Staff Electrical Engineer, Power Systems Studies

Trystar Inc; Burnsville (MN); On-site; USD 140,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Trystar Inc in Burnsville, MN is seeking a Staff Electrical Engineer, Power Systems Studies to own critical studies for DC up to 1500 VDC and 800 VDC class architectures for data centers and other critical power applications. This role requires leading high-risk analyses and mentoring engineers.

You will set study methods, models, and acceptance criteria, collaborate with design and compliance teams, and support customers with study results and guidance. Travel up to 20%.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and extensive power systems experience.
• Demonstrated ability to independently perform and review short-circuit, protective device coordination, and arc-flash studies.
• Proficiency with ETAP, SKM PowerTools, or EasyPower.
• Knowledge of NFPA 70, NFPA 70E, IEEE 1584, and IEEE 3000 series.

Responsibilities

• Own short-circuit, protective device coordination, arc-flash, and grounding studies for DC/AC power systems from concept to certification.
• Build and validate models of power converters, energy storage, and protective devices against manufacturer data and tests.
• Calculate DC fault currents and AC fault currents using IEC/IEEE methods and assess equipment ratings.
• Coordinate breakers, fuses, and protections for selectivity and device settings.
• Lead design reviews, mentor engineers, and communicate study results to cross-functional teams.

Skills

Power systems studies

Short-circuit analysis

Arc-flash analysis

DC fault currents

Project mentorship

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

ETAP

SKM PowerTools

EasyPower

Job description

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Staff Electrical Engineer, Power Systems Studies

RDE Full-Time Employee Burnsville, MN, US

2 days ago Requisition ID: 3089

Salary Range: $140,000.00 To $170,000.00 Annually

Job Title: Staff Electrical Engineer, Power Systems Studies

Job Description

Trystar’s team members are our most important asset. We are looking for a Staff Electrical Engineer, Power Systems Studies, to own the short-circuit, protective device coordination, arc-flash, and grounding studies that decide how our power conversion and power distribution products are rated, protected, and labeled. Most of this work concerns DC systems up to 1500 VDC, including 800 VDC class architectures for data centers and other critical power applications, where fault current comes from power converters, capacitor banks, and batteries, and must be designed for interrupting high DC faults safely. The Staff Electrical Engineer will also perform AC studies when a product or system requires them. This role conducts studies during design, while ratings and protection choices can still change, and you will set the study methods, models, and acceptance criteria that other engineers use. Serving as a senior individual contributor, this position leads technically complex and high-risk analyses, represents electrical engineering in design decisions on safety, availability, and cost, and mentors the engineers who prepare and use study results.

Location: Faribault or Burnsville, MN, onsite, is preferred; Houston, TX; Charlotte, NC; Victoria, BC; and Loveland, CO, will be considered. Travel within North America up to 20%.

In this role you will:

• Own the short-circuit, protective device coordination, arc-flash, and grounding studies for assigned DC and AC power conversion and power distribution products and systems, from concept through certification and into commercial-scale manufacturing.
• Build and maintain system models of power converters, rectifiers, battery and supercapacitor energy storage, capacitor banks, busbars, cables, and protective devices, and validate model inputs against manufacturer data and test results.
• Calculate DC fault currents, including peak values and rates of rise contributed by power converters, capacitor banks, and batteries, using recognized methods such as IEC 61660-1 and IEEE 946, and calculate AC fault currents using IEEE and IEC methods.
• Coordinate fuses, thermal-magnetic, electronic, and solid-state circuit breakers, and converter current limits for selectivity, and recommend device ratings and settings.
• Perform DC and AC arc-flash analyses, determine incident energy and arc-flash boundaries, specify equipment labels, and identify design changes that reduce arc-flash hazard.
• Analyze grounding and isolation for grounded and ungrounded DC systems, including insulation monitoring, first-fault behavior, and ground-fault detection and location.
• Verify equipment short-circuit withstand and interrupting ratings against study results and provide system and transient overvoltage inputs to the engineers who set insulation, clearance, and creepage.
• Define study methods, templates, model libraries, and acceptance criteria, and review studies prepared by other engineers, suppliers, and consultants.
• Convert study results into design requirements for power electronics, controls, power distribution, and mechanical engineers, and into test requirements and acceptance criteria for design validation.
• Prepare, with compliance engineering, the calculations and study reports that certification bodies and authorities having jurisdiction require.
• Support customers, applications engineers, and sales with study results, application guidance, and technical input to proposals.
• Lead design reviews and risk analyses on fault, protection, and grounding topics, resolve the trade-offs among safety, availability, cost, and footprint, and manage the scope, schedule, and stakeholders of complex study work.
• Investigate protection maloperations and field failures, and lead root-cause analysis of fault and protection issues.
• Evaluate emerging DC protection technologies and standards, such as solid-state circuit breakers and recommended practices for DC distribution in data centers and bring their requirements into Trystar designs.
• Mentor engineers, review their analyses, and strengthen the power systems study competency of the engineering organization.

Qualifications

REQUIRED

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or a related technical field, with typically 10 or more years of relevant industrial experience, including substantial hands-on work performing power system studies.
• Demonstrated ability to independently perform and review short-circuit, protective device coordination, and arc-flash studies.
• Proficiency with at least one power system analysis platform, such as ETAP, SKM PowerTools, or EasyPower.
• Working knowledge of DC fault behavior, DC protection, and DC arc-flash methods, including fault interruption without a natural current zero and fault contribution from converters, capacitors, and batteries.
• Knowledge of applicable codes and standards, such as NFPA 70, NFPA 70E, IEEE 1584, and the IEEE 3000 series.
• Experience applying circuit breakers, fuses, trip units, and protective relays, and selecting their ratings and settings.
• Experience analyzing grounding systems and the fault behavior of grounded and ungrounded systems.
• Technical writing that produces study reports able to stand on their own for engineering, certification, and customer audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex, high-risk technical work, influence cross-functional teams, and mentor engineers.

PREFERRED

• Master’s degree in electrical engineering with a power systems focus.
• Professional Engineer (PE or P.Eng.) license.
• Hands-on DC studies at 600 VDC or more, for example in battery energy storage, solar, data center, rail traction, or DC microgrid systems.
• Experience applying IEC 61660-1, IEEE 946, and the DC arc-flash methods referenced in NFPA 70E.
• Experience with insulation monitoring devices and insulation fault location in ungrounded systems, such as those covered by IEC 61557-8.
• Experience modelling power converter fault behavior with PSCAD, MATLAB/Simulink, or Python.
• Experience with solid-state and hybrid DC circuit breakers.
• Experience with product safety standards and listing for power distribution and power conversion equipment, such as UL 891 and UL 62477-1.
• Experience with ground grid studies under IEEE 80.
• Participation in standards development, for example IEEE or IEC working groups on DC systems.
• Experience with data centers or other critical power applications.
• NFPA 70E certification.

Skills

• Analytical rigor and attention to detail in modelling, calculation, and model validation.
• Sound engineering judgment in setting conservative assumptions where data are incomplete.
• Clear written and verbal communication of study results, assumptions, and limitations to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Collaborative technical leadership across power electronics, power distribution, controls, mechanical, systems, test, and compliance engineering.
• Ability to plan, prioritize, and deliver studies against a design schedule.