Department: Technical

Employment Type: Contract / Temp

Location: Africa

Reporting To: Project Lead – Bulk Materials Strategy

Description Allied Talent Partners (ATP), a Three Cairns Group initiative, is a mission-driven, not-for-profit talent marketplace focused on solving the human capital bottlenecks slowing down sustainable development efforts in emerging economies, with an initial focus on Africa. ATP connects vetted, experienced, context-relevant professionals to high-impact opportunities in energy access and sustainable development – strengthening local capacity and fuelling economic vitality. We specialize in fixed-term, deliverable-driven engagements – from interim leadership and generalist projects to niche technical expertise – handling project scoping, talent vetting and matching, contracting, payroll, and compliance so that our clients can focus on impact.

High-Level Overview Our client is an international organisation developing a regional strategy to support the decarbonisation of bulk materials used across the built environment – specifically cement, steel, and construction chemicals. The strategy requires strong engineering credibility, robust process-level analysis, and realistic assessments of industrial constraints and opportunities across emerging markets.

The client is seeking a Senior Technical Advisor (STA) to serve as the technical lead for the assessment and decarbonisation of these three sectors. The STA will review, validate, and elevate sector analyses produced by a Research & Coordination Analyst (RCA), beginning with a near-complete cement baseline, followed by steel and chemicals. The STA ensures that technical assumptions, emissions profiles, materials flows, and process descriptions are scientifically accurate, industry-grounded, and aligned with feasible pathways for decarbonisation.

This role focuses on high-value senior expertise: interpreting LCAs, reviewing production routes, shaping decarbonisation pathways, validating assumptions with targeted expert interviews, and producing engineering-quality inputs for the final strategy. It does not include administrative work or first-pass research.

Role and Responsibilities

Role: Senior Technical Advisor – Bulk Materials Decarbonisation StrategyDirect Report: Project Lead – Bulk Materials Strategy

Candidates Required: 1

Key Deliverables

• Technical Strengthening & Review (Primary Responsibility)
• Conduct deep review of all baseline research developed by the Research & Coordination Analyst (RCA).
• Correct, refine, and elevate sector assessments for cement, steel, and construction chemicals.
• Ensure datasets, factsheets, and sector profiles are accurate, representative, and triangulated.
• Provide explicit quality control and manage all technical assumptions.
• Identify and flag analytical gaps, inconsistencies, or misinterpretations.
• Sector Engineering & Material Science Analysis
• Develop engineering descriptions of production processes for cement kilns, EAF/BOF steelmaking, and bulk chemical production.
• Provide detailed costing data including material cost structures, OPEX, energy intensity, fuel switching, substitution options, and efficiency levers.
• Prepare high-level cost curves and marginal abatement insights where appropriate.
• Develop emissions baselines and identify key drivers of carbon intensity and abatement potential.
• Map material flows and identify substitution opportunities.
• Standards, Codes & Testing Systems
• Analyse building codes, materials standards, and testing protocols relevant to cementitious materials, aggregates, rebar, structural steel, and chemical admixtures.
• Identify technical bottlenecks and propose realistic reform opportunities.
• Evaluate testing laboratory capability, certification systems, and institutional readiness.
• Stakeholder Engagement & Validation (Capped Time Allocation)
• Conduct 5-10 targeted interviews per sector (cement, steel, construction chemicals), each capped at 30 minutes.
• Conduct an additional 4-6 validation interviews for emerging or final strategy insights.
• Coordinate closely with the RCA to ensure all logistics and note-taking are delegated.
• Use interviews exclusively to validate assumptions-not to gather raw data.
• Pathway Development & Scenario Analysis
• Develop realistic, technically grounded decarbonisation pathways for cement, steel, and chemical sectors.
• Identify enabling conditions across energy, transport, skills, testing capacity, and policy.
• Provide inputs into feasible 0-2 year and 2-5 year implementation scenarios
• Technical Documentation & Steering Support
• Produce engineering notes, costing tables, technical annexes, and supporting materials.
• Support preparation of Steering Committee briefing materials.
• Attend remote review meetings and provide written clarifications as required.

Requirements Experience Required:

• Minimum 15 years’ experience in cement, steel, chemicals, construction materials, industrial engineering, or materials science.
• Advanced Materials & Industrial Engineering Expertise – Strong understanding of industrial production routes, material flows, and decarbonisation levers for cement, steel, and chemicals; ability to interpret lifecycle assessments (LCAs) and validate assumptions across multiple process pathways.
• Standards, Codes & Testing Systems – Experience assessing building codes, materials standards, testing laboratories, and certification regimes.
• Costing, Emissions & Abatement Analysis – Ability to generate high-level costing inputs, emissions baselines, and credible abatement insights for scenario development.
• Analytical Review & Quality Control – Demonstrated experience reviewing and elevating the work of junior analysts; ensuring analytical rigor without performing first-pass research

Technical Requirements

• Advanced degree in Materials Science, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or related field
• Familiarity with LCA principles, emissions modelling, and energy/material flow analysis
• Ability to produce engineering-grade documentation, annexes, and technical notes
• Strong capacity for data interpretation and technical validation

Other Skills

• Strong analytical judgement and attention to detail
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to translate complex engineering concepts clearly
• Ability to understand regulatory, institutional, and political economy dynamics and apply insights across multiple geographies
• High reliability and responsiveness during project-critical periods
• Collaborative, professional approach to interacting with multidisciplinary team
• Experience supporting industrial decarbonisation in Africa or other emerging markets.

Working Arrangement Location: Fully remoteTravel: None anticipated

Terms Of Agreement Start Date: January 2026Contracting Period: ~50–60 days over 4 months, with optional 1-month extensi

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