Electrical Designer

Stoakley-Stewart Consultants Ltd.; Barrie; On-site; CAD 70,000 - 88,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

RRSP matching

Healthcare spending account

Job summary

Stoakley-Stewart Consultants Ltd. is seeking an Electrical Designer to develop PLC-based control systems for automated machinery, produce schematics with AutoCAD Electrical or EPLAN, and select components for power and safety requirements.

You will collaborate with mechanical, controls, and other disciplines, own portions of projects as you gain experience, and mentor less experienced designers as needed to improve practices.

Qualifications

• Solid electrical-design foundation with automation experience.
• Experience with PLC-controlled equipment and safety systems.
• Ability to coordinate with mechanical, controls and other disciplines.
• Post-secondary education in Electrical Engineering or related field preferred.

Responsibilities

• Design PLC-based electrical control systems for automated machinery.
• Produce electrical schematics and docs using AutoCAD Electrical or EPLAN.
• Select electrical components for each application and assess power loads.
• Develop machine-safety electrical portions and safety reviews.
• Create BOMs and coordinate with ERP for materials.
• Collaborate with mechanical and controls teams during development.
• Answer questions and modify designs during assembly.
• Mentor junior designers and contribute to design practices.

Skills

Electrical design

PLC control systems

Industrial automation

Team collaboration

Education

Electrical Engineering or related program

Tools

AutoCAD Electrical

EPLAN

Job description

If you like electrical design because you enjoy figuring out how machines actually work, there is quite a bit to sink your teeth into here. Our client designs and builds automated industrial equipment. That means the electrical drawings do not simply disappear into a project folder once they are finished. They become part of a machine that will be assembled, wired, tested and eventually expected to perform on a customer’s production floor.

That gives the Electrical Designer a fairly direct connection to the finished result.

You will be working alongside people in mechanical, controls, automation and other technical disciplines, making decisions about control architecture, electrical components, machine safety, power requirements and how the various parts of the system need to work together.

Then the machine starts being built.

That is where the job gets especially interesting. Questions come back from the floor. Something may need to be revised. Another discipline may need an electrical change. A design assumption occasionally meets the reality of the equipment being assembled.

For someone who likes seeing the consequences of their design decisions, rather than simply moving from one drawing package to the next, that makes for a much more engaging kind of electrical design work.

Compensation

• $70,000 to $88,000* annually
• Comprehensive benefits, including RRSP matching and a healthcare spending account.
• Performance-based bonuses, tied to organizational performance and your success in achieving annual project goals set and reviewed annually with your Supervisor.
• A collaborative, high-tech workplace where creativity, sound engineering judgement and data-informed decision-making are valued.

*The stated compensation range reflects the full scope of the role as currently structured and is provided in accordance with pay transparency requirements. Offers are determined based on relevant experience, demonstrated skills, internal equity, and alignment with the role’s requirements. The upper end of the range is typically reserved for candidates who fully meet all requirements and qualifications outlined in this posting and the official job description.

The Opportunity

One of the appealing things about this opening is that the company is not trying to fit every candidate into exactly the same level.

They can consider someone who is still building their electrical design experience, someone who is already capable of leading their own project work, or a senior designer who can handle more difficult assignments and help develop the people around them.

If you are earlier in your career, you will have experienced designers around you and progressively take on more of the project yourself.

If you have already been doing this for several years, you will be expected to own your work. You will make design decisions, coordinate with other disciplines and deal with the things that inevitably change as equipment moves from engineering into assembly.

If you are coming in at a senior level, you will also be one of the people others turn to. You will still design, but you will help solve tougher problems, improve how things are done and mentor designers who have not yet seen as many machines come together.

There is a clear progression here, rather than three entirely separate jobs.

Position Description

At its core, the job is about figuring out how the electrical side of an automated machine needs to work, documenting it properly and then helping make sure it can actually be built and operated safely.

Your work may include:

• Designing PLC-based electrical control systems for automated machinery
• Producing electrical schematics and supporting documentation using AutoCAD Electrical, EPLAN or similar software
• Selecting electrical and controls components for each application
• Calculating power requirements and electrical loads
• Developing the electrical portion of machine-safety systems
• Preparing layouts and documentation for safety review
• Considering safety zones, safety networks and response requirements
• Creating bills of materials from the electrical design
• Working with mechanical, controls and other technical disciplines as the machine develops
• Answering questions and making design changes while equipment is being assembled
• Checking that safety functions behave the way the design intended
• Coordinating electrical material requirements through an ERP system
• Speaking with suppliers or customers when a project needs technical clarification
• Looking for better, more practical ways to approach recurring design work

As your experience increases, so does the amount of the project that belongs to you.

Intermediate designers can take the electrical lead on assigned work. Senior designers will also help coach less experienced members of the team and contribute to stronger design practices across future projects.

There is a practical side to this position that does not exist in every electrical design job. The machine is being built nearby, and eventually somebody has to turn it on. That tends to keep the engineering grounded in reality.

Experience

There are three general experience levels under consideration.

If you are relatively early in your career, some practical electrical design experience may be enough, particularly if it has involved industrial machinery, automation or controls.

You should have a sound technical foundation, be willing to ask questions and want to take on progressively more complicated work as your experience grows.

At the intermediate level, the company is generally looking for 5 or more years of directly related experience.

By this stage, you should be comfortable owning meaningful portions of a project, working independently and leading the electrical design on assigned equipment when required.

At the senior level, the expectation is generally 8 or more years of directly relevant experience.

You will have seen enough projects through design and build to recognize problems early, make good technical decisions and help less experienced designers develop their own judgement.

Experience in any of the following would translate particularly well:

• Custom machinery
• PLC-controlled equipment
• Automated assembly systems
• Welding equipment
• Electrical control systems
• Machine safety
• Multidisciplinary equipment-design projects

Qualifications

You do not need to have worked on every type of machine this company builds. You do need a solid electrical-design foundation and enough understanding of automation to know how your part of the project connects to everyone else’s.

Depending on your experience level, useful knowledge includes:

• PLC architecture and distributed I/O
• Industrial control networks and communications
• AutoCAD Electrical, EPLAN or similar electrical-design software
• Power-distribution and electrical load calculations
• Machine-safety circuits and safety PLC systems
• Electrical components used in automated machinery
• Automated assembly or welding applications
• The interaction between electrical, mechanical, controls and fluid-power systems

More experienced designers should also be comfortable working directly with customers, suppliers and other project disciplines when technical questions arise.

At the senior level, we would also expect someone who can explain the reasoning behind a design decision, help a less experienced designer get unstuck and recognize when an established way of doing something could be improved.

Education

Post-secondary education in Electrical Engineering, Electrical Engineering Technology, Electrical Engineering Technician studies or a closely related technical field is required.

Relevant professional or technical credentials, including P.Eng. or CET, are welcome where applicable.

Experience matters here. Because the company is considering candidates at different stages of their careers, the final level of the position will reflect the combination of education, technical capability and practical experience the successful candidate brings.

Additional Information

• Job ID: 10638
• Job Type: Permanent, Full-Time | On-Site
• Industries: Metal Stamping and Machining
• Job Categories: Manufacturing/Production/Operations | Skilled Trades
• Manages Others: No
• Required Travel: No
• Relocation Assistance: No

Existing Vacancy

This is a critical role within the organization and, following the recruitment and selection process, the selected candidate should expect to receive an offer promptly.

Use of Artificial Intelligence

We do NOT use artificial intelligence to screen, rank, or select candidates. The merits of every single application will be judged by a human. AI may be used to craft correspondence or write a job posting, but never in the decision‑making as to candidate suitability.

Accommodations are available upon request for applicants with disabilities throughout the recruitment, assessment, and selection process.