Posting TitleSmart Charging and Vehicle Grid Integration Researcher
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LocationCO - Golden
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Position TypeRegular
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Hours Per Week40
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Working at NRELThe National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado is the nation's primary laboratory for research and development of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies.
From day one at NREL, you’ll connect with coworkers driven by the same mission to save the planet. By joining an organization that values a supportive, inclusive, and flexible work environment, you’ll have the opportunity to engage through our ten employee resource groups, numerous employee-driven clubs, and learning and professional development classes.
NREL supports inclusive, diverse, and unbiased hiring practices that promote creativity and innovation. By collaborating with organizations that focus on diverse talent pools, reaching out to underrepresented demographics, and providing an inclusive application and interview process, our Talent Acquisition team aims to hear all voices equally. We strive to attract a highly diverse workforce and create a culture where every employee feels welcomed and respected and they can be their authentic selves.
Our planet needs us! Learn about NREL’s critical objectives, and see how NREL is focused on saving the planet.
We invite all interested candidates to apply for this opportunity. While we recognize that job seekers may hesitate if they don’t meet every requirement, we encourage dedicated individuals who meet all the basic and additional required qualifications of the role to submit an application. We value the opportunity to consider those who believe they have the necessary skills and ambition to succeed at NREL.
Job Description
This position will help lead and contribute to efforts that lead to the seamless integration of the nation’s electric grid, electric vehicles, and electric vehicle charging. You will join a group of industry-leading experts that develop unique solutions that identify, evaluate, and resolve interoperability and reliability challenges of charging electric vehicles. The successful candidate will explore electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) and electric vehicle charging reliability at our world-class Electric Vehicle Research Infrastructure (EVRI) laboratory in the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) and contribute to the development of megawatt-level charging facilities being developed through the NREL’s Advanced Research of Integrated Energy Systems (ARIES) strategy. As we strive to make EV charging a better experience than conventional refueling for drivers, your efforts will create new opportunities and solve critical challenges for electrification of vehicles to move goods and people across the country.
The successful candidate will design and develop solutions that support a robust and resilient charging infrastructure that is integration with the grid and transportation. The solutions will be developed with broad collaboration with researchers at NREL and National Laboratory teams as part of the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation and Department of Energy. This effort will require unique insights and experiences of the candidate to develop necessary data, knowledge, and approaches to demonstrate improvement in the reliability of charging hardware through laboratory and in-field evaluation. Today’s charging infrastructure faces considerable growth with many distinct EVSE manufacturers, EV manufacturers, and charging network operators innovating to develop a broad electric vehicle charging ecosystem. The objective of this position is to identify best practices for the design, communication, and integration of charging infrastructure with the grid considering the various approaches that different electric utilities use to manage their distribution system and the technologies that automakers have equipped vehicles with.
Successful candidates will have a background and expertise in the following topics:
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Understanding of EVSE to site and back-end communications including, Open Charge Point Protocol (OCCP v1.6 and v.2.01), SEP2.0 (IEEE 2030), ModBus and Cloud services
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Understanding of electric vehicle-related interface and communications standards including, CAN, SAE J1772, J3400, IEC 61851, DIN 70121, ISO 15118 (-2,-20), PLC.
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Excellence in the ability and interest to work in the laboratory and design experiments, but also to accomplish project management tasks and function successfully in a team environment through written and verbal communication.
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Stakeholder engagement and experience working in or with the electric utility, automotive, or electric vehicle charging industries to include both a knowledge of current challenges and opportunities for electric vehicle grid integration.
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Strong presentation skills including the ability to present technical concepts to both technical and general audiences
Candidates at the Researcher IV level are able to apply extensive engineering technical expertise, and have full knowledge of other related disciplines. Considered a technical resource with demonstrated leadership in several areas of team, task or project lead responsibilities.
Candidates at the Researcher III level should be able to demonstrate a broad understanding and wide application of engineering technical procedures, principles, theories and concepts and exhibit a general knowledge of other related disciplines. Demonstrated leadership capabilities in one or more areas of team, task or project lead responsibilities. Demonstrated experience in management of projects.
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Basic QualificationsResearcher IV Level
Relevant PhD and 4 or more years of experience . Or, relevant Master's Degree and 7 or more years of experience . Or, relevant Bachelor's Degree and 9 or more years of experience .
Researcher III Level
Relevant PhD . Or, relevant Master's Degree and 3 or more years of experience . Or, relevant Bachelor's Degree and 5 or more years of experience .
* Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.
Additional Required Qualifications
Preferred Qualifications
Preferred candidates will have knowledge of and experience with electric vehicle technologies, such as high voltage batteries, inverters, and chargers; as well as knowledge of grid and EVSE and back-office networks necessary for payment and integrated EV-Grid operation. Further, preferred candidates will have qualifications in any of the following categories:
- Demonstrate broad understanding and wide application of utility distribution planning and operations practices.
- Experience deploying and operating Distribution Energy Resource Management Systems (DERMS), Advanced Distribution Management Systems (ADMS), or site level microgrid control systems.
- Demonstrated interaction with cross-disciplinary research team and external stakeholders.
- Research laboratory working knowledge and experience with vehicle testing. Experience with hardware testing and/or prototype system development skills, education, and/or experience
Researcher IV level candidates should have knowledge in all of the above preferred qualifications.
Researcher III level candidates should have knowledge in some areas of the preferred qualifications.
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Job Application Submission Window
The anticipated closing window for application submission is up to 30 days and may be extended as needed.
Annual Salary Range (based on full-time 40 hours per week)Job Profile: Researcher IV / Annual Salary Range: $95,500 - $171,900
Job Profile: Researcher III / Annual Salary Range: $79,600 - $143,300
NREL takes into consideration a candidate’s education, training, and experience, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value, including seniority and merit systems, and internal pay alignment when determining the salary level for potential new employees. In compliance with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, a potential new employee’s salary history will not be used in compensation decisions.
Benefits SummaryBenefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; short*- and long-term disability insurance; pension benefits*; 403(b) Employee Savings Plan with employer match*; life and accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance; personal time off (PTO) and sick leave; paid holidays; and tuition reimbursement*. NREL employees may be eligible for, but are not guaranteed, performance-, merit-, and achievement- based awards that include a monetary component. Some positions may be eligible for relocation expense reimbursement. Limited-term positions are not eligible for long-term disability or tuition reimbursement.
* Based on eligibility rules
Badging RequirementNREL is subject to Department of Energy (DOE) access restrictions. All employees must also be able to obtain and maintain a federal Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card as required by Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12), which includes a favorable background investigation.Drug Free Workplace
NREL is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace in accordance with the federal Drug-Free Workplace Act and complies with federal laws prohibiting the possession and use of illegal drugs. Under federal law, marijuana remains an illegal drug.
If you are offered employment at NREL, you must pass a pre-employment drug test prior to commencing employment. Unless prohibited by state or local law, the pre-employment drug test will include marijuana. If you test positive on the pre-employment drug test, your offer of employment may be withdrawn.
Submission Guidelines
Please note that in order to be considered an applicant for any position at NREL you must submit an application form for each position for which you believe you are qualified. Applications are not kept on file for future positions. Please include a cover letter and resume with each position application.
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EEO Policy
NREL is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard basis of age (40 and over), color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic partner status, military or veteran status, national origin/ancestry, race, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding), sexual orientation, and any other applicable status protected by federal, state, or local laws.
EEO is the Law | Pay Transparency Nondiscrimination | Reasonable Accommodations
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E-Verify is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. This business uses E-Verify in its hiring practices to achieve a lawful workforce.
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What We Do
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), a Department of Energy national lab, is #TransformingEnergy as the nation's primary laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development.
NREL's Mission: NREL develops renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies and practices, advances related science and engineering, and transfers knowledge and innovations to address the nation's energy and environmental goals.
NREL's Strategy: NREL has forged a focused strategic direction to increase its impact on the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) and our nation's energy goals by accelerating the research path from scientific innovations to market-viable alternative energy solutions
