Engineer - Senior, Senior II or Engineer II- Modeling

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

Overview

The Engineer is responsible to the assigned supervisor for primarily performing the modeling of the SPP electrical transmission system for engineering analyses supporting the Integrated Transmission Planning process, Tariff Studies, North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) model build requirements and processes, and/or NERC compliance models as well as coordination and completion of any special studies for Southwest Power Pool Inc.

The  Engineer will support the overall objectives, critical issues, new concepts, policy matters, and any other relevant issues to the planning model building process, including the development of new planning techniques, process improvements and engineering measurements. The Senior Engineer is responsible for coordinating many aspects of the SPP transmission planning models to ensure that the grid remains reliable, robust and able to meet many possible futures.

The position requires frequent interaction with SPP staff, stakeholders and regulators requiring the incumbent to be able to communicate effectively. This communication, both written and oral, is for the purposes of requests, analysis, coordination, guidance, and presentations. This position also requires advanced leadership skills and the ability to mentor other staff members. Leadership activities may include involvement with working groups, active involvement with multiple Engineering efforts, representing System Planning Modeling inside and outside of the Engineering department, and reviewing and approving work efforts of team members.

Essential Functions

Engineering Concepts and Tools:

• Have a advanced understanding and develop expertise with the SPP power system analysis tools and processes
  • PSSE (Power Flow, etc.)
• Have a basic understanding and develop advanced knowledge of the following SPP power system analysis tools and processes
  • PSSE (Dynamic Simulations)
  • DSA Tools (PSAT, VSAT, TSAT, and SSAT)
  • PowerGEM (TARA )
  • PROMOD (Market Analysis Software)
• Advanced knowledge of Windows Programs (WORD, EXCEL, Power Point, and Access)
• Develop strong understanding for database concepts and structures
• Develop strong expertise with the SPP power system analysis tools, models, and processes
• Develop automation (i.e. Python code, etc.) to perform data extractions, comparisons, or calculations from PSSE cases to modify the data and create reports

Engineering Responsibilities:

• As directed by the Manager, supervisor or lead engineer, enthusiastically complete the modeling assignments and specific assignments directed by ad hoc stakeholder/committees, Integrated Transmission Planning processes, Tariff Studies, North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) model build requirements and processes and/or any engineering data coordination efforts
• Responsible for the development, use, and instruction of the System Planning Modeling tools and software such as PSS/E, Engineering Data Submission Tool (EDST), Model on Demand (MOD) and Microsoft Office
• Responsible for the technical content that is contained in model build manuals, procedures, and quality assurance checks
• Will work with other ISOs, RTOs and other Planning Authorities to coordinate the transmission system model build processes

Governing Processes:

• Detailed understanding of specific governing documents and processes will be required depending on specific support needs