Principal Product & Field Safety Engineer, Ford Energy
In this position...
The Principal Product & Field Safety Engineer is a principal-level individual contributor responsible for the safe installation, commissioning, operation, maintenance, troubleshooting, and emergency response of utility-scale Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) across multiple platforms.
This role defines and governs cross-functional safety design standards across multiple BESS platforms and serves as the technical authority for system-level safety architecture, ensuring work can be performed safely throughout the product lifecycle. The role drives technical consensus across hardware, software, and field operations teams, works closely with Engineering, Field Service, Commissioning, Operations, Quality, and customers, and mentors engineering peers.
The position is hands-on and field focused. The ideal candidate understands high-voltage electrical systems, stored energy hazards, lithium-ion battery risks, lockout/tagout, emergency response, and the realities of technicians working on energized or potentially hazardous equipment in the field.
This is not a people-leader position. It is a principal-level technical role expected to provide subject-matter expertise, define standards and procedures, train and mentor teams, investigate safety events, and improve how safety is incorporated into our products and field operations.
What you'll do...
- Safety Procedures & Safe Work Practices:
- Develop, maintain, and continuously improve BESS-specific safety procedures, work instructions, and technical safety documentation.
- Own and support lockout/tagout (LOTO) procedures for BESS equipment, including electrical, mechanical, stored-energy, and auxiliary-energy isolation.
- Develop safe work practices for commissioning, troubleshooting, preventive maintenance, corrective maintenance, component replacement, and other field-service activities.
- Battery Hazards & Emergency Response:
- Develop procedures and guidance for battery thermal events, thermal runaway, smoke, fire, off-gassing, abnormal temperatures, and other battery-related hazards.
- Develop and maintain Emergency Response Plans (ERPs) and product-specific emergency response procedures for BESS sites.
- Support emergency situations involving battery systems and provide technical safety guidance to field teams, customers, first responders, and internal stakeholders as appropriate.
- Electrical Safety & Risk Assessment:
- Develop electrical safety procedures covering high voltage, arc-flash hazards, grounding, stored energy, verification of absence of voltage, and safe approach boundaries.
- Support job hazard analyses, job safety analyses, pre-task planning, and risk assessments for field-service and commissioning activities.
- Review field procedures and service instructions to ensure safety requirements are clearly incorporated before work is released to technicians.
- Training & Qualification:
- Develop and deliver safety training for commissioning personnel, field-service technicians, authorized service providers, contractors, and other personnel working on BESS equipment.
- Develop qualification requirements for personnel performing higher-risk work, including LOTO, energized electrical work, high-voltage activities, and emergency response.
- Field Support & Incident Investigation:
- Provide technical safety support during commissioning, energization, troubleshooting, maintenance, and major repair activities.
- Conduct field observations and site safety assessments to identify unsafe conditions, procedural gaps, product hazards, and opportunities for improvement.
- Participate in investigatio...
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