Senior Electrical Engineer – Data Hall & Critical Power Systems

GTN Technical Staffing; Dallas (TX); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

GTN Technical Staffing seeks a Senior Electrical Engineer to support data hall and critical power systems for new data centers. The role involves design review, technical verification, and field support from utility handoff through switchgear, UPS, BESS, and PDU distribution.

You will work with EPCs, equipment vendors, and operations stakeholders to ensure availability targets are met and equipment changes are properly documented and implemented. Strong ETAP skills are essential.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or equivalent.
• 8+ years of electrical power systems experience.
• Experience carrying data hall electrical scope through design, construction, and commissioning.
• Experience working within an EPC or design-build organization, including field assignments.
• Strong knowledge of ANSI, IEEE, NEC, and NFPA 70E/72/855 requirements.

Responsibilities

• Review single-line diagrams, load and diversity calculations, equipment specifications, grounding and bonding, cable sizing, busway sizing, and EPMS architecture.
• Evaluate contractor studies covering load flow, short circuit, protective device coordination, arc flash, and harmonics.
• Review breaker and relay settings for consistency with the approved design and operating scenarios.
• Perform independent verification calculations and develop power system models using ETAP.
• Confirm applicable equipment listings and code compliance before recommending procurement release.
• Present technical findings and recommended actions to the Design Authority / SME.

Skills

ETAP proficiency

Power system analysis

Data center power systems

Field assignments

Arc flash analysis

BESS integration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

ETAP

Job description

Senior Electrical Engineer – Data Hall & Critical Power Systems

Work Arrangement: Office-based, with extended field assignments during construction and commissioning

Classification: Exempt

Overview

Our client, a growing high-performance computing and cloud infrastructure company, is seeking a Senior Electrical Engineer to support the design review, technical verification, and delivery of electrical systems for new data centers and data hall fit-outs.

Working within the Owner’s Engineering team, this individual will evaluate electrical infrastructure from the utility and generation handoff through switchgear, UPS systems, battery energy storage systems (BESS), and rack-level power distribution.

The role combines hands-on power system analysis, independent engineering review, owner-scope design, and field support. A key focus is verifying that electrical systems deliver the required availability during equipment failures and maintenance, while supporting the rapid load changes associated with AI and HPC workloads.

This engineer will work under the direction of the Design Authority / SME, partnering with EPC contractors, equipment vendors, commissioning teams, and operations stakeholders throughout design, construction, startup, and turnover.

Key Responsibilities

Electrical Design Review & Analysis

• Review single-line diagrams, load and diversity calculations, equipment specifications, grounding and bonding, cable sizing, busway sizing, and Electrical Power Monitoring System (EPMS) architecture.
• Evaluate contractor studies covering load flow, short circuit, protective device coordination, arc flash, and harmonics.
• Review breaker and relay settings for consistency with the approved design and operating scenarios.
• Perform independent verification calculations and develop power system models using ETAP.
• Confirm applicable equipment listings and code compliance are documented before recommending procurement release.
• Present technical findings and recommended actions to the Design Authority / SME.

Power Distribution & Availability

• Assess N+1, 2N, distributed-redundant, and block-redundant architectures against defined facility availability targets of 99.99% or 99.999%.
• Evaluate concurrent maintainability and fault tolerance across complete distribution paths.
• Review Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) to identify common-mode failures and dependencies between redundant systems.
• Verify coordination and arc-flash performance during normal operation, maintenance bypass, single-path loss, and generator-source operation.
• Evaluate electrical system response to high-density AI/HPC step loads and rapid changes in demand.
• Review multi-megawatt UPS sizing, modular and monolithic architectures, redundancy, paralleling, and load sharing.
• Assess static and maintenance bypass arrangements, operating modes, walk-in behavior, and step-load performance.
• Verify battery or flywheel autonomy, end-of-life assumptions, and input harmonic performance at the point of common coupling.
• Review BESS sizing and controls for load smoothing, ramp-rate management, inverter response, state-of-charge management, and cycling duty.
• Evaluate interactions between BESS, UPS systems, and upstream generation.
• Confirm applicable UL 9540/9540A and NFPA 855 requirements are addressed, including fire safety, spacing, and ventilation.

Busway & Rack-Level Distribution

• Evaluate busway ampacity, thermal derating, voltage drop, short-circuit withstand, and bracing.
• Review tap-off box selectivity and branch-circuit monitoring.
• Verify PDU/RPP and rack distribution designs support capacity, protection, maintainability, and monitoring requirements.

Construction & Technical Change Management

• Perform detailed engineering for owner-retained and owner-furnished scope.
• Provide field support for RFIs, proposed deviations, field changes, and equipment integration issues.
• Participate in witness and hold points established in approved Inspection and Test Plans (ITPs).
• Ensure field deviations follow formal design review and approval processes.
• Assess whether proposed changes represent owner-directed scope, design development, or contractor rework.
• Review the technical basis of change pricing and maintain records supporting commercial decisions and claims.

Commissioning & Operational Acceptance

• Review commissioning plans, test procedures, and acceptance criteria.
• Witness Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT), Site Acceptance Testing (SAT), relay functional testing, energization, load-bank testing, and Integrated Systems Testing (IST).
• Verify failover and concurrent-maintainability demonstrations under representative loads.
• Document deficiencies and track corrective actions through verified closure.
• Recommend acceptance or withholding acceptance based on demonstrated performance and supporting documentation.
• Maintain written technical objections, queries, nonconformance reports, and closure records.
• Escalate blocking safety, code, or cybersecurity findings to the SME the same business day.
• Communicate independent engineering conclusions clearly and professionally.
• Follow formal approval and change-order processes for requirements, scope, cost, and schedule changes.

Final technical dispositions, requirement waivers, and gate Go/Hold decisions remain with the Design Authority / SME. The EPC contractor retains design responsibility and Engineer of Record obligations. This position does not direct construction means and methods.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from an ABET-accredited program or equivalent internationally accredited program.
• Typically 8+ years of electrical power systems experience.
• Experience carrying at least one data hall electrical scope through design, construction, and commissioning.
• Experience working within an EPC or design-build organization, including field assignments during construction, startup, and commissioning.
• Strong understanding of medium- and low-voltage switchgear, UPS systems, PDUs, RPPs, and busway distribution to the rack.
• Experience evaluating redundant electrical architectures for concurrent maintainability, fault tolerance, and defined availability requirements.
• Hands-on experience with multi-megawatt static double-conversion UPS systems, including bypass, paralleling, redundancy, operating modes, and battery or flywheel storage.
• Experience sizing, integrating, and controlling BESS for load smoothing and ramp-rate control.
• Hands-on ETAP proficiency, including building and running load-flow, short-circuit, motor-starting, coordination, arc-flash, and harmonic studies.
• Ability to critically assess contractor study models, assumptions, operating scenarios, and conclusions.
• Working knowledge of high-, medium-, and low-voltage switchgear, motor control centers, generator step-up and step-down transformers, and overhead busway.
• Strong knowledge of applicable ANSI, IEEE, NEC, and NFPA 70E/72/855 requirements.
• Familiarity with applicable equipment listings and testing requirements, including UL 891, 1558, 857, 1778, 9540, and 9540A.
• Practical understanding of IFC releases, submittals, RFIs, vendor documentation, change control, and turnover.
• Strong technical writing, field troubleshooting, and stakeholder communication skills.
• Ability to establish and defend an independent technical position while collaborating with contractors, vendors, and engineering leadership.

Preferred Qualifications

• AI or HPC data center experience involving high-density racks, liquid cooling infrastructure, and volatile step and ramp loads.
• Professional Engineer (PE) license.
• NFPA 70E training.
• Commissioning credential through ACG, NEBB, or an equivalent organization.

This Dallas-based role includes extended field assignments during construction and commissioning, supporting installation, startup, testing, and operational handover.