Senior EPC Physical Substation Engineer

Leidos

1d•$87,100 - $157,450

About The Position

Leidos Energy’s EPC Solutions group, part of Electric Transmission and Substation Solutions, is seeking a Senior Substation Physical Engineer to lead physical design for transmission and distribution substations serving electric utility clients nationwide. The role owns outdoor substation physical design—including yard layout, grounding, station service, cabling, and design for substations up to 500kV and 765kV—from concept through construction support. The engineer works closely with construction and procurement teams to deliver efficient, constructible designs and identify lower-cost solutions. The position develops and reviews physical design packages and calculations, coordinates integrated designs with other engineering disciplines, and prepares drawings, reports, material take-offs, and construction documentation. It also supports proposals, quality reviews, procurement, construction, commissioning, and field execution. The engineer contributes to design standards and process improvements, maintains project records, and supports team development through technical presentations and knowledge-sharing. Leidos describes a dynamic, collaborative culture with career development opportunities, including support for PMP certification and PE licensure, formal mentorship, leadership training, technical upskilling, and management opportunities. Flexible work arrangements and support for employee well-being are also mentioned.

Requirements

Bachelor’s or master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from an accredited university.
At least 4 years of relevant utility substation physical design experience with a bachelor’s degree, or at least 3 years with a master’s degree.
Demonstrated experience developing physical design packages for transmission and distribution substations.
Knowledge of outdoor substation equipment and layouts, including transformers, circuit breakers, disconnect switches, instrument transformers, surge arresters, bus systems, steel structures, grounding systems, and associated station equipment.
Experience performing substation physical engineering calculations and applying utility design standards and industry codes.
Familiarity with electric utility infrastructure, substation physical engineering principles, and EPC project execution.
Experience with engineering software and design tools such as AutoCAD, MicroStation, Bentley OpenUtilities, CDEGS, STAAD, MathCAD, or similar industry-standard applications.
Experience supporting turnkey Engineering, Procurement & Construction (EPC) projects for electric utilities.
Strong commitment to quality and producing high-quality engineering deliverables.
Understanding of quality assurance and quality control processes in the power and consulting industry.
Excellent attention to detail and organizational skills.
Ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines in fast-paced project environments.
Strong communication and collaboration skills with multidisciplinary engineering teams.
Proactive problem-solving mindset and focus on constructible, practical engineering solutions.

Nice To Haves

Proficiency with Bentley ProjectWise data management system.
Experience with a 3D design application such as AutoDesk Inventor.
Professional Engineer (PE) license.
Understanding of Protection & Control systems and the interface between physical and P&C design.
Experience supporting greenfield, brownfield, expansion, and retrofit substation projects.
Knowledge of grid-scale battery energy storage technology and applications.
Knowledge of applicable industry standards, including IEEE, NESC, NEC, and utility-specific design practices.

Responsibilities

Lead outdoor physical design for utility transmission and distribution substations on EPC projects.
Develop and review design packages, including equipment layouts, electrical plan and section drawings, grounding plans and details, conduit and cable routing, foundation layouts, steel structure arrangements, bus configurations, and material specifications.
Perform physical engineering calculations, including grounding analysis, conductor sizing, bus and equipment clearances, rigid and strain bus design, structure loading, and foundation requirements.
Identify and recommend cost-saving design alternatives, including optimizing equipment and bus arrangements, reducing yard footprint or construction hours, and adapting designs to procurement lead times or vendor options.
Read, interpret, and develop substation physical drawings, including one-line diagrams, plan and elevation views, equipment and grounding layouts, conduit plans, cable trench layouts, and construction details.
Coordinate with Protection & Control, SCADA, Civil/Structural, Transmission Line, and other engineering disciplines to produce integrated, constructible designs.
Assist senior engineers with engineering studies, site evaluations, constructability reviews, and technical design assessments.
Prepare engineered drawings, design calculations, technical reports, material take-offs, project correspondence, and construction support documentation.
Evaluate cross-discipline impacts of design changes and recommend technically sound, cost-effective solutions.
Perform quality control reviews of physical design deliverables for smaller projects.
Support proposals with drawing counts, scope input, manhour estimates, and technical support for substation physical engineering activities.
Help develop and improve engineering processes, design standards, and best practices.
Maintain organized and accurate project records, calculations, and design files.
Expand technical knowledge of substation physical design, equipment applications, industry standards, and utility practices.
Develop and deliver technical presentations and knowledge-sharing sessions.
Provide engineering support during procurement, construction, commissioning, and field execution, including responding to RFIs, reviewing vendor drawings, and supporting field personnel.
Represent the organization professionally with clients, contractors, and project stakeholders.