Description
Plan, design, analyze, and oversee the operation and construction of electric power distribution networks, substations, and related equipment to deliver safe, reliable, and efficient service.
- • Confer with utility operations, planners, customers, and regulators to define distribution projects and service requirements.
- • Design and upgrade overhead and underground feeders, laterals, and services to meet load growth and reliability targets.
- • Use power system modeling and GIS/CAD tools to perform load flow, short-circuit, and voltage drop analyses.
- • Develop protection and coordination studies, device settings, and relaying schemes for feeders and substations.
- • Specify transformers, switchgear, conductors, reclosers, regulators, capacitors, and metering equipment.
- • Prepare one-lines, plan-and-profile drawings, construction packages, and work orders per utility standards and the NESC.
- • Direct and coordinate distribution construction, switching, commissioning, and cutovers with field crews and contractors.
- • Perform ampacity, cable pulling, grounding, arc-flash, and thermal calculations to establish design criteria.
- • Plan and prioritize capital projects, rebuilds, and sectionalization to improve SAIDI/SAIFI and resiliency.
- • Estimate materials, labor, and construction costs and support budgeting and procurement.
- • Evaluate vendor equipment, technologies, and bids for technical compliance and lifecycle value.
- • Conduct field surveys, inspections, and as-built verification to ensure compliance and quality.
- • Investigate outages, faults, and power quality complaints; recommend corrective actions.
- • Integrate distributed energy resources, storage, and EV charging; process interconnection studies and applications.
- • Develop and tune distribution automation, SCADA/DMS/OMS settings, FLISR, and Volt/VAR optimization schemes.
- • Compile data and write planning studies, reliability reports, and regulatory filings.
- • Collect development and load data to forecast demand and capacity needs at feeder and substation levels.
- • Implement loss-reduction measures and voltage regulation strategies using capacitors and regulators.
- • Ensure designs comply with codes, safety, environmental, and utility standards and right-of-way constraints.
- • Supervise or mentor junior engineers, designers, and drafters, as needed.
- • Coordinate switching orders, clearances, and outage plans to minimize customer impact.
- • Support storm response, damage assessment, and service restoration efforts.
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Advanced Manufacturing
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Tasks & skills:
O*NET occupational data (work activities, skills, knowledge).
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This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
