Network Engineer

Middle River Power•Chicago, IL

4d•Onsite

About The Position

Middle River Power (MRP) is seeking an experienced, hands-on Network Engineer to design, maintain, and secure network infrastructure for its Chicago corporate office and portfolio of power generation and battery storage facilities across the United States. The role partners with IT, Operations, plant personnel, and external service providers to ensure reliable connectivity, network security, and standardized infrastructure. Primary facility support will be in the Midwest and East Coast, with additional support for West Coast operations as needed. The position reports to the Director of Information Technology. The Network Engineer administers and troubleshoots corporate and plant networks, supports network security and compliance, develops standardized network designs, and coordinates equipment deployments and infrastructure projects. The role also supports onboarding newly acquired facilities, maintains network documentation, and coordinates changes with Operations and plant leadership in accordance with safety, operational, and change management requirements. The position is based in MRP’s Chicago corporate office and requires approximately 30–40% travel to power generation and battery storage facilities. Travel may increase during site onboarding, infrastructure upgrades, or network cutovers. Standard business hours apply, with occasional after-hours support, on-call responsibilities, and scheduled maintenance windows. Plant visits may require PPE and safety training and may involve industrial or outdoor environments.

Requirements

5–7 years of hands-on network engineering experience, preferably supporting multiple locations or distributed infrastructure.
Strong experience with next-generation firewalls; Fortinet (FortiGate, FortiManager, FortiAnalyzer) is preferred, and Palo Alto or Cisco experience is also considered.
Proficiency in routing, switching, VLANs, OSPF/BGP, VPNs, NAT, DHCP/DNS, and wireless networking.
Experience implementing network segmentation, firewall policies, and secure remote access solutions.
Working knowledge of network monitoring, logging, troubleshooting, and configuration management tools.
Strong technical documentation, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
Ability to collaborate with technical and nontechnical stakeholders and manage competing priorities.
Willingness to travel regularly to plant facilities and work safely in industrial environments.
Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience.

Nice To Haves

Experience supporting industrial or operational technology (OT) networks, including SCADA, DCS, PLC, or historian environments.
Background in power generation, utilities, energy, or similar critical infrastructure industries.
Familiarity with NERC CIP, IEC 62443, and Purdue Model network architecture.
Fortinet NSE certification (NSE 4 or higher), CCNA, or CCNP.
Experience with FortiSwitch, FortiAP, FortiPAM, and Cisco-to-Fortinet migrations.
Exposure to Microsoft Azure networking, Microsoft 365, and Entra ID.
Experience integrating networks following acquisitions or supporting multi-site infrastructure expansion.
Familiarity with scripting or network automation using Python or PowerShell.

Responsibilities

Administer, monitor, and troubleshoot corporate and plant networks, including firewalls, switches, wireless infrastructure, routing, VPNs, and WAN connectivity.
Serve as an escalation point for network-related issues, including after-hours support and scheduled maintenance.
Manage network connectivity providers, troubleshoot service interruptions, and maintain remote connectivity between plant facilities and control locations.
Monitor network performance, identify improvement opportunities, and support infrastructure reliability across multiple locations.
Maintain firewall configurations, network segmentation, and secure remote access across corporate, plant, vendor, and external networks.
Implement and support IT/OT network segmentation using VLANs, security zones, and the Purdue Model.
Administer privileged and vendor remote access, including access reviews and restrictions.
Support vulnerability remediation, firmware updates, security assessments, and applicable NERC CIP Low Impact compliance requirements.
Develop and implement standardized network designs across facilities, including firewall redundancy, connectivity diversity, and hardware configurations.
Support transition from legacy network infrastructure, including Cisco equipment, to a standardized Fortinet environment.
Configure, test, and deploy network equipment, coordinating installations and cutovers around approved maintenance windows.
Lead network onboarding and integration for newly acquired facilities and support IT modernization initiatives.
Partner with Operations and plant leadership to coordinate network changes in accordance with site safety procedures, operational requirements, and change management processes.
Collaborate with managed service providers, equipment vendors, and internal stakeholders to resolve issues and deliver projects.
Maintain network diagrams, device inventories, configuration backups, port maps, and change documentation.
Ensure network infrastructure supports business continuity, operational reliability, and long-term organizational growth.