High Voltage (HV) Transformer Design, Redesign & Repair Engineer (Dry-Type & Oil-Filled)
Department: High Voltage Engineering & Technical Services
Employment Type: Full-Time
Location: Burnaby, BC, Canada
Travel: Domestic and international travel required, including site visits across Canada (substations, generation stations, and heavy industrial facilities) and regular factory visits to China.
Position Overview
We are seeking an experienced Transformer Design, Redesign & Repair Engineer to lead technical redesigns, apparatus remanufacturing specifications, diagnostic evaluations, and commissioning oversight for both oil-filled and dry-type transformers, encompassing 25 kV class distribution transformers and power transformers up to 150 MVA and 500 kV.
Based out of our Burnaby, BC office, this is a dedicated engineering analysis, technical supervision, and reporting role. The engineer does not perform manual trade labour, handle physical tools, or directly operate HV test equipment. Primary responsibilities focus on evaluating active-part conditions, executing reverse engineering and redesign calculations - including standard units and specialty equipment such as rectifier transformers and 12/18-pulse drive configurations - interpreting complex electrical test datasets, drafting comprehensive engineering reports, and providing technical supervision for workshop rebuilds and on-site assembly/commissioning across Canada.
The role also involves regular factory visits to China for quality audits, design reviews, and Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) witness verification. Full professional bilingual fluency in English and Mandarin (written and verbal) is required to author formal engineering documentation, consult with Canadian clients, and liaise directly with overseas manufacturers.
Key Responsibilities
1. Diagnostic Data Interpretation & Engineering Analysis
- Review, interpret, and validate third-party and contractor electrical test data in accordance with applicable industry test codes (e.g., NETA, CSA, IEEE).
- Analyse test results, including overall insulation power factor / dissipation factor (tan delta), excitation current, and capacitive bushing C1/C2 test data.
- Evaluate comprehensive diagnostic test results: Dissolved Gas Analysis (DGA), Sweep Frequency Response Analysis (SFRA), Partial Discharge (PD), transformer turns ratio (TTR), winding resistance, insulation resistance, and core-ground integrity.
- Assess mechanical active-part condition, degree of polymerisation (DP), furan content, and dielectric oil quality based entirely on engineering analysis and laboratory results.
2. Technical Report Writing & Documentation
- Author clear, authoritative Engineering Condition Assessment Reports, benchmarking measured field data against industry criteria and operational tolerances.
- Compile forensic Root Cause Failure Analysis reports following shop teardowns or field failures, identifying dielectric, mechanical, or thermal failure mechanisms with supporting technical evidence.
- Draft detailed, actionable Repair, Rewind, and Modification Scopes of Work (SOW) to instruct workshop craftspeople and field service teams.
- Prepare formal assembly and commissioning oversight summaries, factory audit reports, and engineering compliance documentation.
3. Transformer Redesign & Reverse Engineering
- Execute reverse engineering and redesign calculations for aging, damaged, or uprated oil-filled and dry-type units (25kV class distribution transformers and power transformers up to 150 MVA and 500kV).
- Perform electrical, dielectric, and thermal calculations for standard units and specialty applications, including rectifier duty transformers and 12-pulse / 18-pulse phase-shifting arrangements (extended delta, fork, or polygon connections, harmonic stray-loss mitigation, and multi-tier secondary isolation).
- Calculate winding geometries, clearance distances, insulation gradients, leakage reactance, and thermal losses:
- Oil-Filled Transformers: Continuous disc, helical, and interleaved winding redesigns, oil cooling duct arrangements (ONAN/ONAF/OFAF), and leakage flux control.
- Dry-Type Transformers: Vacuum Pressure Impregnated (VPI) and Cast Resin (CRT) winding structures, thermal-class insulation coordination (Class H/C), and duct ventilation.
- Produce engineering markups, bill of materials, and coil winding design cards for workshop remanufacturing and overseas fabrication.
4. Engineering Supervision: Shop Repairs & Canadian Site Commissioning
- Provide high-level technical oversight during workshop active-part de-tanking, core disassembly and restacking, coil winding, vapour-phase drying, and final tanking.
- Conduct technical site visits across Canada to supervise physical transformer assembly, radiator/cooler header placement, bushing mounting, vacuum dehydration, oil processing, and pre-energisation checks.
- Serve as the on-site engineering authority to resolve non-conformances, verify contractor test configurations, and sign off on test results prior to utility or industrial energisation.
5. China Factory Audits & Bilingual Technical Liaison
- Conduct regular factory visits to China to audit manufacturing quality, inspect cleanroom winding facilities, and conduct Technical Design Reviews (TDR).
- Witness and verify routine, type, and special Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) at overseas test bays.
- Serve as the principal bilingual technical interface: translate engineering specifications, drawings, test certificates, and Non-Conformance Reports (NCR) between English and Mandarin.
Required Qualifications (Non-Negotiable)
Candidates must meet all of the following requirements to be considered for the position:
- Education: Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from an accredited Canadian institution, or an international degree transferable to Canadian standards (must meet or be eligible to satisfy the academic qualification requirements for professional engineering licensure with EGBC / Engineers Canada).
- Experience: Minimum of 5–8+ years of dedicated professional engineering experience in transformer design, redesign, condition assessment, or failure analysis covering 25 kV class distribution transformers and power transformers up to 150 MVA and 500 kV (both dry-type and oil-filled apparatus).
- Diagnostic Interpretation: Experience interpreting Tan Delta tests, SFRA, DGA, and comparing offline test results to test standards such as NETA.
- Report Writing: Proven track record of drafting comprehensive, professional engineering reports in English, including Condition Assessments, Root Cause Failure Analysis reports, and Repair Scopes of Work.
- Standards Familiarity: Familiarity with recognized high-voltage apparatus standards (e.g., IEEE C57 series, IEC 60076, or NETA specifications), along with existing knowledge of, or a demonstrated willingness to learn and apply, Canadian standards (CSA C88, CSA C9).
- Language Fluency:
- Full professional fluency in English (written and verbal) for client-facing technical reports, utility meetings, and formal engineering documentation.
- Full professional fluency in Mandarin Chinese (written and verbal) with mastery of technical transformer design, manufacturing, and factory test terminology.
- Mobility & Licensing: Valid driver’s licence, valid passport, and eligibility to travel freely across Canadian provinces, the United States and internationally to China without restriction.
Preferred Qualifications (Assets)
These qualifications represent advantageous skills and credentials that will distinguish candidates:
- Specialty Apparatus Experience: Practical engineering experience in the design, failure investigation, or remanufacturing of rectifier transformers and multi-pulse drive units (12-pulse, 18-pulse configurations).
- Professional Designation: Active registration as a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) with Engineers and Geoscientists British Columbia (EGBC) or another Canadian provincial engineering association.
- Systems Software & Engineering Practises: Experience with some of the following software packages and engineering practises would be an asset:
- Easy Power
- ETAP
- Fault calculation and short circuit studies
- Load Studies
- Network Impact Studies
- PSCAD
- SKM Tools
- Solid Works
- Existing Canadian Standards Mastery: Prior direct working background executing projects specifically to CSA C88 and CSA C9 specifications.
- Tap Changer Knowledge: Specialized familiarity with On-Load Tap Changer (OLTC) internal diverter/selector mechanisms, operational timing charts, and contact wear evaluation (e.g., Reinhausen/MR, ABB/Hitachi).
- Simulation & Modelling: Working knowledge of 2D/3D electromagnetic and thermal modelling software (e.g., ANSYS Maxwell, COMSOL) used in transformer design verification.
- Dielectric Fluid Alternatives: Exposure to natural or synthetic ester dielectric fluids and high-temperature solid insulation systems.
Working Conditions
- Professional engineering, supervisory, and evaluative role; no manual trade labour, tool usage, or direct test set operation is involved.
- Time is split between the Burnaby engineering office, repair workshop observation areas, outdoor/indoor utility substations across Canada, and overseas manufacturing plants.
- Willingness to travel across Canada on short notice for critical site failure reviews and assembly supervision across diverse seasonal weather conditions.
- Adherence to utility safety rules, substation work-protection codes, and necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) while conducting site observations.
Compensation & Benefits
- Base Salary Range: CAD $115,000 – $145,000 per annum (commensurate with experience; no bonus programme)
- Retirement Plan: 4% employer-matched Registered Retirement Savings Plan, comprehensive extended health, dental, vision, and paramedical coverage
- Paid annual vacation entitlement and statutory Canadian holidays
- Full coverage of professional eng. association dues (EGBC / P.Eng.) and approved technical development courses
- Full reimbursement for all domestic and international travel expenses, accommodation, and daily per diems
