Solar PV Engineering Intern | Rockville, MD 43 views

Solar

Location: MD
Dayaway Comment: Not certain this is a SUMMER internship, but seems worth looking into.

About the job
Job Summary

The PV Engineering Intern provides support in development, design and construction stage of commercial and/or utility-scale solar electric system projects. He/she will execute engineering and technical tasks to support site evaluation, conceptual design development, sensitivity analysis of design variables for optimization and review of site drawings/plans during early stage. The PV Engineering Intern will support design phase coordination, navigate the requirements from authorities having jurisdiction and incentive programs, and help ensure the design compliance with owner’s technical specification through design and construction phase. Deliverables include conceptual design drawings, site evaluation reports, energy production estimates, single line electrical diagrams and design logs. Additionally, the intern will support special projects related to research, data entry and analysis, and updates to policies and procedures. This role provides exposure to the wide breadth of responsibilities associated with a renewable energy engineering career.

Duties & Responsibilities

Conduct detailed site evaluations for targeted projects, including but not limited to, due diligence review, proposal development and engineering support in development, design and construction stages in Integrated Project Team (IPT).
Learn and apply PVsyst, Microsoft Excel, and other programs to complete tasks
Gain an understanding of the National Electrical Code (NEC), the International Building Code (IBC), the International Fire Code (IFC) and the National Electrical Safety Code (NESC).
Perform detailed energy production modeling calculations, string sizing, PV array to inverter matching, voltage drop, as well as orientation and inter-row spacing analysis.
Provide engineering and/or technical input and direction relevant to site evaluation and characterization, and related project development tasks.
Participate in Request for Proposal (RFP) reviews, technical writing, and response coordination.
Conduct research on factors impacting project feasibility and cost, and propose options to improve project viability and constructability.
Review drawings across civil, electrical, structural disciplines to ensure compliance with owner’s technical specifications and industry best practices.
Maintain constant communication with key members of project team and other departments as needed to ensure optimal system design, including but not limited to, design workload reporting for use in forecasting and scheduling.
Review, digest, and summarize requirements from renewable energy incentive programs and authorities having jurisdiction, including city and county agencies, utilities, and site hosts.
Coordinate with equipment vendors to identify technical challenges and develop solutions.
Work with appropriate electric utilities to gather requirements for the interconnection process. Prepare and process interconnection paperwork; provide technical support and aid in management of interconnection process.
Meets and/or exceeds established performance objectives of assigned duties as defined and communicated by management.

Supervisory Responsibilities

The PV Engineering Intern does not currently supervise any staff members.

Minimum Education, Skills & Experience

High school diploma and two years progress towards a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering required. Graduating seniors with a BS degree in Engineering will be given priority. Conceptual understanding of solar photovoltaic technology and grid tied solar PV systems. Understanding and working familiarity with current AutoCAD software version is a plus, as well as MS Office suite.

Position Routinely Interfaces With

Customers and the general public
Integrated Project Team
Engineering team
EPC department
All employees, including Senior and Executive Management

Physical Demands

Conducts work in both a field-type environment or in a professional office setting with local travel to jobsites to conduct inspections.

Physical Working Conditions May Involve The Following

Lifting up to 50 pounds.
Extended periods of sitting, walking, standing, reaching, and/or bending.
Extended periods of reading fine print on a computer or in paper-based format.

Non-physical Demands

Routine aspects of this position may require the following non-physical demands:

Analytical and logical reasoning.
Problem solving and researching skills.
Time management and organizational skills.

Potential Hazards

Routine aspects of this position may place the incumbent in situations where they may be susceptible to potential hazards from the following:

Trips, slips and/or falls while on customer property.
Chemical abrasives used in office and kitchen cleaning.
Lifting items up to 50 pounds in weight.
Other hazardous conditions on customer premises, not otherwise defined here.

Potential Career Path

Upward

Project Engineer
Senior Project Engineer
Engineering Manager
Director of Engineering

Solar