Senior Electrical Engineer

Vicinity Energy is North America’s largest provider of district energy solutions, offering low carbon energy to most of the iconic buildings you see in the skylines of Boston, Cambridge, Philadelphia, Baltimore and many other cities in the US. As a member of the communities we serve, all of us at Vicinity understand the critical role we play in reducing the impacts of climate change and being a leader in decarbonization. We are committed to net zero and eliminating our reliance on fossil fuels, but we need the best and the brightest minds on our team to help us reach our goal, not only for us as a company, but for our customers, our communities, and our planet.

Summary

The Senior Electrical Engineer position is responsible for the development, expansion, planning, design, and maintenance and operation specification of plant electrical systems to meet the mission and objectives of Vicinity. The Senior Electrical Engineer will be directly involved in Vicinity’s industry leading steam system electrification efforts.  The position will also have a critical role in execution of all aspects of electric utility interconnection projects, working closely with utilities, internal teams, external consultants, and third-party development partners to facilitate the successful integration of large-scale industrial heat pumps and electric boilers into our plants and onto the electric grid. In addition, this position is responsible for supervising, assigning, prioritizing, and directing the work performed by engineering consultants and contractors. This is a full-time exempt position located at our Corporate HQ in Boston, MA. The Senior Electrical Engineer reports to the Senior Vice President of Engineering.

Responsibilities

• Must be willing to travel locally and regionally up to 25% of the time.
• Responsible for the development of preliminary engineering designs and the details, as necessary.
• Ensures that the design and specification of additions, modifications and replacements to the plant and distribution systems meet company and industry standards.
• Lead and manage multistate electric utility specific interconnection processes from inception to permission to operate, including scheduling, resource allocation, and risk-assessment.
• Responsible for the cost and performance of certain assets on the system which may include reliability analysis and trending of system events and monitoring of equipment condition.
• Responsible for the development, justification, and approval of the project authorizations and for ongoing projects.
• Collaborates with Plant and Distribution Operations to ensure consistency and teamwork.
• Provides technical support and direction to operating areas relative to system priorities, engineering guidelines, and operating decisions during normal and emergency situations.
• Accountable for root-cause analysis, development, and implementation of corrective actions.
• Responsible for the evaluation and selection of technology and equipment for the system.
• Responsible for the development of standards and procedures for design, operation, and maintenance.
• Budget and Cost Management:
• Develop and manage project budgets, including cost estimation, tracking, and reporting.
• Control project costs by monitoring expenses, approving expenditures, and implementing cost-saving measures.
•  Provide accurate and timely project financial reports to management.

Qualifications and Experience

• Requires a BS in Electrical Engineering or relevant work experience.
• Relevant certifications (PMP Certification) or professional qualifications are preferred.
• Minimum of ten years in the technical, operational, or engineering aspects of the electric power industry. 
• Demonstrated critical thinking skills and attention-to-detail. 
• Working experience in the Transmission and Distribution field preferred 
• Working knowledge of standard office computer software (i.e. Microsoft Office Suite, etc.).
• Familiarity with heat pump, electrode boiler and thermal energy storage systems.
• Demonstrated experience interacting with utility staff to drive positive interconnection outcomes.
• Experience with the interconnection processes related to electric utilities and transmission operators.
• Supervisory experience preferred.
• Proven experience as a Project Manager in the electric utility field, with a record of successfully delivering complex projects.
• Proficient in project management software and tools such as Maximo, Microsoft Project, Smartsheet, etc.
• In-depth knowledge of electric utility construction, codes, and regulations.
• Strong leadership and team management skills.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to multitask, prioritize tasks, and manage competing deadlines.
• Attention to detail and strong problem-solving abilities.

Physical Requirements 

• Must submit to a company provided physical and drug screening as part of pre-employment screening process.
• Standing, sitting, climbing stairs, bending, stooping, pushing, pulling, walking on uneven surfaces, and grating, working from elevated platforms, scaffolding or ladders.
• Exposed to temperature extremes, high noise level areas, high pressure steam lines, rotating equipment, and dusty/dirty environment.
• Required to wear PPE such as hard hat, safety glasses, safety shoes, hearing protection.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY POLICY STATEMENT Vicinity North America is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer. It is the policy of the Company to provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, protected veteran or disabled status, or genetic information.