Transmission Outage Coordinator

Naes Corporation•Houston, TX

8d•$119,900 - $137,900

About The Position

Gridforce Energy Management's mission is to ensure power flows consistently and reliably while enhancing our client's profitability and reducing their risk exposure. Since 1999, Gridforce has been providing precision energy control and integration management services to micro-grids, load-serving entities and demand response clients throughout North America. Our employees are constantly iterating, solving problems, and working together to improve the business of our diverse client base from cities, municipalities and electric cooperatives, in addition to generation owners and operators. We offer our employees opportunities for career development and training, providing new and valuable skills and experience. We are located in Houston, Texas -- the second fastest growing city in the nation, with world-class medical, cultural, educational and research institutions and a young, energetic and diverse population. Gridforce is located in the heart of Downtown Houston which provides an energizing and engaging atmosphere where you will love to come to work. Gridforce Energy Management is a NAES Company. Summary The Transmission Outage Coordinator is responsible for assisting the Gridforce System Operators and other members of the Transmission Outage Coordination team with coordinating outages that maintain the reliability of the Bulk Electric System (BES) during planned and unplanned outages. Work with internal and external counterparts to ensure that proper switching procedures are developed for and followed during planned and unplanned outages, including development of individual switching orders, and switching order templates, development and/or maintenance of switching order template libraries, and development of Gridforce Lock Out/Tag Out procedures.

Requirements

Minimum bachelor's degree in electrical engineering or related field, or at least 5 years' experience in transmission operations at the Bulk Electric System level.
Knowledge of system protection and controls including common relay schemes, substation devices, automatic reclosing, and RTU/SCADA equipment
Working knowledge of or experience in power plant operations, I & C technician, substation operations, electrician or equivalent
Position requires competencies in Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, and Outlook)
Familiarity with Energy Management systems and associated support systems
This position requires certification at the NERC Reliability Coordinator and PJM Transmission Operator levels. These certifications may be achieved subsequent to hiring.

Nice To Haves

PJM Generation Operator certification is considered as an additional qualification but not required

Responsibilities

Ensure coordination of outages and switching requests with internal and external parties
Model scheduled outages in the GF EMS Network applications to identify contingencies, overloads, or voltage limit violations on transmission systems
Create, edit, review, and distribute new or updated switching orders and other related switching documents to ensure safe and reliable switching operations
Support GF operators in developing proficiency in writing/reviewing and issuing switching orders
Provide guidance or switching assistance during emergencies and storm related activities including system restoration from widespread outages or blackouts
Provide work direction to field personnel and coordinate with neighboring entities during normal and abnormal conditions for the safe removal and return to service of sections of customers transmission systems in accordance with approved operating and safety procedures (including three-part communications)
Direct and/or perform high voltage switching operations during normal and abnormal conditions, ensuring adherence to safety and regulatory standards
Help develop training presentations, guidelines, programs, and user guides for operators
Review and update the Gridforce Lock Out Tag Out (LO/TO) Procedure as needed or at a minimum annually
Assist with review and development of Gridforce Points Lists, One Line Diagrams and operator displays