Electric Distribution Engineer, Associate

Pacific Gas And Electric Company•San Luis Obispo, CA

3d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Electric Asset Management (EAM) Distribution Planning (DP) team ensures the safe, reliable, and efficient operation of the electric distribution system. This involves providing timely and innovative engineering and technical support for planning, design, construction, and maintenance functions. The EAM DP team is part of the EAM System Planning and Reliability group and is responsible for managing area and equipment capacity, voltage and power factor support, and the reliability of primary electric distribution systems. This is an entry-level position represented by Engineers and Scientists of California (ESC) and is subject to collective bargaining. The role is hybrid, requiring 3 days per week at the assigned work location within the PG&E Service Territory, with the remaining days worked remotely.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering (power systems) from a college/university program accredited by Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology (ABET)

Nice To Haves

Basic Knowledge of power systems
Basic electrical engineering principles and theory
CYME experience
Python Scripting experience

Responsibilities

Submits long-term and short-term reconstruction, capacity, and reliability plan recommendations.
Manages projects within their local area valued at $100,000 or less.
Reviews and recommends job estimates within DPA for capacity and reliability.
Monitors area substation and circuit capabilities and tracks corresponding loads.
Prepares proposals, including justification, for appropriate corrective actions to address deficiencies.
Performs planning studies to correctly model the electric distribution system and works with Mapping to ensure discrepancies are corrected in associated records systems.
Analyzes historical loads and projects future growth.
Prepares long-term and short-term plans to identify and correct area deficiencies.
Prepares draft Preliminary Planning Reviews (PPR’s).
Identifies alternatives to address deficiencies for Project Analysis (PA’s).
Reviews and analyzes area distribution systems and takes appropriate actions to maintain power factor and primary voltage within established standards.
Determines circuit and associated equipment capabilities within the assigned DPA.
Prepares and initiates switching plans to alleviate normal and minimize emergency deficiencies.
Prepares necessary documentation about distribution needs for estimating to complete job packages.
Prepares settings for load tap changers and other line equipment.
Reviews requests for new large customer load additions or increases in voltage and recommends actions to correct any deficiencies.
Provides direction and reviews primary designs proposed by estimating to ensure adequate capacity and reliability.
Prepares settings for distribution protective devices.
Performs circuit protection reviews and makes recommendations for corrections.
Determines protection requirements for rule 20, WRO projects, and other major distribution projects that could impact the existing protective scheme.
Prepares settings for Distribution Automation (DA) devices affecting distribution protection, voltage, or emergency switching.
Initiates service dependability solutions and actively participates in local reliability/root cause meetings.
Works closely with construction to prioritize outage prevention work within DPA.
Addresses customer complaints (Help Tickets) for recurring outages as assigned.
Prepares initial responses for CPUC complaints for recurring outages.
Supports local DO’s, DEC, construction, or storm room in emergency restoration efforts as required.
Provides technical assistance for customer voltage complaints caused by primary voltage problems.
When requested, addresses customer EMF requests involving distribution facilities as assigned.
Assists E&M and OM&C personnel to address customer voltage complaints caused by secondary voltage problems.
Supports estimating, construction, and other departments as required.
Reviews, modifies, and recommends switching clearances for feeders, banks, and stations as requested by DO’s.
Reviews switching arrangements, equipment settings, voltage levels, power factor needs, etc., to ensure the distribution system is operated in the most efficient manner.
Prepares EASOP (economic analysis) for projects in DPA.
Prepares other engineering analysis as assigned.
Provides supervisor on-call support as required.
Maintains equipment records as assigned.