Varley Group, SEM Fire & Rescue is seeking an experienced Project Manager to lead the successful delivery of the CFA Next Generation Project from project initiation through to customer handover.

This is a hands-on project leadership role where you will coordinate planning, production, engineering, quality, commercial performance and stakeholder engagement to ensure vehicles are delivered safely, efficiently and to the required quality standards.

The Opportunity

As Project Manager, you will take ownership of complex vehicle manufacturing projects and provide clear leadership across the full project lifecycle.

Working closely with manufacturing, engineering, procurement, quality and senior leadership teams, you will ensure project activities remain aligned with contractual requirements, customer expectations and agreed scope, cost, schedule and quality objectives.

You will also serve as a key point of contact for CFA stakeholders, leading project reviews, coordinating inspections and acceptance activities, managing expectations and resolving issues as they arise.

What You'll Be Doing

Your responsibilities will include:

• Leading the end-to-end delivery of CFA vehicle manufacturing projects
• Developing and maintaining project execution plans and schedules
• Monitoring project performance against scope, cost, schedule and quality requirements
• Coordinating resources and production activities to achieve key milestones
• Maintaining project schedules and monitoring critical paths using Smartsheet
• Aligning engineering, procurement, manufacturing and production activities
• Developing project budgets and monitoring expenditure against forecasts
• Managing project financial performance and supporting monthly forecasting
• Leading customer meetings, project reviews and stakeholder communications
• Coordinating customer inspections, acceptance activities and project handover
• Managing engineering change requests and maintaining design-change traceability
• Identifying, evaluating and supporting contract variations
• Maintaining project risk registers and implementing mitigation strategies
• Monitoring quality inspections, non-conformances and corrective actions
• Producing regular project reports and presenting performance to senior management
• Using project data and performance trends to identify improvement opportunities

What You’ll Bring

You will be a capable and commercially aware Project Manager who can bring structure, accountability and clear communication to a complex manufacturing environment.

Ideally, you will have:

• At least five years’ project management experience within manufacturing, engineering or an industrial environment
• Demonstrated experience managing complex projects involving multiple stakeholders
• Strong experience managing project schedules, budgets, forecasts and risks
• Proven customer-facing and stakeholder-management capability
• Experience coordinating multidisciplinary teams across engineering, procurement, quality and production
• Knowledge of contract administration and variation management
• Experience managing engineering or design changes
• Strong reporting, analysis and Microsoft Office capabilities
• Proficiency using Smartsheet or comparable project scheduling systems
• Strong commercial awareness, negotiation and problem-solving skills
• The ability to make sound decisions and maintain momentum under pressure
• A practical, accountable and continuous-improvement mindset

Highly Regarded

The following experience or qualifications would be advantageous:

• Emergency services vehicle manufacturing
• Heavy vehicle, Defence, transport or specialised equipment manufacturing
• Certificate IV or Diploma in Project Management
• A qualification in engineering, business, manufacturing or project management
• Lean Manufacturing or Six Sigma

Why Join SEM Fire & Rescue?

At SEM, you will have the opportunity to apply your project leadership experience to products that serve an important purpose.

We offer:

• A permanent, full-time opportunity based in Ballarat
• The opportunity to lead a significant emergency services vehicle project
• Exposure to specialised and technically complex vehicle manufacturing
• A collaborative environment working across engineering, manufacturing and commercial teams
• Meaningful work supporting emergency services and local communities
• Career development and cross-functional learning opportunities
• Mentoring and development programs
• Employee Assistance Program
• Health and wellbeing initiatives
• Discounted Fitness Passport membership
• The opportunity to contribute to innovative, market-leading projects

Ready to Lead a Project That Matters?

If you are an experienced Project Manager who enjoys bringing people, planning and commercial outcomes together, this is an opportunity to lead a complex manufacturing project with a genuine community impact.

Apply now and help SEM Fire & Rescue deliver the next generation of emergency response vehicles.

SEM Fire & Rescue is an Equal Opportunity Employer and welcomes applications from people of all backgrounds.