Senior Protection & Controls Engineer — West
Protection & Relay Engineering · Sacramento, CA (Hybrid)
Why This Role Exists
Every multi-vendor Tier III/IV data center protection system we deliver requires an engineer who owns the full P&C scope — coordination studies, relay settings, automation logic, and commissioning — under one accountability. This role exists because splitting that scope across firms creates handoff gaps that surface as retests during witness testing. Our West Coast pipeline serves the Northern California and Pacific Northwest data center corridors. The work spans 2(N+1) medium-voltage protection with IEC 61850 GOOSE over PRP, multi-vendor generator controls (SEL, Woodward, CAT), and staged commissioning on live critical infrastructure.
What You Own
- Protection coordination studies for 2(N+1) medium-voltage distribution per IEEE 242
- SEL-751/700G relay settings packages with trip scheme logic diagrams
- Woodward easYgen 3400/LS-6 generator controller programming and Modbus integration
- IEC 61850 GOOSE configuration for zone-selective interlocking across PRP networks
- SEL RTAC-3530 automation logic: mode transitions, load shed/add sequencing, SOE concentration
- Commissioning procedures and witness test support through owner acceptance
- As-built documentation packages for turnover to operations
Systems You'll Touch
Vendor Platforms
Software Tools
Protocols
Standards
Test Phases
What Success Looks Like
First 90 Days
- Onboarded into an active project — reviewed protection philosophy, existing settings, and one-line diagrams
- Delivered first relay settings package (SEL-751 or SEL-700G) through internal review
- Participated in site commissioning or witness testing on a current project
First 180 Days
- Owning a full protection scope end-to-end — from coordination study through commissioning plan
- Leading witness testing sessions with prime contractor and owner representatives
- Contributing to IEC 61850 GOOSE or RTAC automation logic on at least one project
Required Background
- 7+ years protection & controls engineering for medium-voltage power systems
- SEL relay programming experience (QuickSet, 751/700G families) with delivered settings packages
- Protection coordination study experience per IEEE 242 — time-current curves, relay coordination
- Secondary injection testing with Omicron or Doble test sets — trip timing, coordination validation
- Commissioning experience on energized critical facilities (data centers, substations, or industrial power)
- Working knowledge of NFPA 70E arc-flash safety and energized work practices
Preferred Background
- IEC 61850 GOOSE configuration experience — SCL files, publish/subscribe, multi-vendor interoperability
- Woodward generator controller programming (easYgen 3400, LS-6, DTSC-200)
- SEL RTAC-3530 automation logic (IEC 61131-3 Structured Text)
- NETA Level III or IV certification
- Arc-flash study experience per IEEE 1584
What to Expect in the Field
- Travel
- 30–50% during commissioning phases, project-dependent. West Coast sites primarily.
- Site Hours
- Standard office hours for design; site hours during commissioning (early starts, occasional weekends near milestones)
- Customer-Facing
- Direct interface with prime contractor project managers and commissioning leads; owner witness testing coordinators during acceptance
- Documentation
- Heavy — settings packages, coordination studies, trip scheme logic diagrams, commissioning procedures, as-built documentation
- Field Safety
- NFPA 70E compliance required — arc-flash PPE for medium-voltage switchgear, approach boundaries, LOTO procedures
Why Ziggurat
- Own the full scope — protection studies, relay programming, and commissioning under one accountability, not task fragments divided across firms
- Work across 8 manufacturer platforms (SEL, Woodward, CAT, ABB, Eaton, Cisco, EIG, UPS OEM), not inside one vendor ecosystem
- Direct access to the principal engineer — your technical judgment shapes project outcomes, decisions happen in conversations
- Shape how a specialized P&C practice scales from its founding stage into the data center market
Hiring Process
Screen
Background review against role requirements — vendor platform experience, relevant certifications, project types, and standards familiarity. Quick assessment of baseline alignment before investing either party's time.
Resume review + 15-min intro call
Technical Review
Deeper evaluation of technical depth. We review sample work — relay settings files, protection study reports, commissioning test procedures, or SCADA configuration packages — depending on the role. If samples aren't shareable, we discuss specific project scenarios in detail.
Async work-sample review or 45-min technical call
Interview
Scenario-based conversation with the principal engineer. Real project situations: how you'd approach a coordination study for a complex switchgear lineup, sequence a commissioning plan across multiple vendor platforms, or troubleshoot a protection scheme failure during site acceptance testing.
60-min video call with founder
Exercise / Artifact Review
A practical evaluation matched to the role. Engineering roles receive a take-home exercise — review and mark up a set of relay settings, identify gaps in a protection study, or develop a test procedure for a specific scheme. Field-focused roles walk through a commissioning package or test report they've delivered, explaining their methodology and decisions.
Take-home exercise (2–4 hrs) or artifact walkthrough (60 min)
Final Conversation
Role scope, current project pipeline, working arrangements, and compensation. This is a two-way conversation — we want to confirm the role fits your goals, not just the other way around.
30-min call
This role supports our protection studies , relay programming , testing commissioning and end to end service scopes.
Questions about this role? Email us at careers@zigguratautomation.com
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Let's Talk Engineering
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First step: a 15-minute call with the principal engineer.