Substation Design Manager

PCL Solar Constructors Canada; Oakville; On-site; CAD 100,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading renewable energy company in Oakville, Ontario, is seeking a Substation Design Manager. This role involves leading the full substation design process, coordinating with project teams, and ensuring compliance with utility specifications. Candidates should have a Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, 7–10 years of relevant experience, and expertise in high-voltage substation design. Excellent communication and problem-solving skills are essential to thrive in this position. A commitment to safety and team collaboration is vital.

Benefits

Comprehensive benefits

Employee share purchase offering

Discretionary performance bonus

Career development programs

Qualifications

• 7–10 years of experience in electrical or power systems engineering.
• At least 2 years in utility-scale solar or renewable energy projects.
• Proven experience with substation testing and commissioning.

Responsibilities

• Lead the full substation design process ensuring technical accuracy.
• Review and coordinate equipment vendor drawings and documentation.
• Provide technical leadership for Protection and Control (P&C) design.

Skills

Electrical Engineering

High-voltage substation design

Protection and Control (P&C) systems

SCADA integration

Analytical problem-solving

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering

Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) designation

Job description

The future you want is within reach.

At PCL, we build the places where life happens and find camaraderie in the process. We're a community of builders committed to building better communities. That's why we're always looking ahead, and not just to the next project or what's next in our industry.

We're also looking at what's next for you and how we can help you build a career you're proud of. Collaborating with project managers, engineers, and field teams to deliver cost-effective, reliable solutions.

Here’s how a Substation Design Manager for our Solar Canada office contributes to our team:

Responsibilities

• Lead and oversee the full substation design process from concept and feasibility through detailed design and execution, ensuring technical accuracy, constructability, and compliance with utility and project specifications.
• Review and coordinate equipment vendor drawings and documentation (e.g., transformer, circuit breaker, switchgear, and protection equipment). Ensure vendor designs are fully aligned with the overall substation design, project requirements, and protection/control schemes.
• Collaborate closely with the Engineer of Record (EOR) to resolve design issues, review technical submittals, and maintain consistency across multiple substation designs and related balance-of-plant systems.
• Provide technical leadership for Protection and Control (P&C) design, including review of relay logic, control schematics, SCADA integration, and interconnection requirements.
• Interpret and implement utility and grid operator requirements, ensuring all designs, relay schemes, and interface points comply with applicable standards and operational practices.
• Coordinate and communicate effectively with project management, PV design teams, and construction teams to optimize design flow, resolve technical challenges, and support timely project delivery.
• Participate in site walks, factory acceptance tests (FATs), commissioning planning, and energization activities, providing technical guidance during construction, testing, and commissioning phases.
• Identify and troubleshoot design nonconformances, determine root causes, and provide corrective action recommendations to maintain quality and performance standards.
• Stay current with industry practices, technologies, and emerging trends in substation design, equipment, and protection systems to drive continuous improvement and innovation.
• Capture lessons learned and success stories for continuous improvement across the project lifecycle, contributing to estimating, design, and construction best practices.
• Maintain strong client and stakeholder relationships, ensuring alignment with project-specific success criteria (CPSSC) and owner objectives.
• Supervise, mentor, and develop engineering staff, promoting a collaborative, high-performance culture within the design team.

Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor’s degree or diploma in Electrical Engineering or a related discipline; Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) designation preferred, or equivalent relevant industry/trade experience.
• Experience: 7–10 years of progressive experience in electrical or power systems engineering, including at least 2 years in utility‑scale solar or renewable energy project construction.
• Proven background in high‑voltage substation design, including protection and control (P&C) systems, relay schemes, and SCADA integration.
• Hands‑on experience with substation testing, commissioning, and grid synchronization, including familiarity with utility interconnection and energization procedures.
• Demonstrated ability to review and interpret vendor drawings and documentation, ensuring alignment with design intent, protection schemes, and project standards.
• Skilled in identifying and communicating installation priorities to field and trade contractors, preparing and managing construction and commissioning schedules, and leading start‑up and closeout processes.
• Solid understanding of contracts and subcontracts, with the ability to manage contractual obligations, project scope, and ensure compliance with health, safety, and environmental regulations.
• Strong capability to monitor, forecast, and allocate resources, identify schedule impacts, and proactively manage risks and opportunities during both the design and construction phases.
• Proven commitment to promoting and implementing a strong safety culture across design and execution teams.
• Excellent verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills, with the ability to lead multidisciplinary teams and collaborate effectively with clients, utilities, and internal stakeholders.
• Strong analytical, problem‑solving, and decision‑making skills, with a proactive approach to resolving technical and design issues.
• Flexible and adaptable in a fast‑paced, multi‑project environment, with a willingness to travel for site work, testing, and commissioning activities as required.

PCL is an innovative, employee‑owned company comprised of people who find passion in their profession and take pride in doing great work every day. Our work powers the infrastructure and utilities that are essential to daily life and our projects are the scene of vacations, careers, education and healing. We are consistently ranked among the best companies to work for because we are committed to supporting and developing our teams.

The PCL Companies celebrate diversity and are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to creating equitable opportunities and an inclusive environment for all employees and applicants. We make employment‑related decisions without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability or veteran status.

PCL combines numerous pay and benefit strategies to provide a comprehensive and competitive total rewards package. Any salary range displayed by a job board is an estimate. Your salary, which considers your unique qualifications and experience, is just one component of the robust total rewards you’ll enjoy at PCL. This may include an employee share purchase offering, discretionary annual performance bonus, comprehensive benefits and wellness programs, retirement plan plus matching, and career development programs.

Should you require an accommodation during the application process, please contact us at [e-mail] with the position and location you are interested in.

Together, we can build success and a better future. Let’s get started!

Employee Status:Regular Full-Time

Company:PCL Solar Constructors Canada Inc.

Primary Location:Oakville, Ontario

Job:Substation Design Manager

Requisition:10700