Principal Protection & Control Design Engineer

AECOM; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible hybrid working

Career development

AECOM University

Volunteering days

Job summary

AECOM is seeking a Protection & Control Engineer to join our Transmission and Distribution team in the UK. You will develop protection designs for HV/EHV substations, create SLDs, Schematics, and diagrams, and design relay and control panels, interfacing with SCADA/RTU systems.

You will coordinate with multidisciplinary teams, ensure IEC 61850 compliance, and contribute to technical standards, innovation strategies, and project delivery across international programmes.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering or equivalent.
• Excellent knowledge of protection schemes for Transmission and Distribution substations.
• Experience with protection relays from Siemens, GE, ABB/Hitachi Energy, Schneider Electric, or SEL.
• Proficiency in AutoCAD and Microsoft Office.
• Experience on UK, Middle East, Europe, or international utility projects.
• Ability to independently deliver complete Protection & Control engineering packages.
• Knowledge of IEC 61850 and substation automation systems.
• Excellent communication and coordination skills.

Responsibilities

• Prepare Protection & Control engineering designs for HV/EHV substations (11kV–400kV or above).
• Develop and oversee Protection Single Line Diagrams (SLDs), AC/DC Schematics, Wiring Diagrams, and Cable Schedules.
• Design Protection Relay Panels, Control Panels, and RTU/SCADA interfaces.
• Prepare Relay Settings philosophy and coordinate with system studies where applicable.
• Perform protection coordination and review relay configurations.
• Coordinate with Civil, Primary, Telecom, and SCADA engineering teams.
• Review vendor drawings for project compliance.
• Provide technical assurance and support client engagements on major infrastructure programmes.

Skills

Protection schemes

Protection relays

AutoCAD

Microsoft Office

IEC 61850

SCADA

Coordination skills

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

Siemens relays

GE relays

ABB/Hitachi Energy relays

Schneider Electric relays

SEL relays

Job description

Company Description

Work with Us. Change the World.

At AECOM, we're delivering a better world. Whether improving your commute, keeping the lights on, providing access to clean water, or transforming skylines, our work helps people and communities thrive. We are the world's trusted infrastructure consulting firm, partnering with clients to solve the world's most complex challenges and build legacies for future generations.

There has never been a better time to be at AECOM. With accelerating infrastructure investment worldwide, our services are in great demand. We invite you to bring your bold ideas and big dreams and become part of a global team of over 50,000 planners, designers, engineers, scientists, digital innovators, program and construction managers and other professionals delivering projects that create a positive and tangible impact around the world.

We're one global team driven by our common purpose to deliver a better world. Join us.

Job Description

Are you ready to join a team of talented engineers, shape the future of energy infrastructure?

This is a fantastic opportunity to sit at the heart of a varied project portfolio working on one of a kind projects including National Grid's 'Great Grid Upgrade'. You'll spearhead design activity and hold responsibility for developing protection and control system designs, preparing engineering deliverables, coordinating with multidisciplinary teams, and ensuring compliance with client specifications and international standards.

Become a trusted advisor to our clients, and contribute to developing our technical standards, innovation strategy, and digital delivery approach within the P&C engineering space!

Start here. Grow here.

Here’s what you’ll do:

• Prepare Protection & Control engineering designs for HV/EHV substations (11kV–400kV or above)
• Provide expert-level input to develop and oversee Protection Single Line Diagrams (SLDs), AC/DC Schematics, Wiring Diagrams, Terminal Plans, Cable Schedules, and Interconnection Diagrams
• Design Protection Relay Panels, Control Panels, Annunciation Panels, Metering Panels, and RTU/SCADA interfaces
• Prepare Protection Relay Settings philosophy and coordinate with system studies where applicable
• Perform protection coordination and review relay configurations
• Prepare engineering calculations, cable sizing, voltage drop calculations, and battery sizing (where applicable)
• Coordinate with Civil, Primary, Telecom, and SCADA engineering teams
• Review vendor drawings and ensure compliance with project specifications
• Undertake client and stakeholder engagement, providing technical assurance, strategic direction, and value-engineered solutions on high-profile infrastructure programmes.
• Support FAT, SAT, commissioning, and technical issue resolution
• Drive project execution, managing technical risks, interfaces, and quality reviews while supporting procurement, construction, and commissioning phases.
• Ensure designs comply with IEC, IEEE, National Grid, and client-specific standards
• Champion mentorship, knowledge-sharing, and technical development within the wider team, supporting capability growth in cable systems engineering.
• Support business development activities, including proposals, bid reviews, and client presentations.

Driving excellence.

At AECOM, we are dedicated to fostering a culture of innovation and collaboration within our Transmission and Distribution team. We believe that technology should empower you so that you can focus on creative problem-solving, successfully manage complexity and deliver exceptional results. By embracing advanced automation tools, we seek imaginative thinkers who are excited about leveraging these tools to drive efficiency and enhance our projects. Join us in shaping the future of infrastructure, where your unique insights and creativity will play a vital role in our success!

Enjoy the Perks.

At AECOM, you'll enjoy a range of core and personalised benefits designed to support your future and well-being, customised to fit your lifestyle. Take advantage of career development opportunities, our flexible hybrid working model to ensure a work-life balance that suits your lifestyle, technical practice networks, AECOM University, and volunteering days.

Qualifications

Ready to push the limits of what’s possible?

Here’s what we’re looking for:

• Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering or equivalent.
• Excellent knowledge of protection schemes for Transmission and Distribution substations.
• Strong experience with protection relays from manufacturers such as Siemens, GE, ABB/Hitachi Energy, Schneider Electric, or SEL.
• Proficiency in AutoCAD and Microsoft Office.
• Experience in UK, Middle East, Europe, or international utility projects.
• Ability to independently deliver complete Protection & Control engineering packages
• Knowledge of IEC 61850 and substation automation systems.
• Excellent communication and coordination skills.
• Familiarity with SCADA, RTU, SAS, and communication protocols.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and documentation skills.

We celebrate diversity, including neurodiversity, and believe it enriches our team. We welcome applications from all backgrounds and abilities. If you are an applicant with a disability that requires reasonable accommodation to complete the application process, please contact us at [e-mail]. At AECOM, we value everyone's unique contributions and perspectives.

If you meet some of the requirements above or have transferable skills you believe would benefit us, we would be delighted to hear from you!

Additional Information

Interested in the role or curious about life at AECOM? Follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube to explore our AECOM voices, employee stories, latest projects, and much more!

At AECOM, we are committed to maintaining a secure and trustworthy recruitment process and take any fraudulent hiring activity seriously. To support this commitment, all newly hired employees are required to attend an in-person Day 1 onboarding at an AECOM office location as a condition of employment.

About AECOM

AECOM is the world's trusted infrastructure consulting firm, delivering professional services throughout the project lifecycle – from advisory, planning, design and engineering to program and construction management. On projects spanning transportation, buildings, water, new energy and the environment, our public- and private-sector clients trust us to solve their most complex challenges. Our teams are driven by a common purpose to deliver a better world through our unrivaled technical and digital expertise, a culture of equity, diversity and inclusion, and a commitment to environmental, social and governance priorities. AECOM is a Fortune 500 firm and its Professional Services business had revenue of $16.1 billion in fiscal year 2025. See how we are delivering sustainable legacies for generations to come at aecom.com and @AECOM.

Freedom to Grow in a World of Opportunity

You will have the flexibility you need to do your best work with hybrid work options. Whether you’re working from an AECOM office, remote location or at a client site, you will be working in a dynamic environment where your integrity, entrepreneurial spirit and pioneering mindset are championed.

You will help us foster a safe and respectful workplace, where we invite everyone to bring their whole selves to work using their unique talents, backgrounds and expertise to create transformational outcomes for our clients.

AECOM provides a wide array of compensation, benefits and well-being programs to meet the diverse needs of our employees and their families. We’re the world’s trusted global infrastructure firm, and we’re in this together – your growth and success are ours too.

Join us, and you’ll get all the benefits of being a part of a global, publicly traded firm – access to industry‑leading technology and thinking and transformational work with big impact and work flexibility. As an Equal Opportunity Employer, we believe in each person’s potential, and we’ll help you reach yours.

We are a Disability Confident Employer and will offer an interview to applicants who have a disability or long-term condition, who meet the minimum/essential criteria for the role. Please let us know using this email address [e-mail] if you would like to apply through the Disability Confident Interview Scheme.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.