What are the responsibilities and job description for the Technical Support Specialist - System Protection position at Arizona Public Service - APS?
The Engineering Technician – System Protection provides critical support for APS’s NERC PRC and CIP compliance programs through high-volume, accuracy-critical data entry, workflow management, and documentation control. This role manages SigmaFlow and Industrial Defender records, prepares recurring compliance deliverables, and ensures audit-ready evidence for protection-related assets. Responsibilities also include short-circuit model data preparation, stakeholder meeting representation and engagement, project coordination support, and protection system reporting. By absorbing recurring non-engineering tasks essential to APS’s processes, this role enables engineers to focus on core engineering duties.
Minimum Requirements
- High school diploma/GED, at least 60 semester hours in engineering or related discipline (electrical, mechanical, physics, math, computer science, drafting, etc.) or two years of experience managing technical data, documentation, or analytics using databases or spreadsheet tools. Experience in IT analytics or database management.
- Two years of experience using Microsoft Office tools, including Excel, Power BI, Word, Outlook, and CoPilot, with strong ability to organize, analyze, and report on technical data.
- Knowledge of applicable basic engineering principles and practices, mathematics and computer applications.
- Ability to interpret engineering documents (e.g., drawings, device lists, event reports) without performing engineering judgment.
- Demonstrates excellent verbal and written communication skills across diverse teams and stakeholders.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:
- Experience with utility compliance or technical data systems such as SigmaFlow, Industrial Defender, PowerBase, CAPE, or similar tools.
- Familiarity with NERC PRC and CIP standards, protection system terminology, or transmission system components.
- Strong organizational and multitasking skills suited for compliance-driven environments.
Key Responsibilities
- Compliance Data Management
- Perform high-accuracy data entry and workflow staging in SigmaFlow and Industrial Defender for CIP compliance processes.
- Ensure audit-ready documentation by maintaining accurate, complete, and traceable evidence.
- Track regulatory deadlines, documentation gaps, and change management requirements.
System Protection Engineering Support
- Maintain and validate protection device metadata across PowerBase, SigmaFlow, and internal databases.
- Generate recurring reports, including monthly relay comparison and quarterly protection operations summaries.
- Attend stakeholder meetings, capture scope details, and provide project documentation support.
- Prepare short-circuit modeling data for CAPE/APA to include line constant, Local Zones of Protection (LZOPs), and respond to distribution line data requests.
- Assist with coordination and documentation across multiple transmission projects.