SCADA and Automation Engineer - Technical Director

WSP is currently initiating a search for a SCADA and Automation Engineer – Technical Director for our Boise ID office. Candidates for our offices in Clarkston WA, Portland OR, San Diego CA, Denver CO, Salt Lake City UT, and Ft Lauderdale FL will also be considered.  Be involved in projects with our Electrical Studies, SCADA, and Protection (ESSP) and be a part of a growing organization that meets our clients' objectives and solves their challenges.  

This Opportunity 

The successful applicant will be responsible for successful completion of assigned projects and for maintaining and improving client relationships. Completion of these functions requires technical competence in primary production roles as well as leadership competence in working with clients and mentoring and supervising team members assigned to projects. Assigned projects will include electrical studies for utility and industrial/commercial clients. Systems to be analyzed will include conventional and renewable generation facilities, substations, and transmission and distribution systems.  

The level of this engineer requires an individual who has experience participating in the proposal writing process as well as enjoying customer contact to assist in developing new opportunities for WSP. This person must be able to independently manage with a strong conceptualization ability, strong interpersonal communication, and organizational skills including the capability to explain complex technical issues at a variety of levels to decision-makers and project teams.  

Your Impact  

Candidates for this role will have familiarity, experience, or possibly even expertise with some of the items listed below. However, we are realistic in our expectations of your professional experience, and do not expect you to have expertise or experience in all of these areas. A willingness to learn in areas where you do not have experience and to teach others in areas where you do have experience is essential to being successful on our team. 

• Provides subject matter technical support and leadership design, engineering, and commissioning of utility, industrial, and commercial scale projects in the public and private sector. Tasks include specification, design, concept development, and commissioning of transmission and distribution substations, power distribution, power regulation, renewable energy, as well as protection and control systems for a wide variety of clients.  Provides guidance to project managers and engineers that address current and future project challenges. Provides a level of project quality that meets or exceeds acceptable industry standards for design, safety, and functionality.

• Leadership: Coordinate, review and approve electrical infrastructure design plans for mid-level and complex projects, ensuring data integrity and work is compliant with all applicable codes, ordinances, and regulations.
• Data Acquisition: Prepare points lists of all data to be transferred between control centers and controlled apparatus, assign and program data addressing and routing information, develop Human Machine Interface (HMI) screens, travel to project sites to test and commission data transfer schemes.
• Networking: Design and configure network and communication paths for Remote Terminal Units (RTUs), Data Concentrators, Intelligent Electronic Devices (IEDs), Human Machine Interface (HMIs), and other SCADA system equipment inside the substation or facility.
• Communications: Specify and design communication networks including data security and availability. Develop basic specifications for fiber optic, microwave, power line carrier, or radio communication paths; infrequent travel to project sites to troubleshoot and commission network and communication systems. 
• Working knowledge or awareness of applicable industry SCADA practices outlined in IEEE, IEC, ANSI, CIGRE, or NERC standards and regulations for design work.  
• Applicable network and communication protocols: 
  • DNP, Modbus, and IEC 61850 specified protocols 
  • Experience with legacy SCADA protocols a plus
• Applicable Logic and Control Platforms: 
  • SEL RTAC, NovaTech Orion, Eaton SMP 
• Applicable Software: 
  • Wonderware, AcSELerator RTAC, NovaTech NCD/Inkscape
  • IEC 61850 System Configuration Tool experience a plus
  • Familiarity with SCADA/EMS/ADMS software a plus
• Logic and Control Systems: develop, document, and implement logic and control schemes for remote and local operation of power system equipment (Microgrid, Volt/Var Control, Load Shedding, Distribution Automation, and other custom logic); develop programs on various platforms for implementation of these schemes; travel to project sites to test and commission the control schemes. 
• Exercise responsible and ethical decision-making regarding company funds, resources, and conduct, and adhere to WSP’s Code of Conduct and related policies and procedures. 
• Perform additional responsibilities as required by business needs. 

Who You Are 

Required Qualifications 

• Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering (or equivalent experience).
• 12+ years of relevant post education experience as an electrical engineer providing design deliverables for SCADA projects in power generation, transmission, and distribution at a utility, industrial, or commercial scale.
• Engineer license required (multi-state preferred). 
• Advanced proficiency with electrical engineering principles, practices, process, design/build, standard of care, and the application to permitting and project work-related issues. 
• Works independently and provides guidance and leadership to mid-level to senior level team or project members, with strict adherence to QA/QC. 
• Excellent leadership and interpersonal communication skills with the ability to effectively, persuasively, and tactfully interact with employees at all levels of the organization. 
• Tactical lateral thinking and strong analytical skills with attention to detail and prioritization of responsibilities in a pressure work environment. 
• Must be flexible to a variety of schedules to meet business needs and able to prioritize responsibilities and quickly adapt to change.
• Occasional travel may be required depending on project-specific requirements.
• Proven track record of upholding workplace safety and ability to abide by WSP’s health, safety and drug/alcohol and harassment policies. 

Preferred Qualifications: 

• Master’s Degree in Engineering.  
• Strong experience in managing the review and approval of documents and discipline-specific deliverables, certifications, processes, and plans in a multi-project environment is highly desirable. 
• Professional Engineering (PE) license or equivalent
• Preference will be given to applicants with a proven history of completing similar projects in a consulting environment
• Preference is also given to applicants with experience in mentoring others and in providing technical and commercial leadership in customer-focused engineering projects
• Preference is also given to applicants with experience in customer focused engineering projects in the technical areas above   

Disclaimer: 
 • Relocation assistance is not available for this position. 

Expected Salary: $147,200yr to $267,700yr

WSP USA is providing the compensation range that the company in good faith believes it might pay and offer for this position, based on the successful applicant’s education, experience, knowledge, skills, abilities in addition to internal equity and specific geographic location, WSP USA reserves the right to ultimately pay more or less than the posted range and offer additional benefits and other compensation, depending on circumstances not related to an applicant’s sex or other status protected by local, state, and/or federal law

WSP Benefits:  

WSP provides a comprehensive suite of benefits focused on providing health and financial stability throughout the employee’s career. These benefits include coverage related to medical, dental, vision, disability, and life; retirement savings; paid sick leave; paid vacation (or other personal time); paid parental leave; and paid time off for purposes of bereavement, voting, and/or attendance at naturalization proceedings.  

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