Head of Operational Technology

Job Description

British Solar Renewables creates smart energy systems for a net zero carbon future. British Solar Renewables develops (BSR Energy), builds (BSR EPC), and maintains (BSR O&M) utility-scale solar, wind and storage projects in the UK and internationally. Having developed and built in excess of 700MWp BSR are a major contributor to the UK Renewable Energy Sector.

The fundamental objective of the Head of OT is to manage the OT Team in designing, deploying, and supporting the communication and monitoring systems on new and existing distributed energy projects.

As new PV and battery sites increasing rely on their communication networks for operation, BSR needs to ensure that new designs meet the current requirements for performance and cybersecurity and that older designs are maintained and upgraded in line with current industry practises.

The Head of OT will also be available to provide advice and assistance for reactive issues which need additional skills or experience and will participate in an on-call rota for out-of-hours remote support along with the other members of comms team.

What you will be doing

• Manages and mentors OT engineers, delegating workload as necessary
• Works closely with multiple stakeholder teams including engineering, design, commercial, planning and construction to optimise solar PV and BESS project designs
• Ensure the OT Team are provided with all relevant information to complete designs
• Assumes OT design responsibility for solar PV and BESS project OT scope from concept, through construction and to final acceptance.
• Ensure BSR's cybersecurity policy is considered in new designs and in maintenance and upgrades of existing systems.
• Ensure the required documentation needed to implement the OT system designs is produced on time, e.g. cable schedules, network diagrams, and register lists
• Liaising with other teams & contractors to ensure that the overall project designs integrate smoothly
• Communicates directly with suppliers' technical / service support teams regarding product capabilities and reviews client enquiries, escalating as required to equipment manufacturers.
• Responds to EPC, O&M, technical advisor, funder, client, or asset owner technical enquiries. These enquiries may require several actions including documentation review, performance assessment, site survey and technical support
• Staying abreast of relevant developments in the telecommunications and technology marketplace
• Managing tickets raised by O&M and programming OT resource.
• Planning and overseeing maintenance of OT systems software and hardware installed at solar PV and battery energy storage plants throughout the UK
• Supporting operational staff with monitoring, data acquisition, security, and CCTV systems issue resolutions
• Adherence to the BSR Group's Quality Management System and processes

What experience you will have

Essential:

• Management of a technical team within the OT environment.
• Basic Windows administration knowledge, including Intune endpoint management
• Detailed knowledge of IT/OT networks and design principles; segmentation, VLANs, NAT, VPNs
• Strong knowledge of OT cybersecurity
• Industrial communication protocols including Modbus RTU / TCP, RS485 / serial communications
• Familiarity with network troubleshooting tools
• Technical problem-solving skills and an aptitude for implementing new ideas
• Self motivated; able to work remotely and independently
• Enthusiasm for ongoing personal development and learning
• Strong communicator with patience and perseverance, able to troubleshoot and problem-solve with remote staff or equipment

Preferred:

• Knowledge and experience of PV specific and general industrial data acquisition systems
• Linux system administration experience, focussed on Debian or derivatives, Ansible for centralised management, iptables/NFT firewalls.
• Experience of the following network equipment; Fortinet firewalls and switches, Mikrotik routers, Moxa industrial networking, OpenWRT
• PV, battery, and power electronics background knowledge
• Basic AutoCAD skills

What skills you need

• Ideally an undergraduate degree in STEM subject that provides a demonstrable background in IT, computing, computer networking, or electronics via relevant course modules, but may also include vocational training or extensive relevant work experience
• IT-related technical proficiency or security qualifications e.g. SANS, Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA or similar are advantageous, but not essential

Other

• Must possess a current Driving Licence
• Must be prepared to travel within the UK, including occasional overnight stays, and potentially abroad, for site visits

What you will get from BSR

• Monthly social events, such as team lunches, breakfasts, volunteering and a Christmas and Summer party.
• Hybrid working
• Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption policies.
• An annual bonus scheme which rewards you for all of your hard work.
• A referral scheme for when you refer someone to work at BSR.
• Supporting you beyond work with our Employee Assistance Programme offering 24/7 support.
• BSR will fund one professional membership per annum.
• 25 days of annual leave, plus bank holidays, with the option to roll over up to 5 days.
• Long Service Recognition Scheme
• Private Health insurance after completion of 3-month probation period.
• Life insurance
• Pension

Please send applications to [email protected]

Studies have shown that some groups of people, like women are less likely to apply for a role unless they meet 100% of the role requirements. At BSR, we are committed to equal opportunities in employment, if you are interested in one our positions, we encourage you to apply.

Our hiring decisions are not just about technical skills; but also about finding individuals whose values, work ethic, and personality would make a great addition to our team.

If you need reasonable adjustments for the interview process, contact us at [email protected]

We encourage candidates to apply promptly. This advert may close early if we receive a high volume of applications.