Application Engineer - Automation

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL); Burnaby; On-site; CAD 95,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

RRSP contributions

Comprehensive health insurance

Generous paid holidays & vacation

Parental leave & family leave

Tuition assistance & engineering dev

Job summary

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) in Burnaby/Calgary seeks an Application Engineer to work with electric utilities, industrial automation, and critical infrastructure customers. You will act as a trusted technical advisor, designing, implementing, and optimizing SEL solutions while supporting pre- and post-sales activities.

You will collaborate with protection and automation engineers, sales teams, and customers to ensure reliable systems, successful deployments, and ongoing support.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or Power Engineering or equivalent practical experience.
• Experience at intersection of engineering and customer engagement in technical sales or application engineering.
• Strong knowledge of power systems, protection schemes, SCADA, IEC 61850, and communications protocols.

Responsibilities

• Serve as technical representative between customers and SEL teams.
• Provide technical expertise on protection, automation, and communications solutions in pre- and post-sales engagements.
• Support sales with system design, device selection, and solution architecture.
• Assist customers with design, settings development, configuration, testing, and commissioning.
• Travel to customer sites up to 25-30%.

Skills

Customer engagement

Power systems

Protection relays

Industrial control systems

Communication skills

Problem solving

Travel 25-30%

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical/Power Engineering or equivalent

Tools

SEL software

SEL RTAC platforms

Protection & automation tools

Job description

Job Description

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) designs and manufactures products and solutions that protect and control power systems around the world. For over 40 years, SEL has been at the forefront of innovation in protective relays, automation, communications, and cybersecurity, helping utilities and industrial customers improve reliability, safety, and efficiency of critical infrastructure where failure is not an option.

Today, SEL technology operates in substations, industrial plants, renewable generation facilities, and mission-critical infrastructure worldwide.

Are you the person we’re looking for?

Our customers in electric utilities, industrial automation, renewable energy, and critical infrastructure rely on SEL for dependable protection, automation, and control solutions. As an Application Engineer, you will work directly with these customers as a trusted technical advisor, helping them design, implement, and optimize SEL solutions.

You will serve as a key technical resource supporting both pre- and post-sales activities, building strong customer relationships, supporting system design decisions, and ensuring successful deployment of SEL technologies.

You are someone who thrives at the intersection of engineering and customer engagement. You enjoy solving complex power system and automation challenges, but you also understand how technical decisions impact operational reliability and business outcomes. You can collaborate with protection and automation engineers one hour and support a sales engineer in closing a project the next. You are curious, practical, and driven to help customers build safe and reliable systems.

In return, SEL offers competitive compensation, comprehensive benefits, professional development opportunities, and the chance to work on mission-critical infrastructure alongside a highly collaborative and purpose-driven team.

We are open to hiring this role in our Burnaby or Calgary offices.

In this role, you will:

• Serve as the technical representative of SEL, acting as a liaison between customers and SEL engineering, manufacturing, and support teams
• Provide technical expertise on SEL protection, automation, and communications solutions in both pre-sales and post-sales engagements
• Support the sales team with consultative technical guidance, including system design, device selection, and solution architecture
• Assist customers with application design, settings development, configuration, testing, and commissioning support
• Manage customer technical requirements from project initiation through commissioning and ongoing support
• Build and maintain strong relationships with customer engineering and operations teams to identify new opportunities and ensure long‑term success
• Deliver technical presentations, training sessions, and demonstrations both on‑site and virtually
• Participate in industry events, trade shows, and technical seminars representing SEL
• Develop and maintain knowledge of industry trends, standards, and competitive solutions to support continuous improvement
• Travel to customer sites as needed (typically 25-30% travel)

You will have:

• Experience working at the intersection of customer engagement and engineering, ideally in a technical sales or application engineering role
• Hands-on experience with power systems, protection relays, automation systems, or industrial control systems
• Strong understanding of power system fundamentals, including protection schemes, SCADA, communications protocols (e.g., DNP3, IEC 61850), and substation automation
• Experience with commissioning, testing, or configuring protective relays and control systems is an asset
• Familiarity with industrial networking and cybersecurity principles is an asset
• Knowledge of utility, industrial, or renewable energy markets
• Broad understanding of trends in grid modernization, digital substations, and power system reliability
• Strong business acumen with the ability to connect technical solutions to customer value
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to explain complex technical concepts clearly to diverse audiences
• Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to perform effectively in high-pressure field or customer environments

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Power Engineering, or related field, or equivalent practical experience

Ability to write and speak English coherently

Bonus qualifications:

• Experience with SEL products or similar protection and control platforms
• Knowledge of power system protection standards and practices (IEEE, IEC)
• Experience with SEL software, and/or SEL RTAC & Automation platforms
• Background in substation commissioning, protection coordination, or system studies

Competitive pay. Superior benefits. Inspiring work.

People are at the core of our company. We welcome you to learn more about how we support employees.

• SEL makes an annual Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) contribution for eligible employees. The group RRSP also supports personal contributions.
• We offer top tier health insurance that includes extended coverage for medical, prescription, dental, vision, life, and disability insurance.
• We recognize the importance of a healthy life balance and offer: Statutory paid holidays, personal holidays, annual vacation accrual starting at 15 days, 9 paid sick days, parental leave that covers up to 90% of regular earnings, and family medical and compassionate leave.
• We foster growth and development of our employees through avenues such as apprenticeships, tuition assistance, and engineering development programs.
• Ask our team about other benefits including wellness, and adoption assistance.

Pay Range Data

New hires generally start with a base salary between $95,000 - $120,000 per year depending on skills and experience. We base our starting pay offer on location and job-related factors such as candidate experience, training, knowledge, and skills.

SEL is an Equal Opportunity Employer: Vets/Disabled.