Back to jobs
New

Data Center Controls Engineer

Austin, Texas, United States

Element Critical provides hybrid infrastructure solutions in an expanding portfolio of data center facilities across the country. Our mission is to meet the diverse needs of today’s business and technology leaders by delivering superior service and product offerings, cultivating trusted relationships with our customers, and motivating and enabling our employees. 

This is an opportunity to get involved near the ground level and grow exponentially with a company that is poised to execute. Come join our team!

 Department: Facility Operations 

FLSA Status: Exempt  

Location:  Austin, TX (on-site) 

Reports to: Director of Facility Operations

OVERVIEW 

Element Critical is seeking to add a Data Center Controls Engineer to the Facility Operations team, who aligns with our company values of accountability, integrity, grit, and problem-solving. This role will be responsible for all things related to controls, including but not limited to design standards, implementation, and project management, and maintaining the company building electrical power management systems (EPMS), automation systems (BAS), and building management systems (BMS) for all Data Centers. You will develop new processes and standards while innovating in the control space. Overall desire is to create reliable and efficient controls (BAS, BMS, EPMS) that serve Operations and Customers. 

RESPONSIBILITIES

Responsibilities will include but not be limited to the following: 

  • General 
    • Collaborate with design and operations teams to develop and enforce automation logic, ensuring systems meet operational standards. 
    • Manage cross-functional partnerships with internal operations and engineering teams to troubleshoot complex control loop issues.  Utilize 3rd party vendors and contractors to resolve issues. 
    • Assist in procurement related activities including request for quotation/proposals, responding to request for information, assist in review of vendors proposals and submittal processing.  
    • Attend project related meetings, coordinate with project leaders, and regularly report status to management. 
    • Frequent visits to data centers to troubleshoot issues and supervise 3rd party vendor’s work to ensure compliance with the scope, design, and applicable local codes. 
  • Create and maintain SOOs and documentation of existing controls infrastructure. 
    • Assemble library of I&C design documents, submittals, as-builts, and O&Ms 
    • Controls equipment inventory: sensors, valves, controllers, etc 
    • Vendors, contacts, contracts, warranties, licenses, entitlements, passwords, 3rd party network access 
  • Initial and periodic audit of existing implementations 
    • Security risks 
    • Operations risks (reliability, SLA risks) 
    • Excessive energy or maintenance costs 
  • Annual controls opex and capex budgeting 
    • Critical remediation capex 
    • Maintenance contracts 
    • Maintenance capex: end-of-life equipment replacement 
    • Upgrades in support of corporate goals, e.g. energy efficiency, operating efficiency, safety and reliability, reporting 
  • Corporate design & operations standards 
    • Develop, document, publish design guidelines 
      • Architecture 
      • Hardware, vendors 
      • Operator interfaces – style guide (ISA 101) 
      • Naming schemes (ISA 5.1) 
      • SOOs 
      • Monitoring 
      • Alerting/Notifications 
  • SME and leader for 3rd party implementations (new construction, upgrades/additions, special projects) 
    • Lead scope definition, contractor vetting, pricing review, selection, on-boarding, progress meetings 
    • Lead owner’s submittal and RFI review 
    • Vet change orders 
    • Lead QA/QC during implementation 
    • Lead the commissioning life-cycle for data center BAS, BMS and electromechanical systems, ensuring validation of Building Automation, Building Management, and EPM System to control and monitor HVAC and electrical infrastructure effectively. 
      • Ensure commissioning effectiveness by reviewing scripts, monitoring execution, and reviewing reports & issues 
    • Lead owner’s punch and follow-up 
    • Vet closeout and transition to operations 
  • SME and leader for internal support and customer integrations (similar to IT).  Collaborate with and support Facility Ops teams to enable local control within the I&C sandbox for reliability, reporting for efficiency and operations initiatives, as well as managing all training, documentation 
    • Implement and support customer integrations as directed by Customer Ops. 
    • Review results and action items from the quarterly maintenances for BMS and electrical systems and take actions to get them resolved. 
  • Operate and maintain all controls hardware & software 
    • Oversee the testing and tuning of mechanical plant controls (chillers, cooling towers, AHUs), ensuring data visibility and system redundancy are maintained through robust SCADA implementations. 
    • Break-fix, preventive maintenance, ongoing tuning and adjustments. 
    • Participate in on-call schedule as secondary escalation to provide immediate BMS and electrical system technical support to in-service data centers. 
    • Troubleshoot and perform Root Cause Analysis or Corrective Action for BAS, BMS and  EPMS system related issues in Element Critical’s data centers. 
    • Per-site and global plant performance reporting 
    • Develop and maintain maintenance program for all controls equipment 
      • Hardware PM (calibrating sensors, stroking valves, etc) 
      • Platform PM (patches as appropriate, backups, etc.) 
    • Specify IT and network resources required by controls applications 
    • Configure and manage EPMS, BAS, and BMS system alarm frameworks, optimize alarm logic, prioritization, and thresholds to reduce false alarms, improve signal-to-noise ratio, and ensure rapid, accurate response to critical infrastructure events to actionable events by the Facility Operations team. 
  • Special projects assigned by Manager. 

REQUIREMENTS & QUALIFICATIONS

The ideal candidate will possess the following: 

  • Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering,  Systems Engineering, or equivalent practical experience. 
  • 5 years of experience in data center or critical facility environment, focused on the commissioning of mechanical systems and industrial controls. 
  • 5 years of experience with Building Management Systems, PLC programming, SCADA Architecture (e.g., Modbus, BACnet, industrial networking). 
  • Experience managing projects in a Design/Build delivery environment for mission-critical facilities, with a focus on cooling and mechanical automation. 
  • Experience with contractors and site safety teams to ensure commissioning activities align with construction schedules and safety protocols. 
  • Excellent communication skills. 
  • Travel expected up to ~40%. 

Element Critical is a well-funded, fast paced organization that is seeking to make several acquisitions over the next few years and develop into a very strong national player.  We offer the following benefits, in addition to a focus on growing our culture and engagement.

  • PPO and HDHP Healthcare Plans 
  • FSA and HSA with above market Employer HSA Match 
  • Dental and Vision Insurance 
  • Employer Paid Disability and Life Insurance 
  • Additional Group Insurances 
  • Paid Vacation, Sick, and Personal Leave  
  • 10 Company Paid Holidays 
  • Paid Parental Leave
  • 401k with up to 4% Employer Match 
  • Personal Development and Learning Opportunities 
  • Employee Referral Program

Create a Job Alert

Interested in building your career at Element Critical? Get future opportunities sent straight to your email.

Apply for this job

*

indicates a required field

Resume/CV*

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Cover Letter

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Select...
Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in Element Critical’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

Select...
Select...
Race & Ethnicity Definitions

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.

Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability

Form CC-305
Page 1 of 1
OMB Control Number 1250-0005
Expires 04/30/2026

Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

Completing this form is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer is confidential. No one who makes hiring decisions will see it. Your decision to complete the form and your answer will not harm you in any way. If you want to learn more about the law or this form, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
  • Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
  • Blind or low vision
  • Cancer (past or present)
  • Cardiovascular or heart disease
  • Celiac disease
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
  • Diabetes
  • Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
  • Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
  • Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
  • Intellectual or developmental disability
  • Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
  • Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
  • Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
  • Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Neurodivergence, for example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
  • Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
  • Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
  • Short stature (dwarfism)
  • Traumatic brain injury
Select...

PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. This survey should take about 5 minutes to complete.