Wright-Hennepin Cooperative Electric Association is a member-owned, not-for-profit electric utility that provides power to rural Wright County and western Hennepin County. The cooperative has been a corporate citizen to the area since 1937 and currently serves more than 59,000 electric accounts. 

We are in the process of building out a new state-of-the art control center that will optimize operations and manage our evolving electric grid.  WH will make significant investment in deployment of advanced grid technologies over the next 4 years.  It is estimated our current infrastructure will double in the next 10 years, and we are expecting large load growth in the coming decade.  This is the future of the electric distribution system, and we are looking forward to the added capabilities and expertise we are building to manage our future growth.

Part of our growth plan is to hire a Distribution System Operator (DSO)/ Associate DSO to serve as the switching authority overseeing the operation, control, maintenance, monitoring, and optimization of the distribution network, including substations, transformers, and distribution lines. The DSO/Associate DSO will be responsible for writing switch plans, performing outage analysis, managing major storm events, and assisting in various data reporting functions. The DSO/Associate DSO will play a critical role in maintaining grid stability, managing peak demand, and supporting the transition to a smarter, more sustainable energy system. Other duties include (but are not limited to) distribution equipment and generator run time analysis utilizing SCADA information and alarms, reliability and power quality reporting using the Cooperative’s Outage Management System (OMS) and Automated Metering Infrastructure (AMI) as well as wholesale power usage via power supplier information.

Hours: This position will work during daytime hours Monday-Friday and will be included in the 24/7 on-call rotation every 4 weeks.

Pay & Benefits: $40-60/hour depending on qualifications.  WH offers a comprehensive health insurance plan including medical, dental, and vision coverage. WH also offers a generous company 401K match and contributions to a Health Savings Account. Employees have the potential to receive an annual bonus. Paid time off and paid holidays are provided. Other benefits include tuition reimbursement programs, flexible spending account access, dependent care FSA, and more. 

Location: This is a full-time in-office position located at our company headquarters in Rockford, Minn. Rockford is located 15 miles west of Plymouth on Hwy 55. 

Key Responsibilities

40% System Reliability Operations

• Review, approve, and direct clearance procedures and safety guidelines for operating the automation equipment.
• Review, approve, and manage WH Switching Plans per the Engineering Process Guide. Prepare emergency switching requests and procedures. Perform switching authority duties and responsibilities for all work under their jurisdiction.
• Manage real-time operation and control of the distribution system. This includes managing voltage levels, monitoring equipment performance, and responding to outages.
• Leverage data to analyze grid performance, energy consumption patterns, and predictive maintenance.
• Prioritize outages, emergency response requests and non-outage service orders and dispatch to line crews. Schedule and assign work to line crews that need a switch plan or clearance orders for them to safely complete their work.
• Provide work direction for efficient and effective operation of the distribution system and balance the needs for service and response with cost-effective practices.
• Demonstrate proficiency in SCADA operations such as reclosers and switches to minimize restoration times and switching labor.
• Operate the SCADA equipment to enhance safety, prevent outages, reduce outage length, and improve member service.
• Assure Automated Vehicle Location (AVL) system is operating correctly and report on items that need attention to ensure seamless operation.
• Monitor load and voltages on circuits and substation equipment during switching and peak periods to assure loading parameters are not exceeded. 
• Monitor SCADA systems and respond appropriately to alarms, including contacting correct personal to inform, log and carry out alarm corrections.

15% Engineering Support

• Prepare reports and data analysis utilizing various software systems.
• Prepare reports upon request for management to assist with reporting key business indicators.
• Provide monthly report of activities and responsibilities, including reporting on reliability metrics.

15% Emergency Planning & Response Dispatching

• Serve as on-call support and report to headquarters in response to severe weather events or when certain outage criteria are met to assume operation responsibilities from contracted outage call and dispatch center. 
• Perform grid management duties in managing major outages, oversee restoration priorities to achieve the best response times possible and assist the line crew foremen in attaining mutual aid including tree contractors, line crews and office support.
• Assist in updating the Emergency Response Plan, participate in annual Tabletop Exercises, and coordinate efforts in disaster drills.
• Work as liaison between WH Lead Line Crew Foreman and contracted outage call and dispatch center to ensure proper crew call out procedures are followed, including on-call rotation updates and tracking of line crew callout hours.
• Request emergency locates for repairs as needed.
• Act as a key contact for after-hours dispatching procedures and guidelines with contracted outage call and dispatch center, ensuring all contact information, triggering criteria, MayDay procedures, and notification procedures are kept current.
• Communicate to other designated staff through group-texting and group-emails of key information such as members without power, number of outages, number of feeders and substations out during major outages. 
• Regularly perform testing of phone systems used by members to report power outages to ensure uninterrupted communication to contracted outage call and dispatch center. 
• Serve as liaison to transmission provider for substation and transmission switch procedures, inquiries on transmission disturbances, and other duties to enhance safety & reliability.

15% Software System Management 

• Energy and Distribution Management System – operate system equipment monitored and controlled using SCADA and maintain the current status of distribution system model.
• AMI system – utilize database analysis tools to evaluate transformer loading, protective device sizing, and line loading. Monitor the AMI system daily to ensure all meters are communicating properly, issue work orders as directed on matters such as high/low voltage and vendor liaison support.
• GIS system – assist in overseeing the accuracy and critical updating of the GIS system. Assist GIS Coordinator as needed to ensure system changes are recorded accurately and connectivity is properly modeled in the OMS system. Perform miscellaneous map updates as requested. 
• Work Management System – create service orders for crews to perform miscellaneous O&M functions. 
• Outage Management System (OMS) – Work with supervisors to automatically notify outage groups when certain criteria are met including number of outages and members without power. Evaluate momentary and sustained outage data for monthly reporting and make recommendations on feasible capital improvements or maintenance which will improve conditions. 

 15% Load Management Coordination 

• Monitor power supply levels using SCADA and other analysis tools.
• Log generation run times and load control activity on an interval basis and submit daily reports as directed by management.
• Create and prepare analysis tools to assist in load management and DSM decisions.
• Perform power curtailment and load shedding steps to meet daily set points through load control technology. Serve as on-call support during weekends and Holidays when extreme weather conditions are forecasted to conduct load management and generator peak control. 
• Track run times of generators owned by WH Generation to allow for annual emissions reporting as required on air permits.
• Track run-times for member-owned generators that participate on the Interruptible rate as well as hours of interruption for those members on an interruptible or PDL rate that do not have a generator to ensure compliance with all existing contracts. 
• Perform load control or SCADA operations for other cooperatives that have contracted us to perform this service for them via our SCADA system.

Candidates who meet the following requirements will be considered for a Distribution System Operator (DSO) position.  

• 2+ years of system operator experience OR Journeyman Lineman experience
• 2-year technical degree in power operations OR 2+ years of system experience (dispatch, utility, power, or similar.)

Candidates who meet the following requirements will be considered for an Associate DSO position

• 2-year technical degree in electric utility or other technical area (power limited, electric, low voltage, or similar)
• 2+ years of experience in an electric utility
• Ability to complete the DSO apprentice program within 3 years

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities for DSO and Associate DSO

• Ability to work on-call, nights and weekends on a rotational basis (17 weeks/year on average)
• Knowledge of electrical distribution systems and equipment
• Ability to remain calm and make decisions in stressful and/or complex situations
• Experience with electrical distribution systems, mapping, and construction techniques
• Data analytics, experience using databases and highly proficient in Excel
• Proficiency in Access database
• Openness to change in terms of process and systems
• Ability to work in a flexible work environment, can multi-task and move between regularly changing priorities
• Strong communication skills, ability to interact directly with members, line crews and management
• High attention to detail
• Problem solving ability