Director of Engineering

Leads the electrical subject matter discipline within the wider EMEA - Design, Engineering & Construction function and is fundamental to the quality, technical delivery evolution and operation of our standardised product offering to our customers, requiring innovation and driving force to ensure that DRT remains as market leader. This senior individual contributor level role actively contributes to: new project master plans; development of electrical/mechanical systems for use by the wider Design Delivery Group; design standardisation; and continuous improvement development and implementation; and finally both outage investigation/recovery as well as triage of proposed adds, moves and changes within the live environment of our existing fleet of DRT data centres to confirm the required level of DE&C involvement in ongoing upgrade works.

An electrical subject matter expert who is an enthusiastic and proactive individual displaying exceptional organisational and presentation skills who is confident interacting with senior level stakeholders both internal to the wider DRT organisation as well as Red Carpet Customer representatives. An experienced subject matter expert (SME) design professional with an advanced technical background in electrical systems with substantial operational expertise to ensure that the next iteration of DRT’s project delivery solutions is well considered and robust.  Operating strategically under their own initiative, they will control all aspects of the electrical subject matter development for inclusion in the wider project delivery design group.

Requiring predominately electrical discipline technical expertise as well as an understanding of commercial and delivery schedule awareness to support the ongoing acquisition master planning and delivery of new project developments as well as contributing to ongoing design standardisation, all with a view to continually improving our overall development delivery in a safe and commercially beneficial manner within recognised schedule constraints.

The Design, Engineering & Construction Group’s driver is to deliver a quality service and product that complies with our internal EMEA standards as well as our Customer’s expectations all in line with DRT’s project goals and by working with our professional teams applying DRT’s systems, procedures and culture.

JOB MAGNITUDE

Latitude - internal stakeholder relationship management – the role requires continued collaboration and coordination with multiple internal DRT organisational stakeholders including, but not limited to:

• Acquisitions Group;
• Portfolio Management Group;
• EMEA Managing and Senior Managing Directors;
• Design delivery Lead as well as Regional DD’s, SDM’s & DM’s within the D&E Group;
• Solutions Engineering and Implementation Services Teams;
• Pre-construction & Construction teams;
• DC Regional Operations team;
• Global DE&C representatives inclusive of the Group CTO;
• Other internal support functions such as: Legal; HR; Finance; etc.

Latitude - external stakeholder relationship management – the role also requires regular interaction with external stakeholders ranging from Red Carpet Customers to Vendors, again including but not limited to:

• Red Carpet Customers;
• Key plant and equipment Vendors;
• Directly employed Consultants, QS’s and PM organisations;
• Other specialist suppliers/consultants as required.

Level of Impact – the electrical subject matter expert collaborates with all other disciplines within the wider ‘Programme Development & Support’ group as well Design Delivery colleagues for all aspects of EMEA-wide programme development, support and upgrade.

Budget – in conjunction with the Director of Programme Development & Support, the candidate will collaborate with other Design, Construction, Portfolio Management and Project Management colleagues to determine the magnitude of any required third party project Consultancy fees and other required budgets for incorporation into the annual business plan.

RESPONSIBILITIES & DUTIES

Master Planning, Technical Leadership, Design Standardisation & Continuous Improvement

• Lead EMEA-wide electrical discipline inputs to acquisition & master planning works;
• Undertaking feasibility and viability studies with Acquisition, Investment and Portfolio teams – including review of existing building refurbishment/upgrade/refit opportunities;
• Alignment of exiting electrical standards and component blocks to support DRT’s emerging standards;
• Provides oversight and assistance with writing and editing of electrical specifications and equipment selection for building systems and devices;
• Assists with key plant & equipment standardised specification as well as Vendor selection;
• Provides strategic direction for ‘build-to-suit’ opportunities focused around Red Carpet Customers;
• Incorporation of strategic DRT operational excellence;
• Acts as mentor/discipline expert to group personnel, providing continuous evaluation, assistance and support through professional training and career development;
• Reviews all electrical deliverables for technical content, quality and adherence to code/standardisation requirements;
• Collaborates with Programme/Design Development staff, Project Managers and Market Sector Leaders to improve or develop new engineering methods to improve efficiency, technique, quality, and dependability;
• Conduct electrical development reviews to ensure projects adhere to specification and standards;
• Manages all electrical technical expertise and standardisation related activities to ensure that expansion and new-build data centre project documentation is available for use in Design Delivery to comply with:
  • defined baseline project (DEG’s/DER’s) and other engineering standards;
  • within corporate expansion and build-out processes;
  • to achieve relevant business case objectives/metrics such as build-cost and schedule;
  • ensuring alignment into the DRT gating process;
  • to adhere to DRT standards in terms of operation, quality, customer service, security and ICT policies;
• Assists in the creation of templates for required documentation such as: BoD’s; gating review documents AG2 through G1; etc.;
• Identify quality/latent defect issues and contribute to solution resolution;
• Ensure that design lessons learnt are captured and incorporated into standardised designs;
• Ensures that latest innovation/technologies are available and communicated throughout the wider team;
• Ensure that all electrical/mechanical standardised designs conform to Global industry standards;
• On occasion work with external customers to bespoke DRT’s standardised design with their specific requirements based on standard design principles;
• Represents DRT on SME related Forums/Groups that define industry standards, best practices etc.;
• Governs technical design innovation and in particular incorporation of DfMA strategies;
• Working with external Governance parties such as: Insurance; permitting; planning; fire; etc;
• Communicating ad hoc electrical technical details to internal stakeholders as required;
• Continually lives and promotes DRT’s core values.

ADDITIONAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

1. EMEA Standards/Standardised Design Alignment - Evolution & Process

• Leads the electrical input/update of the EMEA standardised design aligning with global standards based on:
  • EMEA White book;
  • historic DER’s and updated DEG’s;
  • design processes and generic deliverables;
  • feedback from the Operations team;
  • gaps/inconsistencies etc. identified throughout project implementation;
  • ongoing market developments in projects, new requirements, etc.
• Ensures that standardised design solutions do not jeopardise DRT’s safety and quality standards;
• Reviews power topology option review appraisals for all new developments;
• Manages the electrical update of EMEA design engineering guides/requirements (DEG’s/DER’s), input to include:
  • overseeing the implementation of new design systems and tools;
  • leads account level electrical discipline reviews with our Framework Consultants to ensure standardisation of implementation;
  • ensures lessons learnt are factored into current and future projects/standards;
• Involvement with/support of the Global R&D team to help develop/evolve DRT’s standards;
• Assist in the implementation of clear strategy for ‘offsite manufacture/on-site assembly pre-fabrication’.

1. Disaster Review/Recovery & Live Data Centre Upgrades

• In the event of an IT, Utility or back-up power outage, attend site to investigate the root cause and propose remedial works with a view to reinstating operation as quickly as possible;
• Review, identify and capture lessons learnt from either a design, construction, commissioning, operation or maintenance perspective to incorporate into DE&C processes moving forward;
• Triage (review) proposed electrically biased adds, moves or changes to either primary equipment or power topologies proposed by Operations within DRT’s live data centres to confirm the level of involvement required from DE&C;
• When required DE&C involvement is identified, liaise with the relevant Regional Design and or Construction Director to agree process and or ownership moving forward;
• Review, propose and implement processes that suitably reduce the requirement for DE&C to have to be involved in live DC electrical upgrades moving forward.

ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE

• A minimum of 10 years date centre design/delivery experience in an electrical SME design environment;
• 7-10 years of progressive management experience;
• Either electrical/mechanical data centre design experience or experience of highly serviced building designs;
• An awareness of contractual responsibilities and internal/external interfaces;
• A thorough understanding of the relationship between CSA elements of the scheme and primary mech, elec and ICT elements and in particular the commissioning and IST of the same;
• Previous involvement in the delivery of multiple large (EUR200m+) developments.

COMPETENCIES

• Ability to communicate effectively and tactfully with DRT personnel at all levels with the confidence to explain and defend electrical standardised design decisions to both Customers and Contractors;
• To be able to succinctly and confidently communicate complex technical challenges at a range of levels of detail to a range of technical and non-technical audiences;
• To be able to distil the pro’s and con’s of technical option reviews in a clear, concise, and compelling way for executive audience presentation as well as more in-depth technical audiences;
• An ability to persuade and negotiate disagreements between internal/external stakeholders to resolution;
• Effective time management skills with the ability to be involved in multiple initiatives concurrently;
• Well-developed analytical and problem-solving skills with a pragmatic, yet structured approach to developing and appraising technical solutions;
• Extensive knowledge of electrical building codes, standards and construction systems;
• Familiar with full project life-cycle from: planning; design; permitting; construction and commissioning to IST;
• To operate in a fast-paced, high-pressure environment providing the direction required to respond to current pressures/ongoing Programme developments;
• Experience of resilient either LV and HV power systems as well as typical cooling solutions utilised;
• A good organiser/system implementer able to effectively identify and manage risk;
• Conscientious, well organised with the strength of character to challenge fellow team members;
• A level of Project Controls acumen with an appreciation of the impact of technically led decisions;
• Listens attentively, speaks clearly and concisely, creates accurate and punctual reports and gives clear instructions and shares information and ideas with others;
• Adept at problem solving, breaking down problems into smaller components understanding underlying issues and can simplify and process complex issues;
• Understands the difference between critical details and unimportant facts;
• Adapts to change, is open to new ideas and takes on new responsibilities in a high-pressure environment to meet ever changing needs.

QUALIFICATIONS

• As a minimum, a Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering;
• Ideally a higher qualification (Masters/PHD) in electrical engineering;
• Ideally Chartered or holds professional registration in electrical/mechanical engineering;
• Extensive familiarity and working knowledge of: Building & energy; ASHRAE; NFPA; codes;
• LEED AP a plus;
• Familiarity with building systems commissioning CxA a prerequisite.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

Specific EMEA Operations & other Technical Input and Coordination

• Provide and/or coordinate technical support to DRT Operations and in particular for diagnostics in the case of major incident/outages with the wider EMEA region;
• Fully engage in Supplier/Vendor relationship management as part of the OFCI VMI process;
• Likely areas of regular ad-hoc focus shall include, but not be limited to:
  • sustainability improvements;
  • design/construction standards;
  • design process improvements;
  • ongoing industry body engagement.
• Provide and/or coordinate electrical technical support for Sales Engineering when Customer requirements have the potential for significant engineering changes and or infrastructure impacts;
• Provide and/or coordinate impact assessments/feasibility assessments of Customer solutions presented and provide assistance with technical information for ongoing costing/buildability purposes;
• Improving and simplifying the DE&C’s ongoing processes and organising procedures to ensure Operational Excellence and optimal productivity;
• Support the SVP/VP Global/EMEA DE&C in the development, refinement, and execution of key strategic DE&C initiatives that will contribute to the DE&C global goals delivery.