Job DescriptionAbout the OpportunityThis is an open position with FirstEnergy Service Co., a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. [SC00]
The Supervisor of Transmission Line Engineering Standards is responsible for leading the development, governance, implementation, and continuous improvement of transmission line engineering standards, specifications, procedures, and technical design criteria that support safe, reliable, consistent, and cost-effective design and construction of FirstEnergy transmission facilities from 34.5 kV through 765 kV. This role provides day-to-day technical direction for standards governing overhead transmission line design, including conductors and shield wires, electrical clearances, structures, foundations, line switches, hardware, PLS-CADD criteria, PLS-POLE and PLS-TOWER modeling expectations, right-of-way design assumptions, encroachment guidance, and project closeout requirements. The position also ensures standards remain aligned with industry codes and technical references such as NESC, IEEE, ASCE, ACI, ASTM, ANSI, PJM technical requirements, and other applicable regulatory or industry requirements.
This position supervises a team of engineers, designers, and technical specialists responsible for developing, maintaining, interpreting, and communicating standards for FirstEnergy transmission line facilities. The Supervisor acts as a primary technical interface for internal and external design teams, construction, maintenance, commissioning, supply chain, asset management, transmission planning, real estate, vegetation management, and project management when standards interpretation, deviation evaluation, non-conformance resolution, or technical clarification is required.
Success in this position requires a technically credible leader who can translate complex transmission line design issues into practical, standardized solutions. The role requires hands-on familiarity with transmission line design workflows, including PLS-CADD modeling, structure loading calculations, sag-tension and clearance evaluations, foundation design inputs, hardware and material selection, bill of material alignment, and design criteria development. The ideal candidate demonstrates sound engineering judgment, clear technical writing, strong collaboration skills, and a commitment to safety, reliability, field practicality, and continuous improvement.
Responsibilities Include:- Foster a high-performing safety culture where employees own, promote, and reinforce safe behaviors and feel empowered to speak up.
- Lead the development, revision, approval, publication, and communication of transmission line engineering standards, specifications, procedures, design tools, and technical templates for facilities from 34.5 kV through 765 kV.
- Create and maintain standards that support safe, consistent, and efficient design practices.
- Establish and maintain clear governance for standard approvals, technical exceptions, standard deviations, non-conformance documentation, stakeholder review, and incorporation of approved exceptions into project records and closeout documentation.
- Ensure standards align with NESC, IEEE, ASCE, ACI, ASTM, ANSI, PJM, state regulatory requirements, and other applicable industry standards, while balancing regional operating practices across the FirstEnergy footprint.
- Coordinate updates to FirstEnergy standards based on industry code revisions, operating experience, lessons learned, field issues, material performance, construction feedback, vendor changes, and new technology evaluations.
- Maintain traceability between engineering standards, construction standards, material stock codes, design criteria files, project checklists, and long-term document archival requirements.
- Provide technical leadership for standards related to electrical clearances, conductor and shield wire selection, OPGW coordination, transmission line switches, hardware assemblies, structures, foundations, PLS-CADD criteria, PLS-POLE and PLS-TOWER modeling, right-of-way width assumptions, and encroachment reviews.
- Review and interpret design criteria involving NESC clearance calculations, FirstEnergy voltage-based clearance buffers, conductor blowout, insulator swing, uplift, transition-zone clearances, underbuild clearances, vegetation management separations, and right-of-way requirements.
- Review deviation requests, exception requests, non-standard structure applications, design criteria assumptions, and constructability-driven field changes as required.
- Support technical reviews involving PLS-CADD, PLS-POLE, PLS-TOWER, FAD Tools, LPILE, Mathcad, AutoCAD, MicroStation, GIS, and related engineering analysis tools used for high-voltage overhead transmission design.
- Provide engineering interpretation and subject-matter support to construction and maintenance teams during construction, emergency restoration, equipment issue resolution, and post-construction closeout.
- Evaluate emerging technologies, materials, and design methods such as advanced conductors, high-temperature conductors, EHV hardware, OPGW options, condition-monitoring systems, digital design platforms, and grid-enhancing technologies.
- Support technical standardization for EHV and UHV transmission applications, including conductor bundle selection, corona and audible noise considerations, EMF, lightning and shielding performance, hardware and insulator coordination, structure family development, and maintainability considerations when applicable.
- Incorporate industry benchmarking and external technical practices into FirstEnergy standards when appropriate.
- Drive standardization initiatives that improve reliability and resiliency, reduce unit cost, reduce design errors, streamline project execution, and increase traceability of design decisions across the facility lifecycle.
- Oversee technical standard updates that improve consistency in plan and profile drawings, construction lists, standard notes, material lists, design assumptions, field markups, and document archival in approved FirstEnergy systems.
- Review and refine quality standards aligned with industry best practices, manage technical risk, and help maintain technical excellence across standards deliverables.
- Facilitate knowledge transfer from standards updates, industry working groups, vendor engagements, outage lessons learned, field issues, emergency restoration experiences, design deviations, and internal training programs.
- Use fact-based decision making and stakeholder engagement to resolve competing viewpoints across FirstEnergy and develop standards that best serve the company, customers, safety, reliability, and long-term asset performance.
- Supervise, coach, and develop a team of engineers, designers, and technical specialists responsible for transmission line standards development and technical support.
- Assign, prioritize, and monitor standards work based on technical risk, project impact, regulatory or code changes, system needs, stakeholder commitments, and resource capacity.
- Partner with Transmission Design, Substation Engineering, Planning and Protection, Operations, Construction, Maintenance, Supply Chain, Asset Management, Real Estate, Environmental, Vegetation Management, Legal, Project Management, and external consultants to ensure standards are technically sound, practical, and constructible.
- Represent FirstEnergy, or support team members representing FirstEnergy, in industry organizations and technical working groups such as IEEE, CIGRE, EPRI, NATF, and similar forums.
- Create an environment of accountability, technical curiosity, professional growth, collaboration, and timely execution while reinforcing FirstEnergy's safety culture, values, behaviors, and compliance expectations.
Qualifications include:- Bachelor's degree in Engineering from an ABET-accredited institution, preferably Civil, Electrical, or Mechanical Engineering.
- Professional Engineer (PE) license in at least one state served by FirstEnergy.
- Seven or more years of progressively responsible transmission line engineering experience, including demonstrated experience developing, applying, reviewing, or maintaining transmission line standards, design criteria, calculations, or engineering deliverables.
- Strong working knowledge of overhead transmission line design for 34.5 kV through 765 kV facilities, including clearances, sag-tension, conductor and shield wire selection, structure loading, hardware, foundations, switches, permits and approvals, right-of-way requirements, and project closeout expectations.
- Demonstrated experience applying NESC, IEEE, ASCE, ACI, ASTM, ANSI, PJM, and other applicable industry codes, standards, and design references to transmission line engineering decisions.
- Strong working knowledge of PLS-CADD, PLS-POLE, PLS-TOWER, FAD Tools and/or LPILE; familiarity with Mathcad, AutoCAD, MicroStation, GIS, or other transmission design tools is desirable.
- Ability to review technical calculations, design criteria, construction drawings, plan and profile drawings, structure loading packages, foundation assumptions, material specifications, and design deviation requests.
- Excellent technical writing skills with the ability to convert complex engineering requirements into clear standards, specifications, procedures, checklists, standard notes, and stakeholder communications.
- Ability to coach and develop employees, provide technical direction, resolve technical conflicts, and build consensus across engineering, construction, maintenance, supply chain, and operations stakeholders.
- Must adhere to FirstEnergy's Code of Conduct and applicable industry compliance obligations and must actively support a safety-focused work environment for co-workers, contractors, and the public.
Preferred Qualifications - Prior supervisory, team leadership, project leadership, or technical lead experience.
- Advanced technical degree or additional technical training in civil/structural engineering, electrical power engineering, transmission line design, reliability, asset management, or project delivery.
- EHV or UHV project design and standards experience, including 345 kV, 500 kV, or 765 kV transmission line design, structure family development, conductor selection, corona/audible noise/EMF considerations, and structure or hardware testing.
- Participation in industry standards bodies, technical committees, or working groups such as IEEE, CIGRE, EPRI, NATF, ASCE, or other transmission industry forums.
- Experience with conductor economic studies, advanced conductor evaluations, OPGW fault-current sizing, lightning and shielding studies, EMF or audible noise modeling, induction studies, or facility rating methodology.
- Experience representing the company in legal, regulatory, permitting, siting, or approval proceedings associated with transmission line development, including preparation of technical support or expert testimony.
- Familiarity with utility asset management, capital project delivery, procurement processes, material standardization, vendor engagement, and consultant engineering oversight.
- Experience developing or facilitating technical training, onboarding materials, design review procedures and continuous improvement initiatives for transmission engineering teams.
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SafetySafety is a core value for FirstEnergy and is essential to all of our business activities. We ensure employees have the tools, information, and processes to perform their duties in a manner that assures safety for themselves, their co-workers, our customers and the public. Our goals are to provide a safe work environment, to maintain an accident-free, injury-free workplace, and to promote and maintain public safety. To meet these goals, we dedicate ourselves to achieving world-class safety standards.
Position ClassificationExempt
FirstEnergy Human Resources Team 
