Principal - Substation Secondary Design Engineer

Turnbull Engineering Pty Ltd; Sydney; On-site; AUD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Turnbull Engineering Pty Ltd is seeking a Principal - Substation Secondary Design Engineer in Sydney to lead protection, automation and control design for substations up to 500 kV. You will own secondary packages, collaborate with primary design leads and TNSP teams, and guide graduates.

You will develop protection philosophies, coordinate with SCADA teams, and support commissioning on site for renewable and BESS projects. A senior engineer with 15+ years in the field is preferred.

Qualifications

• Degree in electrical engineering (power).
• 15+ years in substation secondary systems or protection and control design, including 3–5+ years on Australian transmission projects at 330 kV and above.
• Strong working knowledge of protection relays from major vendors (e.g. SEL, Siemens, ABB/Hitachi Energy, GE, Schneider) and their configuration tools.
• Experience with IEC 61850 design and configuration, and power system analysis software (e.g. PowerFactory, CAPE, PSS/E or similar).
• Knowledge of AS/NZS 3000, NER Schedule 5.1 protection requirements, and the design standards of TNSPs (e.g. Transgrid, Powerlink, AusNet, ElectraNet).
• Australian working rights and a current driver's licence.

Responsibilities

• Deliver protection, automation and control (PAC) design up to and including 500 kV for transmission substations, switching stations and grid connections for large electronic coupled fast ramping load infrastructure, renewable generation and battery storage (BESS) projects.
• Develop protection philosophies and schemes for transmission lines, transformers, busbars, reactors and capacitor banks, including breaker fail and teleprotection.
• Calculate and document protection settings and coordination studies; review settings issued by others.
• Produce and verify protection single lines, AC and DC schematics, wiring and termination diagrams, and panel layouts; participate in secondary design reviews.
• Design substation automation systems, including IEC 61850 architecture, SCADA interfaces and RTU/gateway configuration.
• Design auxiliary systems: AC and DC supplies, battery and charger sizing, and revenue and check metering.
• Specify CT and VT requirements and coordinate them with the primary design.
• Interface with TNSP protection and SCADA teams, AEMO requirements, and connection agreements.
• Support FAT, SAT and commissioning, including test plans and resolving issues on site.
• Guide and support graduate engineers and drafters.
• Provide scope and effort input to proposals and design programs.

Skills

Substation design leadership

Graduate mentoring

Client management

Technical judgment

Australian transmission experience

Education

Electrical Engineering degree (Power)

Tools

PowerFactory

CAPE

PSS/E

IEC 61850 configuration tools

Vendor protection relays tools

Job description

Principal - Substation Secondary Design Engineer

Turnbull Engineering is one of Australia’s fastest-growing engineering firms. We deliver multidisciplinary design and consultancy services for Transport, Renewable Energy and Water infrastructure, with teams in NSW, QLD, SA and the United Arab Emirates. Our clients are governments, construction contractors and private developers who rely on us to design their complex infrastructure.

About us

Turnbull Engineering is one of Australia’s fastest-growing engineering firms. We deliver multidisciplinary design and consultancy services for Transport, Renewable Energy and Water infrastructure, with teams in NSW, QLD, SA and the United Arab Emirates. Our clients are governments, construction contractors and private developers who rely on us to design their complex infrastructure.

The role

You will deliver secondary systems design on substations, associated ancillary equipment and infrastructure from 33 kV up to and including 500 kV substation projects for renewable generation, battery storage and transmission, covering protection, control, automation and communications. You take ownership of your secondary design packages and work closely with the primary design lead, TNSP protection teams and commissioning engineers.

What you will do

• Join a team that’s delivering major infrastructure design and advisory, and help decide where we go next. You’ll own your clients, your pipeline and how you win work. We’ll back your judgement, give you room to try things, and celebrate the wins together. If you’d rather build something than maintain it, this role is yours to shape.
• Deliver protection, automation and control (PAC) design up to and including 500 kV for transmission substations, switching stations and grid connections for large electronic coupled fast ramping load infrastructure, renewable generation and battery storage (BESS) projects.
• Develop protection philosophies and schemes for transmission lines (distance and line differential), transformers, busbars, reactors and capacitor banks, including breaker fail and teleprotection.
• Calculate and document protection settings and coordination studies; review settings issued by others.
• Produce and verify protection single lines, AC and DC schematics, wiring and termination diagrams, and panel layouts, and take part in secondary design reviews.
• Design substation automation systems, including IEC 61850 architecture, SCADA interfaces and RTU/gateway configuration.
• Design auxiliary systems: AC and DC supplies, battery and charger sizing, and revenue and check metering.
• Specify CT and VT requirements and coordinate them with the primary design.
• Interface with TNSP protection and SCADA teams, AEMO requirements, and connection agreements.
• Support FAT, SAT and commissioning, including test plans and resolving issues on site.
• Guide and support graduate engineers and drafters.
• Provide scope and effort input to proposals and design programs.

What you will bring

• Degree in electrical engineering (power).
• 15+ years in substation secondary systems or protection and control design, including 3–5+ years on Australian transmission projects at 330 kV and above.
• Strong working knowledge of protection relays from major vendors (e.g. SEL, Siemens, ABB/Hitachi Energy, GE, Schneider) and their configuration tools.
• Experience with IEC 61850 design and configuration, and power system analysis software (e.g. PowerFactory, CAPE, PSS/E or similar).
• Knowledge of AS/NZS 3000, NER Schedule 5.1 protection requirements, and the design standards of TNSPs (e.g. Transgrid, Powerlink, AusNet, ElectraNet).
• Australian working rights and a current driver's licence.

Desirable

• Renewable and BESS connection experience, including GPS compliance and runback/control scheme design.
• Experience with cyber security requirements for substation networks (e.g. AESCSF, IEC 62351).
• Commissioning experience on energised sites.
• CPEng / NER registration, or eligibility. RPEQ preferred for Queensland work.