Senior Earthing Design Engineer
Department: OCU Design
Employment Type: Permanent - Full Time
Location: Ruislip
Reporting To: Ed Yeates
Description
Are you an experienced earthing specialist ready to take ownership of safety‑critical power infrastructure designs? Do you want to play a leading role in HV and EHV substation projects across the UK?
We are seeking a Senior Earthing Design Engineer to lead the earthing design elements of major electricity network projects within a regulated Distribution Network Operator (DNO) environment. You will be a technical authority for earthing design, ensuring safe, compliant, and constructible solutions across a portfolio of HV and EHV projects.
Working closely with a Design Manager who oversees all disciplines, you will be responsible for the delivery, review, and assurance of earthing designs from feasibility through to detailed design, liaising directly with DNO design authorities, project teams, and construction stakeholders.
Projects span 11kV to 132kV systems, including substation new builds, refurbishments, and reinforcements, with assets such as GIS/AIS switchgear, transformers, underground cables, and overhead line terminations.
Key Responsibilities
- Earthing Design Leadership – Lead the production, review, and approval of HV and EHV earthing designs from feasibility through to detailed design, in line with DNO standards, ENA specifications, BS EN standards, and industry best practice.
- Safety‑Critical Design Assurance – Deliver earthing systems that meet touch, step, and transfer potential requirements, ensuring personnel and public safety under normal and fault conditions.
- Earthing Calculations & Modelling – Undertake and review earthing calculations including soil resistivity interpretation, ground grid design, fault level assessment, and surface resistivity solutions using industry‑standard tools and methods.
- DNO & Stakeholder Engagement – Act as the technical interface with DNO earthing and design authorities, responding to technical comments, securing approvals, and supporting design departures where required.
- Multi‑Disciplinary Coordination – Work closely with electrical, civil, and cable system designers to ensure earthing systems are fully integrated with primary plant, steelwork, foundations, fencing, control buildings, and cable routes.
- Contractor & Site Support – Provide technical support during procurement and construction, including responding to queries, reviewing as‑built information, and attending site when required to resolve earthing‑related issues.
- Technical Governance & Standards – Champion safety‑by‑design principles and ensure compliance with statutory regulations, DNO specifications, and internal procedures, contributing to continuous improvement of earthing design practices.
Skills, Knowledge & Expertise
- Degree qualified in Electrical Engineering or a related discipline.
- Chartered Engineer (CEng) status or actively working towards chartership.
- Significant experience delivering HV and EHV earthing designs for UK electricity network projects.
- Strong understanding of earthing requirements within DNO or ICP environments.
- Proven experience with substation earthing systems for GIS and AIS substations.
- Practical knowledge of UK electrical safety regulations and earthing standards.
Skills
- Expert understanding of earthing theory, fault current distribution, soil modelling, and mitigation techniques.
- Ability to interpret and apply ENA, BS EN, IEC, and DNO‑specific earthing standards.
- Confident producing and checking earthing layouts, sections, details, and calculation reports.
- Strong technical writing skills and ability to justify design decisions to clients and authorities.
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