
Substation Civil Site Designer
Required skills
- MicroStation
- Civil 3D
- OpenRoads
- AutoTURN
- grading
- drainage
- stormwater management
- erosion and sediment control
- roadway
- access drive
Nice to have
- substation experience
- utility client standards
- HEC-RAS
- Hydraflow
- HydroCAD
- SWPPP preparation
Role summary
Seeking a remote Substation Civil Site Designer to support our Chicago office. The role involves developing site design drawing packages and documentation for electric utility substation projects, ranging from greenfield substations to brownfield expansions. Responsibilities include creating civil site plans, grading, drainage, stormwater management, erosion control, roadway, and utility layouts. The designer will perform earthwork calculations, AutoTURN analyses, and prepare permit-ready drawing packages. Coordination with various engineering disciplines, surveyors, and geotechnical engineers is essential. The position requires proficiency in MicroStation (minimum 3 years) and experience with civil site design for utility or industrial projects. Familiarity with permitting processes and agency coordination is also necessary.
We are looking for a skilled and experienced Substation Civil Site Designer to work remotely supporting our Chicago, IL office.
In this role, you will work alongside Civil engineers to develop site design drawing packages and supporting documentation for electric utility substation projects. Projects range from greenfield substations to brownfield expansions and require coordination with multiple engineering disciplines. (While substation experience is preferred, it is not required)
Responsibilities Include:
Develop new and modify existing substation civil site plan drawings.
Prepare grading, drainage, and stormwater management plans.
Develop erosion and sediment control plans in accordance with local and state requirements.
Prepare roadway, access drive, and site layout plans.
Perform earthwork grading and cut/fill balancing using Civil 3D or OpenRoads/MicroStation workflows.
Perform AutoTURN analyses for construction and maintenance vehicle access.
Prepare utility layouts including storm sewer, sanitary, and water service plans where required.
Develop permit-ready civil drawing packages for utility and agency review.
Assist with preparation of permitting exhibits and support environmental and jurisdictional permitting efforts.
Coordinate with surveyors, geotechnical engineers, structural engineers, and substation electrical teams.
Review civil-related vendor drawings and incorporate comments as required.
Assist with quantity takeoffs and preparation of project deliverables.
Apply applicable client standards, local agency requirements, and industry best practices to all assignments.
Substation Civil Site Designer Qualifications:
-
Level 3:
Associate’s degree or technical diploma in Civil Engineering Technology, Drafting Technology, or related field.
Minimum 2 years of civil site design experience using MicroStation.
-
Level 4:
Associate’s degree or technical diploma in Civil Engineering Technology, Drafting Technology, or related field.
Minimum 3 years of civil site design experience using MicroStation.
Strong proficiency with MicroStation (required).
Experience developing civil site plans for utility, industrial, commercial, or municipal projects.
Working knowledge of grading design and earthwork calculations.
Experience preparing erosion and sediment control plans.
Familiarity with stormwater management principles and permitting requirements.
Experience performing AutoTURN vehicle turning analyses.
Understanding of site development permitting processes and agency coordination.
Ability to interpret survey and geotechnical information.
Proficiency with Microsoft Word and Excel.
Strong communication and organizational skills.
Ability to work both independently and within multidisciplinary engineering teams.
Strong attention to detail and commitment to producing high-quality deliverables.
Substation Site Civil Designer Preferred Experience/Additional information:
Experience supporting electric utility substation projects.
Familiarity with utility client standards.
Experience with HEC-RAS, Hydraflow, HydroCAD, or similar hydrology software.
Knowledge of SWPPP preparation and stormwater permitting requirements.
Experience coordinating local, county, and state permitting agencies.
At Leidos, we pride ourselves on being a trusted and technology-focused solutions provider. Our Power Delivery Services Team is the go-to for utilities and mobile operators who need reliable power and telecommunication expertise. We've worked with over 50 investor-owned utilities, over 160 municipals/cooperatives, and we're continuing to expand our reach. Plus, we've got an amazing group of industry-leading construction partners who help us deliver meaningful Energy Delivery Solutions. Our recognition as an industry leader has been confirmed time and time again. Engineering News-Record (ENR) has ranked Leidos among the Top 10 T&D Firms and Top 10 Power Firms.
At Leidos, the opportunities are boundless. We challenge our staff with interesting assignments that provide them with an opportunity to thrive, professionally and personally. For us, helping you grow your career is good business. Your greatest work is ahead!
PDSSUBSTATION
PowerDelivery
If you're looking for comfort, keep scrolling. At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo — because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 — and moving faster than anyone else dares.
Original Posting:
September 4, 2026For U.S. Positions: While subject to change based on business needs, Leidos reasonably anticipates that this job requisition will remain open for at least 3 days with an anticipated close date of no earlier than 3 days after the original posting date as listed above.
Pay Range:
Pay Range $48,100.00 - $86,950.00The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.
Originally posted on Himalayas
Sample Leidos interview questions
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What are the key considerations when designing a highly available and consistent service registry?
system designmedium - 2
Buildings with an Ocean View Find all buildings that have an ocean view. Input: heights = [1,2,3,4] Output: [3] Explanation: Since the ocean is to the right, only the rightmost tallest building (index 3) is not blocked by any others.
codingmedium - 3
Merge K Sorted Linked Lists Merge K sorted linked lists. Input: lists = [[2,2,3],[1,5]] Output: [1,2,2,3,5] Explanation: Extracts the smallest current node iteratively using a priority queue to build a single merged and sorted linked list.
codingmedium - 4
Optimal Meeting Point Calculate the optimal meeting point for multiple people on a 2D grid. Input: grid = [[1,0],[0,1]] Output: 2 Explanation: The optimal meeting point is either (0,1) or (1,0), requiring exactly 1 step from each person resulting in a total distance of 2.
codingmedium - 5
Maximize the minimum distance between aggressive cows in stalls. Input: stalls = [0,4,3,7,10,9], cows = 3 Output: 4 Explanation: Placing the cows at positions 0, 4, and 10 yields a maximum possible minimum distance of 4 between any two cows.
codingmedium
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