Hv Technical Associate Director – Great Grid Partnership in Cardiff

Joining Arup

Arup’s purpose, shared values and collaborative approach has set us apart for over 80 years, guiding how we shape a better world.

We deliver transmission and distribution design projects globally.

In the UK, we provide services from concept through to detailed design and construction for a wide range of clients, including established asset owners and new market entrants such as interconnectors and private wire schemes.

As an example, Arup recently formed a joint venture with AECOM to serve as the design and consenting service partner for the UK National Grid’s Great Grid Partnership.

Over a period of 8–12 years, we will help deliver key aspects of the transmission grid transformation, ensuring a resilient, low-carbon energy network for the future.

This is the UK’s largest grid modernisation programme, set to deliver five times more electricity infrastructure than has been built in the past three decades.

These projects, part of the Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment (ASTI) framework, will enhance the country’s energy backbone, supporting planned renewable developments such as wind farms in the North Sea and East Anglia coastline.

By expanding and enhancing the grid, this programme will accelerate the transition to net zero, reduce reliance on fossil fuels, and drive down energy costs.

This collaboration will drive a comprehensive design and construction program aimed at connecting clean energy to homes and businesses across England and Wales by 2030 and beyond.

The Opportunity

Provide strategic and authoritative technical leadership across specific electrical engineering aspects of major transmission and infrastructure projects within the UK Great Grid Partnership and other similar projects.

You will lead the design, assurance, and integration of all electrical elements of the works — including primary plant, protection and control, SCADA, earthing, auxiliary systems, commissioning, and interfaces with civil, structural and construction disciplines, ensuring seamless multidisciplinary coordination and high quality delivery that underpins the resilience and expansion of the national electricity network.

This role combines technical direction, strategic planning, and delivery oversight, drawing on experience that spans substation works, cable routes, OHL, and largescale infrastructure programmes.

It requires an individual who can influence at senior levels, provide technical assurance across multiple work packages, and represent the HV electrical engineering discipline in high stakes client and governance forums, scaling infrastructure programmes.

Key Responsibilities

• Leadership & Strategy
• Provide organisation wide technical leadership.
• Define and uphold best practice design methodologies and GGP technical governance standards, including integration with National Grid assurance processes.
• Act as a trusted advisor to senior stakeholders, providing insight on constructability, engineering risk, programme readiness, and cross-discipline technical dependencies.
• Drive consistency and technical excellence across bundles, ensuring alignment with GGP Charter behaviours.
• Project Delivery
• Oversee design, assurance, and integration of electrical engineering deliverables including:
• Substation electrical design, including primary plant, busbar arrangements, switchgear, transformers, reactive compensation, earthing, lighting, small power and auxiliary systems.
• Protection, control, automation and SCADA systems, including relay settings philosophy, control building interfaces, telecoms, metering and cyber-secure integration.
• Cable and OHL electrical engineering interfaces, including ratings, bonding, insulation coordination, electrical clearances, commissioning requirements and energisation readiness.
• Lead validation and mobilisation activities during design transitions, including review of incumbent designs, identification of design gaps, and optimisation opportunities.
• Ensure electrical design inputs meet all programme milestones, budget constraints, and contractual requirements.
• Promote digital engineering, modern methods, and integrated design solutions to drive quality, efficiency, and innovation.
• Technical Governance & Assurance
• Lead technical reviews, challenge assumptions, and provide authoritative signoff across complex electrical design packages.
• Oversee risk management processes for electrical design, ensuring issues and lessons learned are captured, escalated, and actioned.
• Ensure compliance with all health, safety, wellbeing, and CDM related requirements throughout design activities.
• Team & Capability Development
• Mentor, develop, and guide electrical engineers and interdisciplinary design teams, supporting capability uplift and succession planning.
• Lead onboarding and transition support for new team members, ensuring continuity and knowledge transfer across bundles.
• Foster a collaborative, high performing team culture that values learning, integration, and technical excellence.
• Stakeholder & Client Engagement
• Act as the primary technical interface with National Grid, partner organisations, contractors, and wider stakeholders.
• Represent electrical engineering in design forums, site visits, technical meetings, and governance reviews.
• Support tendering, cost optimisation, and technical strategy for bids and major programme investments.
• Innovation & Industry Leadership
• Advocate for continuous improvement, enhancement of processes, and standardisation of tools/templates across the electrical engineering discipline.
• Contribute to industry development in electricity transmission infrastructure engineering, representing the organisation in professional and regulatory forums.

Is this role right for you?

Essential

• Chartered Electrical Engineer (CEng IET) or equivalent, with extensive experience in major electricity transmission network infrastructure.
• Proven leadership of multidisciplinary electrical design teams, including design assurance, technical governance, and stakeholder engagement.

• Strong technical expertise across

• HV substation primary plant, protection and control, SCADA, telecommunications, metering, earthing, auxiliary systems and commissioning.
• Transmission substation electrical layouts, single line diagrams, schematics, interlocking, protection philosophies and equipment specifications.
• HV cable and OHL electrical design interfaces, including ratings, earthing and bonding, insulation coordination, electrical clearances, testing, commissioning and handover.
• Demonstrated ability to coordinate and integrate with civil, environmental, geotechnical, and structural disciplines.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with experience presenting at senior governance levels.
• Experience of business development and work winning and working across the project lifecycle from concept to detailed design, including working for / with contractors.

Desirable

• Experience working to National Grid standards.
• CDAE accreditation or familiarity with GGP assurance frameworks.
• Proficiency with design tools such as CCMCAP, CDEGs, ETAP, Powerfactory and other electrical design platforms.
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