Obviously the tasks do vary depending on the situation and company the civil engineer is working in. However, here are a few activities and responsibilities that are common for this job role.
The job mainly consists of constructing many different buildings and structures from start to finish. A normal day might involve designing and brand new motorway that serves a specific function. They might have to use their specialist engineering skills to implement a really safe design to minimise accidents.
The location of a civil engineer can change on a daily basis because they may be required to complete projects all over the country or even abroad. Part of their day might be spent coming up with very detailed designs that can be implemented at a later date. If their idea is good enough and fits in with various safety regulations then they might have to put together a proposal for potential investors.
More senior and experienced civil engineers may have to spend a few hours of their day training more junior members on the team or briefing people on the project.
Any project that a civil engineer is involved with will utilise a number of different teams and people along the way. Each team needs to not only deliver the work that they are expected tom, but liaise with the other teams to make sure that the project is on schedule. This is where good communication is key and can either make or break a project.
When a project gets underway, it is likely that there could be a serious of challenges and problems along the way. Therefore, civil engineers need to be determined and have excellent problem solving skills. They may need to figure out what needs to be done in order to enable a project to continue and giving up isn't always an option.
A civil engineer needs to know what equipment and materials to order and make sure that they are delivered before the first day of the project. This is a vital task and requires a high level of industry knowledge in order to be able to know what the best equipment for the job is.
On some days, a civil engineer may need to travel to see a client to discuss how the project is going and identify whether they have a special requirements or wish to make any changes.