Senior or Engineer II- Operations at Southwest Power Pool in Little Rock, Arkansas

Job Description:

Southwest Power Pool (SPP) is about more than power. We’re about the power of relationships. Our employees have the opportunity to work together to ensure electricity is delivered reliably and affordably to the millions of people living in our service territory. We have been voted one of Arkansas’ Best Places to work by Arkansas Business and we are looking for a member of our team who is passionate about our mission to keep the lights on!

We have a core ideology here at SPP that we stand by: Do the right thing, for the right reason, in the right way.

We believe in supporting our employees through a fantastic benefits package:

• Competitive pay with bonus opportunities


• Excellent insurance package including three great medical plans to choose from, employer-paid short term disability, long term disability, and life insurance


• Relocation assistance


• Flexible working environment for positions that are eligible where employees have the flexibility to work from home and come in where collaborative in person work is needed.


• Fantastic contributions to your retirement through a 401(k) savings plan with employer-match benefits and a defined benefit plan fully funded by SPP

We are seeking a highly skilled Sr. Engineer  or Engineer II  to join our Operations team. As key contributor you will:

Be responsible for ensuring the reliable operation of the world's largest machine. Our primary duty is to facilitate maintenance on the machine without compromising its reliability. However, equipment failures are common, resulting in equipment overloads and quick actions to prevent damage to the power system.

We use powerful simulation tools to predict how system conditions will change when specific equipment is added or removed from the power system. We communicate these simulation results to other operators, such as generator operators, transmission operators, reliability coordinators, and Balancing Coordinators, to work together to prevent catastrophic events. Although we have several safeguards in place, the risk of a catastrophe is always present. Neglecting responsibilities or complacency can lead to large amounts of money being wasted, millions of dollars in equipment damage, or even a blackout of portions of the U.S. power system.

This job requires quick thinking to solve problems as they arise to maintain reliability. Although it can be stressful during certain situations, it can also be highly rewarding. 

Your key ongoing responsibilities will include:

• Monitoring, supporting, and improving the applications used by Reliability, Tariff, Scheduling, Balancing, and Market Operators. Ensure all systems and processes use correct input data and produce correct and accurate results for Operators to base their decisions.


• Identify needed ICCP data to maintain superior real-time monitoring and state estimator results.


• Work with Members to obtain all necessary Reliability and Market related changes as they pertain to the operational models used in EMS.


• Assist in testing and implementing necessary software changes as requested or applicable for Operations based applications such as EMS, ICCP, and MOS.


• Support in analyzing any normal/abnormal events and make recommended changes to processes/software.


• Support, develop, and improve Operations applications such as Real Time Contingency Analysis, Load Forecast application, Market Flow calculator, Market System, Constraint Manager.


• Research, document and report issues reported by SPP Staff, SPP Members, non-Members, and Market Participants related to results of any of the systems used by the Reliability, Tariff, Market and Scheduling desks

• Request and collect information, prepare and validate data, execute computer runs for current, next-day, and other operational assessments of the transmission network including, but not limited to, reliability analysis and market feasibility analysis.


• Collect information, prepare and validate data, execute computer runs for coordination and approval of generation and transmission maintenance outage requests, especially emergency and forced outage requests.


• Develop and periodically update SPP network model data as necessary for near-real time analysis.


• Make recommendations to management on long-range coordinated operations goals and objectives.


• Adhere to and enforce SPP Policies and Procedures.


• Communicate with SPP members, non-members, consultants, and other various participants concerning applicable and appropriate activities occurring in the SPP Coordination Center.


• Assist the Director, Operations Engineering and other Operations Engineers with any special projects.


• Coach other Engineers in the Real-Time Technical Analysis and Support group helping them understand all responsibilities of that function and helping them develop their skills and expertise.

• Coordination with Operations Quality Assurance group in developing training scenarios and documentation for operations personnel.


• Develop and test of existing and new Operation Situational Awareness tools. 


• Apprise appropriate Training and Operations personnel of process and procedure changes as they occur and coordinate with Training personnel to ensure appropriate training is administered in a timely fashion.


• Serve as a SME for the processes and procedures related to the shift engineer position.


• Serve as a mentor and provide leadership to other operations engineers.

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Qualifications

Education Requirements:

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  Bachelor of Science in Engineering, this degree should:

  
  
  • Be from a university that meets the requirements to sit for the Professional Engineering exam (in Arkansas, that is most typically a degree from an ABET accredited university or a graduate degree from a college that has an ABET accreditation),
  
  
  • Degree should be in a calculus-based engineering field and preferred degree programs are Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or Systems Engineering
  
  
  
  

Experience Requirements:

• Senior – Five (5) years of job-related work experience; Professional Engineer License may satisfy one year of experience requirement.


• Level II – Two (2) years of job-related work experience

Professional Certification Requirements:

• NERC Reliability Coordinator Certification and NERC PER-005 desk qualified, or the ability to secure such certification and qualification within six (6) months of employment.

Other Requirements:

• Strong inter-personal and team work skills


• Excellent written and verbal communication skills


• Competent skills with communication and data handling software programs such as Microsoft Office© Word, Excel, Access


• Understanding of and compliance with SPP Policies and Procedures

Preferred:

• Professional Engineer Certification (PE) strongly preferred


• Experience with power flow software packages, ATC calculations, stability analysis, and knowledge of power markets


• Advanced degree in related field of study


• Electric Utility Industry experience

Work Environment:

This job operates in a professional office environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets and fax machines.

Physical Demands:

The physical and mental demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to perform the essential functions of this job successfully.

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to make decisions, interpret data, and problem solve.


• The employee frequently is required to stand or sit for extended periods; use hands to operate a computer keyboard and standard office equipment.


• The employee must occasionally lift and move up to 10 pounds.


• Requires the ability to work and collaborate with managers and employees at all levels to exchange ideas, information, and opinions to facilitate the task.


• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, and ability to adjust focus.

Position Type and Expected Hours of Work:

This is a full-time position. Working extended hours may be required.

Travel Requirement:

This position requires minimal travel (approximately 0-10%)

Should you elect to apply for this position SPP will review your qualifications. If after reviewing the qualifications and experience of all applicants, your skills and credentials meet our needs, someone from our organization may contact you. Please be advised that the time required to complete the applicant review process typically takes between 30 and 90 days, but could extend beyond that. Once the position has been filled, all applicants will be notified via email. 

 Southwest Power Pool is an Equal Opportunity Workplace and an Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, age or any other protected category.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) defines “reasonable accommodation” as a change or adjustment to a job or work environment that allows a qualified individual with a disability to satisfactorily perform the essential functions of a particular job, and does not cause an undue hardship for the employer.  SPP adheres to the ADA and reasonable accommodations may be made to enable a qualified individual with a disability to perform the essential functions.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities

The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)

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