Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Software Packages
Membership
Personal Information
Attributes
Hobbies and Interests
Training
Timeline
Generic

Douglas Chipungu

Summary

Results-driven Project & Maintenance Head with over a decade of experience managing large-scale industrial projects across manufacturing, food processing, and agribusiness. Expertise in CAPEX/OPEX budgeting, contract management, and strategic infrastructure development. Proven track record of delivering multimillion-dollar projects on time, within budget, and to the highest quality and safety standards

Overview

12
12
years of professional experience

Work History

Group Head - Projects & Maintenance

Zambeef Products
09.2023 - Current
  • Develop and implement the group-wide strategy for projects and maintenance
  • Align infrastructure development and maintenance with business goals
  • Set policies and procedures to standardize project execution and maintenance practices
  • Plan, budget, and oversee capital projects from concept to completion
  • Ensure projects are delivered on time, within budget, and meet quality standards
  • Manage stakeholder engagement, approvals, and compliance with regulations
  • Develop and oversee preventive and corrective maintenance programs
  • Ensure asset reliability, efficiency, and longevity
  • Implement best practices and new technologies to optimize maintenance
  • Develop annual CAPEX and OPEX budgets for projects and maintenance
  • Monitor costs, ensure financial control, and drive cost savings
  • Optimize resource allocation for maximum efficiency
  • Ensure compliance with safety, environmental, and regulatory requirements
  • Manage risks related to infrastructure, maintenance, and project execution
  • Oversee audits and inspections to maintain high standards
  • Lead a team of project managers, engineers, and maintenance personnel
  • Provide guidance, training, and performance management
  • Foster a culture of safety, innovation, and continuous improvement
  • Collaborate with internal stakeholders, including operations, finance, and procurement
  • Manage contracts, service providers, and suppliers
  • Negotiate agreements to ensure value-for-money and service quality
  • Successfully project and contract managed the construction of a $10,000,000 150-ton/hour flour mill plant, ensuring timely completion, budget adherence, and compliance with quality and safety standards
  • Successfully project and contract managed the construction of a $3,000,000 600Kg Cheese Plant, ensuring timely completion, budget adherence, and compliance with quality and safety standards
  • Successfully project and contract managed the construction of a $6,00,000 600,000 chick/week Hatchery, ensuring timely completion, budget adherence, and compliance with quality and safety standards

Group Projects Manager

Zambeef Products
03.2023 - 09.2023
  • Responsible for the development of comprehensive project plans and tracking of progress
  • Responsible for the management of all aspects of project life cycle from the concept phase, through feasibility studies, detail design, execution, and commissioning
  • Managing of multi-disciplinary design teams and consultants
  • Financial management of projects, administration and reporting
  • Responsible for quality control during construction
  • Certifying of completed work, preparing valuations and cost reporting
  • Adjudicating and resolving contractual claims and matters
  • Coordinate internal resources and third parties/vendors for the flawless execution of projects
  • Ensure that all projects are delivered on-time, within scope and within budget
  • Responsible for ensuring timeous resource availability and allocation
  • Manage changes in the project scope, schedule and costs
  • Responsible for the measurement and communication of project performance
  • Manage the relationship with the client and all stakeholders
  • Ensure the performance of risk management to minimize project risks
  • Establish and maintain relationships with third parties/vendors
  • Keeping an update on compliance regulations
  • Responsible for the creation and updating of project scope for complex individual projects
  • Confirms all regulatory requirements & processes for all projects; e.g
  • Regulators review cycles
  • Set up a Project Management Office
  • Successfully project and contract managed the construction of a 400,000 capacity environmentally controlled poultry site, ensuring timely completion, budget adherence, and compliance with quality and safety standards

Capital Projects Coordinator

Zambia Sugar Plc
12.2022 - 03.2023
  • Oversee Implementation of capital projects assigned and managed by the Enterprise Projects Management Office to the agreed scope, until signed off and accepted by defined customers
  • Ensure the capital Costrac system is administrated to agreed standards and is updated as per agreed timelines
  • Ensure overall capital cash flow is aligned to capital financial year, as per agreed cash flow plan with Group capital projects
  • Manage the working capital budget, for the department, ensuring it is agreed, approved and relevant to the business
  • Liaise with group head office on approval for larger projects (≥ £100,000)
  • Manage the completion of assigned capital projects, providing guidance/assistance in implementation through project meetings with team, stakeholders and customers
  • Ensure that all contractors meet the agreed service level agreements and Zambia Sugar standards for all assigned projects
  • Evaluate the implementation of the BOQ and work standards of all assigned projects against the defined scopes and contracts
  • Facilitate the Risk Mitigation process for each project
  • Facilitate the development and updates of the enterprise capital five year plan with all business stakeholders
  • Drive and oversee assigned projects to be completed within the approved time, budget, quality and safety requirements
  • Implement and amend the capital policy and procedures at Zambia Sugar as needed
  • Ensure adequate resourcing for specialized skills if required
  • Successfully Implemented the 5 year strategic plan

Enterprise Projects Engineer

Zambia Sugar Plc
03.2020 - 12.2022
  • Deliver projects to schedule and within the project timeline and budget
  • Enforce SHERQ compliance, ensuring project safety files are in place and in line with Zambia Sugar SHE guidelines
  • Scope projects to inform the contractor procurement process
  • Support line functions to develop projects to agreed budget and/or agreed cost flows
  • Submit Costrac applications with the required project sequence documentation in line with the annual capital cycle for core capital projects
  • Complete monthly inputs for each active assigned project ensuring that the financial, risk and planned steps are highlighted along with the actual and revised timeline and cash flows as prescribed in the monthly input
  • Manage contractors to ensure that agreed SLA’s and Zambia Sugar standards are met for all projects
  • Evaluate and sign off the implementation of the BOQ and work standards of all assigned projects as per the defined scopes and contracts
  • Keep up to date with industry and Illovo best practices
  • Promote and adhere to Illovo’s procedures, policies and guidelines, including, without limitation, those relating to SHERQ, Competition Law and Anti-Bribery and Corruption (ABC)
  • Built two satellite molasses depots, increasing molasses sales by 25%
  • Overhauled a 4 MW steam turbine at a cost of $650,000 within 4 months to agreed scope, reducing plant lost time availability by 6%
  • Refurbished a 31 ton per hour boiler at a cost of $1,200,000 within 3 months to agreed scope
  • Built an Irrigation and Pivot maintenance workshop, improving repair turnaround time by 52%
  • Built a refined sugar 1 ton packing plant at a cost of $200,000, increasing refined sugar stock keeping units
  • Phased upgrade of Irrigation Network at a cost of $11,500,000, improving cane yields by 22%
  • Upgrading the site fire system to incorporate sprinklers and smoke detectors, improving response time to potential fires and fire

Projects Engineer - Manufacturing

Zambia Sugar Plc
11.2016 - 03.2020
  • Coordinate all project elements including engineering design, quality planning, manufacturing, installation, commissioning, and final buy-off phases
  • Manage project budgets ($8,000,000 – $14,300,000/Annum) and keeping costs down
  • Plan project requirements and resources, including the sourcing of sub-contract elements
  • Anticipate any potential project risks, identifying and establishing corrective actions
  • Produce deliverables on-time to customer requirements, clarifying these requirements where necessary
  • Participate in Design Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (DFMEAs) and Quality history reviews
  • Track tasks against the project timing plan
  • Assist with design verification and signing off reports
  • Quality control of work by appropriate reviews
  • Prepare reports and present progress at project meetings and to clients
  • Management of KPIs
  • Enforcement of safety in the organization
  • Built two satellite molasses depots, increasing molasses sales by 25%
  • Overhauled a 4 MW steam turbine at a cost of $650,000 within 4 months to agreed scope, reducing plant lost time availability by 6%
  • Refurbished a 31 ton per hour boiler at a cost of $1,200,000 within 3 months to agreed scope
  • Built an Irrigation and Pivot maintenance workshop, improving repair turnaround time by 52%
  • Built a refined sugar 1 ton packing plant at a cost of $200,000, increasing refined sugar stock keeping units
  • Phased upgrade of Irrigation Network at a cost of $11,500,000, improving cane yields by 22%
  • Upgrading the site fire system to incorporate sprinklers and smoke detectors, improving response time to potential fires and fire
  • Designed and installed a sugar reclaim system at a cost of $425,000, saving the organisation $1,300,000 annually
  • Designed and installed a final molasses cooler at a cost of $150,000, saving the organisation $300,000 annually
  • Designed and installed a final molasses debrixing station at a cost of $72,000, enhancing the organisation’s revenue by $200,000 annually
  • Designed and installed a tramp iron separating system, reducing steam boiler downtime by 23%
  • Modified the mud handling system, improving sugar extraction by 2%
  • Designed and installed a sugar dust suppression system, saving the organisation $1,300,000 annually

Maintenance Engineer

Zambia Sugar Plc
09.2013 - 11.2016
  • Administered the maintenance and improvement of numerous mechanical units
  • Planned and managed the maintenance functions
  • Budgeted and managed maintenance activities and capital expenditure
  • Managed day to day shift operations
  • Provided technical support to the project team
  • Was responsible for overseeing the review, initiation and execution of contracts
  • Evaluated tenders and providing recommendations
  • Enforced safety
  • Reduced maintenance LTA from 10% to 5% through effective training and coaching of team members, as well as conducting detailed root cause analysis on problematic equipment
  • Developed effective maintenance plans and introduced KPIs

Graduate Trainee

Total Zambia Limited
05.2013 - 08.2013
  • Fleet Management
  • Co-ordinate explosive goods driver training
  • Logistics business management using SAP and GEOTAB
  • Established a Dashboard system to track transporter safety and legal compliance

Education

Master of Engineering - Construction Management

The University of Zambia
02.2025

MBA -

Herriot Watt University, Edinburgh School of Business
01.2022

Bachelor of Engineering - Mechanical Engineering

The University of Zambia
01.2012

Secondary School Certificate -

Kabulonga School for Boys
01.2005

Primary School Certificate -

Bardie Primary School
01.2000

Skills

  • Planning
  • Project management
  • Design
  • Client liaison
  • Interpreting specifications
  • Preparing technical proposals
  • Multi-tasking
  • Delivering projects on time
  • Delivering projects within budget
  • Ensuring H&S procedures are met
  • Resolving complex technical issues
  • Providing efficient solutions
  • Assessing financial feasibility
  • Impact assessment of budget items

Software Packages

  • Autodesk AutoCAD
  • Autodesk Inventor
  • SolidWorks
  • Abaqus CAE
  • Pipe Stress Analysis
  • Mathlab
  • Microsoft Office
  • Microsoft Project
  • SAP
  • Maximo

Membership

  • Member of The Engineering Institution of Zambia (MEIZ)
  • Member of the Engineers Registration Board (ERB)
  • Member of the Industrial Institute of Engineers (UK)
  • Member of the Project Management Institute (USA)

Personal Information

  • Gender: Male
  • Nationality: Zambian
  • Marital Status: Married

Attributes

  • Able to work with minimum supervision.
  • Able to cope with change, be flexible and handle uncertainty.
  • Able to work well with others and use interpersonal skills to achieve objectives.
  • Good written and oral communication skills.
  • Assertive.
  • Outgoing.
  • Goal orientated.

Hobbies and Interests

  • Chess
  • Tennis
  • Road bikes
  • Reading

Training

  • 2018, FSSC22000 Understanding and Implementing Certificate, SABS
  • 2015, Certificate in Sugar Technology, University of Kwazulu Natal, SMRI
  • 2015, Boiler Awareness Course, John Thompson
  • 2015, Root Cause and Failure Analysis, CCI Growthcon
  • 2015, Advanced Leadership Management, Insight Consulting
  • 2015, Management Development Program, Illovo Sugar
  • 2015, Six Sigma Yellowbelt Certification, CCI Growthcon
  • 2014, Basic Lubrication, British Petroleum Co-operation
  • 2013, Maintenance and Reliability, Associated British Foods
  • 2013, Project Management Fundamentals, SiVEST
  • 2013, Technical Report Writing and Presentation Skills, Kafue Gorge Regional Training Centre

Timeline

Group Head - Projects & Maintenance

Zambeef Products
09.2023 - Current

Group Projects Manager

Zambeef Products
03.2023 - 09.2023

Capital Projects Coordinator

Zambia Sugar Plc
12.2022 - 03.2023

Enterprise Projects Engineer

Zambia Sugar Plc
03.2020 - 12.2022

Projects Engineer - Manufacturing

Zambia Sugar Plc
11.2016 - 03.2020

Maintenance Engineer

Zambia Sugar Plc
09.2013 - 11.2016

Graduate Trainee

Total Zambia Limited
05.2013 - 08.2013

MBA -

Herriot Watt University, Edinburgh School of Business

Bachelor of Engineering - Mechanical Engineering

The University of Zambia

Secondary School Certificate -

Kabulonga School for Boys

Primary School Certificate -

Bardie Primary School

Master of Engineering - Construction Management

The University of Zambia

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Douglas Chipungu