USAID Iraq contract award sparks massive interest in the UK

The Capital Construction Contract is by far the largest to be handed out by USAID as part of the planned reconstruction process; it covers the infrastructure repair work on power generation facilities, electrical grids, municipal water systems and sewage systems.

As conditions in Iraq begin to stabilize, the project will need to mobilize staff quickly from all over the world. EPCglobal, the staffing solutions company, is preparing to meet the upcoming demand for contractors and staff from the UK.

The company uses web-based technology to manage one of the largest engineering staff networks in the world, with over 1,400 contractors currently on assignment. EPCjobs.co.uk, their web based recruitment solution has been coordinating the influx of applications and enquiries resulting from the massive interest in Iraq from British E&C professionals. $5m was invested in the web based recruitment tool and the Iraq project represents a unique opportunity to demonstrate the value of the system and showcase its capabilities.

Tim O'Brien, UK Managing Director of EPCglobal, believes that EPCjobs will prove itself ideally placed to co-ordinate the growing interest in Iraq from professional engineers across the UK.

'With this amount of work in the pipeline, the system will be invaluable to aid in the sourcing and deployment of the hundreds of UK based contract staff potentially required by the projects,' he says.

'At the moment we are focused on compiling a pool of interested candidates. These will be instantly accessible to hiring managers when the vacancies become live.'

EPCjobs is openly available to companies and projects in the UK and abroad. Candidates can register their details online and gain instant access to potential vacancies in Iraq and on other projects across the world. Hiring companies can also register to gain direct access to the thousands of engineers already registered with the site. Unlike other online recruitment tools, EPCjobs deals exclusively in engineering and construction, so whilst its reach is international it retains a very specific focus and understands the technical requirements of clients and contractors in detail.