Electrical Design Engineer - Control & Automation Design / Senior

Talesca; Sydney; On-site; AUD 100,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Technical training

Workplace mentoring

Tertiary study support

20 weeks' paid parental leave

Fitness Passport

Discounts on retail/travel/wellbeing

Salary packaging options

Job summary

Talesca is seeking an Electrical Design Engineer to join our Control & Automation team in Sydney. You will design substation control, automation and secondary systems for a major transmission network, with scope tailored to your level of experience from Design Engineer to Intermediate.

You’ll work on detailed engineering, automation architecture, and interfaces across projects. Ideal candidates hold an Electrical Engineering degree and have HV substation secondary systems experience, with

Qualifications

• Experience in HV substation secondary systems, control or automation design.
• Strong knowledge of substation automation architecture and interfaces.
• Familiarity with IEC 61850 and DNP communications is advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Design substation protection, control and automation systems.
• Select and apply secondary systems equipment.
• Design automation and communications architectures.
• Develop IEDs, network switches, gateways interfaces.
• Prepare engineering templates and design documentation.
• Create control architecture drawings and test plans (FAT/SCAT).
• Provide technical support through delivery and commissioning.

Skills

Substation control design

Automation design

Secondary systems design

IEC 61850

DNP communications

Education

Electrical Engineering degree

Job description

Electrical Design Engineer – Control & Automation

HV Substations | Secondary Systems | IEC 61850 | Sydney

We are looking for an Electrical Engineer with experience across substation control, automation and secondary systems design to join a major Australian electricity transmission network. This opportunity is open from established Design Engineer through to experienced Intermediate level, with the scope and technical ownership tailored to the engineer’s experience.

The core requirement is practical engineering experience designing control and automation systems within high-voltage substations or electricity networks.

The opportunity

You will work within the Control & Automation design function, delivering secondary systems engineering across major transmission projects, network upgrades and customer connections.

The position combines detailed engineering design with exposure to automation architecture, communications, secondary equipment, testing and technical interfaces.

Your work may include:

• Substation protection, control and automation design
• Selection and application of secondary systems equipment
• Designing automation and communications architectures
• IEDs, network switches, gateways and associated interfaces
• IEC 61850 and DNP communications
• Development of technical specifications and design documentation
• Control architecture drawings and engineering templates
• Interfaces between automation systems, customers and wider network systems
• FAT and SCAT testing and preparation of associated test plans
• Technical support through project delivery and commissioning
• Working with internal engineering teams and external design consultants

These are central elements of the formal role, including designing communications architecture involving IEDs, switches and gateways and working with DNP and IEC 61850. At the more experienced end of the level, you may also review and approve consultant designs, lead design packages, manage technical interfaces, contribute to automation standards and templates, and support the development of other engineers.

About you

You will ideally hold a degree in Electrical Engineering or equivalent and have experience within HV substation secondary systems, control or automation design.

Your background could have been gained within:

Transmission | Distribution | Generation | Renewables | Engineering Consultancy | EPC | Major Electrical Infrastructure

We don't expect candidates to tick every technical box. Experience with IEC 61850, DNP or specific automation platforms is valuable, but we are equally interested in engineers with strong underlying substation control and automation design capability who can develop further within the role. Testing and commissioning experience is also valuable, particularly FAT/SCAT exposure, but this is fundamentally an engineering design position rather than a pure commissioning role.

Why consider it?

This is an opportunity to work directly on the secondary systems architecture behind some of Australia's most important high-voltage infrastructure. You'll gain exposure across automation design, IEC 61850 communications, substation control systems, network interfaces and major transmission projects while working alongside experienced engineers in a specialist secondary systems environment.

The formal position also has responsibility for delivering internal automation designs while supporting external design providers, giving the role exposure to both hands-on design and broader engineering governance.

What's on offer

• ongoing technical training and professional development
• workplace mentoring
• tertiary study support
• 20 weeks' paid parental leave
• Fitness Passport
• corporate retail/travel/wellbeing discounts
• salary packaging options