Nikolaos Tsairas

Technical director, Hill International, Inc

Expertise

Construction, Project Management

Location

Greece

My highlights

Becoming a Chartered Engineer with the ICE (CEng MICE)

Becoming the ICE country representative for Greece

Obtaining an executive MBA

A day in my life

I start my day by communicating with my team about the jobs we have planned.

My team is responsible for making sure all the facilities at Thessaloniki Port work properly. This means that the maintenance plan has to run smoothly and without any interruption to daily operations.

My team is monitoring maintenance activities for more than 100 building assets and more than 1.5million m² of port infrastructure.

Ports are logistic hubs – on a daily basis, hundreds of container boxes are transported. As such, it’s critical infrastructure that has to be in a good state, from railway lines to cranes, and from pavements and buildings to equipment at quay walls securing vessels.

A world without civil engineering is not planet Earth as we know it.

Which individual project or person inspired you to become a civil engineer?

My father was my inspiration, he was a surveying engineer and also studied civil engineering.

I admired the way he loved the profession and the fact that during Christmas gatherings, he was always on the phone giving instructions to ensure that the main roads were open to traffic during snowfalls and severe weather. He was the maintenance director, working for the Hellenic government.

He passed away at the age of 67, five years into retirement.

We asked Nikolaos…

I would recommend a career in civil engineering because…

It gives you the opportunity to shape the world, literally.

From the water we drink at home and the house we live in, to the roads we travel on, the airport we fly from and to, the port we use during the summer, the bridges we cross as pedestrians or motorists, and so on. Civil engineering is visible everywhere.

A world without civil engineering is not planet Earth as we know it.

Complete this phrase: I’m a civil engineer, but I’m also …

A husband of a professional psychologist and a father of two.

What about being a civil engineer gets you out of bed each morning?

Shaping the world. Every day that a project gets closer to completion, you can better see its impact on society.

What’s one great thing that you love about civil engineering that you didn’t know until you started working in the industry?

Civil engineering isn't just construction, concrete and earthworks. It's equally challenging to be involved in the planning stages of a project when designs are under development or when the scope and requirements are being defined.

Which civil engineering project (past or present) do you wish you’d worked on?

The Rio–Antirrio Bridge in south-west Greece, connecting the city of Patras in Peloponnese with mainland Greece.

It's a 2,380m cable-stayed bridge and an iconic project built by Vinci with plenty of technical challenges (the gulf of Patras is among the most seismic areas in Greece with earthquakes reaching more than 6-7 on the Richter magnitude scale).

What motivated you, or is motivating you, to become professionally qualified? 

A desire to excel and be part of a prestigious international family of professionals.

What does being professionally qualified with the ICE mean for your career?  

I'm able to apply for managerial positions such as project manager and associate director. It also gives me the opportunity to work with experienced professionals that are interested in becoming qualified.

What’s the best thing about being professionally qualified with the ICE? 

Global networking. It's amazing how easily you can connect with professionals around the globe by just adding the credentials CEng MICE after your name.

How did the ICE and your employer support you to become professionally qualified? 

The ICE provided a lot of support through its membership department. Especially Dr Donna Surgeoner, Europe’s nembership manager. She gave me all the guidance I needed to achieve CEng MICE status.

What do you value most about being an ICE member? 

Access to a wealth of technical information, as well as getting to know the industry’s problems, issues, innovations and trends.

What’s the biggest/most complex thing you’ve made out of Lego? How long did it take you?

I only recently started playing with Lego with my daughter, and the most complex structure we've made is a high-rise building (at least up to the height of the dining table) with balconies and small terraces for residents to relax. It took us two days.

Any hobbies?

I love basketball and I'm a huge fan of Aris Thessalonikis.

Nikolaos' career path

I hold a BEng (Hons) and MSc in civil engineering and an executive master’s in business administration.

Throughout my career, I’ve worked for:

a highways design consultancy
a major contractor in motorway construction
major contractor for an energy project (gas)
a project management firm involved in a variety of projects from port construction and maintenance to fit-out projects