Critical Facilities Operations Manager - Electrical & HVAC Location: Montgomery, TXRole SummaryOur Client is seeking a hands-on
Critical Facilities Operations Manager to oversee the electrical and HVAC/mechanical infrastructure of its data center campus. The campus currently operates a Tier III colocation facility and is expanding to support high-density NVIDIA GPU (AI) clusters through 2027.
This individual will maintain 100% uptime at the existing facility, lead the restoration of aging electrical and cooling equipment, and oversee the power and cooling infrastructure for the expansion building. The role will manage facility technicians, contractors, and OEM vendors while collaborating closely with the Data Center IT, Network & DCIM Operations Manager.
Key ResponsibilitiesElectrical Systems- Oversee the operation and lifecycle of the complete power chain, including utility service, transformers, medium- and low-voltage switchgear, ATS and paralleling gear, generators, UPS systems and batteries, PDUs, RPPs, and rack power (A/B feeds).
- Manage generator programs, including weekly and monthly runs, annual load-bank testing, fuel quality and polishing, and fuel supply contracts.
- Maintain and update one-line diagrams, arc-flash studies, breaker coordination studies, and panel schedules.
- Plan and execute switching and shutdowns using written MOPs, enforcing lockout/tagout and NFPA 70E practices.
- Monitor power capacity by room, rack, and circuit, addressing power-factor and demand issues with the utility.
HVAC and Mechanical Systems- Oversee the chilled water plant, including chillers, cooling towers or dry coolers, pumps, valves, water treatment, and controls.
- Maintain CRAC/CRAH units, air handlers, humidification, containment, and raised-floor airflow management.
- Lead the replacement of end-of-life chillers and cooling units, from project scoping and vendor selection through startup.
- Review designs and commission high-density cooling systems for GPU racks (40-60+ kW per rack), including rear-door heat exchangers, direct-to-chip liquid cooling, and CDUs.
- Monitor and optimize temperature, humidity, and PUE in accordance with ASHRAE TC 9.9 guidelines.
Operations and Reliability- Manage 24/7 facility operations, including shift rounds, alarm response, escalation, and on-call rotations.
- Transition the site from paper-based rounds to a CMMS with preventive, predictive, and corrective maintenance schedules.
- Develop and maintain SOPs, MOPs, and EOPs for all critical systems.
- Lead incident response, root cause analysis, and corrective actions for facility events.
- Report monthly KPIs, including uptime, maintenance compliance, open work orders, capacity utilization, PUE, and energy costs.
Projects, Commissioning, and Capacity- Serve as the owner's representative for the expansion building by reviewing MEP designs, managing contractors, and leading Level 1-5 commissioning and integrated systems testing.
- Plan and execute the electrical and mechanical restoration program at the existing facility within schedule and budget.
- Coordinate GPU cluster deployments with the IT team, including rack layouts, power whips, cooling readiness, and handover.
- Develop CAPEX and OPEX budgets for facility work and track spending against approved budgets.
Vendors, Safety, and Compliance- Manage OEM service contracts for generators, UPS systems, chillers, switchgear, and fire suppression, along with electrical and mechanical contractors.
- Oversee life-safety systems, including VESDA, pre-action sprinklers, and FM-200, and maintain current fire marshal inspections.
- Ensure compliance with NEC, NFPA 70E/70B/110, OSHA, and applicable local and TCEQ permits for generators and fuel storage.
- Maintain readiness for customer audits and SOC 2 facility controls while coordinating with security on access control and CCTV.
- Hire, train, and lead facility technicians, developing a 24/7 staffing model that scales with the expansion.
Required Qualifications- 8+ years of experience operating mission-critical facilities, such as data centers, colocation facilities, hospitals, or telecom central offices, with 3+ years leading technicians or contractors.
- Strong hands-on expertise in electrical distribution systems, including switchgear, ATS, generators, UPS systems, batteries, and PDUs.
- Ability to read electrical one-line diagrams and safely perform or supervise switching operations.
- Strong hands-on knowledge of HVAC systems, including chilled water plants, chillers, CRAC/CRAH units, air handlers, controls, and airflow management.
- Proven experience leading planned maintenance and emergency response in live, energized facilities without customer impact.
- Working knowledge of NEC, NFPA 70E, NFPA 110, OSHA, and Uptime Institute Tier or TIA-942 concepts, including N, N+1, 2N, and concurrent maintainability.
- Experience with BMS/BAS and EPMS platforms, as well as CMMS systems for work orders and preventive maintenance schedules.
- Experience writing MOPs, SOPs, and EOPs and conducting root cause analyses.
- Ability to develop facility budgets and manage vendors according to scope, pricing, and schedule.
- Availability for on-call and after-hours response, with the ability to reach the Montgomery, TX site quickly.
Preferred Qualifications and Certifications- Bachelor's degree in electrical or mechanical engineering, or equivalent military experience (e.g., Navy nuclear, Seabee, or Air Force facilities) or trade experience.
- Texas electrical license (Journeyman or Master) or Texas ACR (HVAC) contractor license.
- Certifications such as CDCP/CDCS (EPI), BICSI DCDC, Uptime ATD/AOS, CFM, or CEM.
- NFPA 70E qualified-person training and EPA Section 608 Universal certification.
- Experience with high-density AI/GPU deployments and liquid cooling, including CDUs, rear-door heat exchangers, and direct-to-chip cooling.
- Experience commissioning a new data hall or capacity expansion from design through turnover.
- Experience restoring or retrofitting an older facility while keeping it operational.
- Familiarity with Entergy Texas tariffs, utility demand charges, and on-site generation or turbine permitting in Texas.
