Chief Engineer
Seniority Level: Mid-Career
Industry: Data Center Development and Operations – Onsite (Chester, VA)
Employment Type: Full-time, Salaried, Exempt
About Chirisa Technology Parks
Chirisa Technology Parks (CTP) is an owner and operator of large-scale data centers serving enterprise, cloud, AI, and HPC customers. CTP leverages deep expertise in design, development, and delivery combined with significant capital resources to provide best-in-class facilities and services for its customers and partners. With a growing pipeline of development projects across the U.S., CTP is committed to delivering institutional-quality assets while maintaining long-term value creation for its stakeholders.
Position Summary
The Chief Engineer is responsible for leading the day-to-day operation, maintenance, reliability, and continuous improvement of all critical infrastructure systems supporting the Chester data center. Reporting to the Facility Manager, this role provides technical leadership for site operations, oversees preventive, predictive, and corrective maintenance programs, directs technicians and contractors, and ensures all critical electrical, mechanical, cooling, fire protection, and monitoring systems operate safely, efficiently, and reliably.
The Chief Engineer serves as the site's primary technical authority, exercising independent judgment in troubleshooting complex equipment failures, prioritizing maintenance activities, evaluating operational risk, coordinating planned outages, directing emergency response, and supporting customer uptime commitments. This position plays a critical role in maintaining operational excellence through technical leadership, planning, compliance, team development, and continuous improvement.
Key Responsibilities
Critical Infrastructure Operations
- Lead the safe and reliable operation of all critical facility infrastructure, including UPS systems, generators, electrical distribution, switchgear, cooling systems, HVAC, CRAC/CRAH units, fire detection and suppression systems, fuel systems, BMS, and EPMS.
- Evaluate facility operating conditions and determine appropriate actions to maintain system reliability, availability, and customer uptime commitments.
- Prioritize operational activities based on equipment condition, customer impact, business continuity requirements, and overall operational risk.
- Coordinate and authorize planned maintenance activities and system outages in partnership with the Facility Manager, Operations team, vendors, and customers.
- Direct technical response during equipment failures, alarms, abnormal operating conditions, and emergency events.
- Ensure critical infrastructure is operated in accordance with approved procedures, manufacturer recommendations, regulatory requirements, and company standards.
Maintenance & Reliability
- Develop, implement, and continuously improve preventive, predictive, and corrective maintenance strategies for all critical infrastructure systems.
- Establish maintenance priorities based on equipment condition, operational risk, maintenance history, and business impact.
- Review maintenance schedules, work orders, service reports, and equipment histories to identify reliability risks and improvement opportunities.
- Lead complex troubleshooting efforts, perform root cause analyses, determine corrective actions, and coordinate repair strategies to minimize operational impact.
- Review recurring equipment failures and recommend long-term corrective actions, equipment upgrades, or replacement strategies.
- Monitor maintenance performance indicators, backlog, and completion trends and implement corrective actions as needed.
- Ensure maintenance work is properly documented, reviewed, and closed out in the CMMS.
Technical Leadership & Team Development
- Provide day-to-day technical leadership, work prioritization, coaching, mentoring, and performance feedback to data center technicians and engineering personnel.
- Assign and direct technical work based on operational priorities, employee capabilities, and facility requirements.
- Develop team capabilities through technical training, knowledge transfer, drills, and hands-on coaching.
- Establish expectations for operational discipline, accountability, safety, and quality of work.
- Evaluate technical performance and identify opportunities for individual and team development.
- Support onboarding and qualification of new Operations team members.
- Ensure technicians consistently follow approved operating and maintenance procedures.
Operational Procedures & Change Management
- Develop, review, and approve Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), Methods of Procedure (MOPs), Emergency Operating Procedures (EOPs), and related technical documentation.
- Evaluate proposed maintenance activities and operational changes for technical risk and customer impact.
- Ensure maintenance and operational activities are executed according to approved procedures and established change-management practices.
- Participate in planning and review meetings for high-risk maintenance and infrastructure activities.
- Identify procedural gaps and implement improvements that increase consistency, reliability, and operational safety.
Vendor & Contractor Management
- Direct contractor and vendor activities supporting critical infrastructure maintenance, repair, installation, and commissioning.
- Evaluate vendor technical capabilities, work quality, safety performance, and compliance with company standards.
- Review and approve completed contractor work prior to operational closeout.
- Coordinate vendor resources and schedules based on operational priorities and facility requirements.
- Participate in vendor selection, scope development, and technical evaluation as appropriate.
- Partner with Procurement and the Facility Coordinator to ensure appropriate materials, parts, and contracted services are available to support site operations.
Safety & Compliance
- Provide leadership in maintaining a proactive safety culture throughout site operations.
- Ensure compliance with OSHA requirements, NFPA 70E, Lockout/Tagout (LOTO), electrical safety standards, and applicable company safety programs.
- Review and approve maintenance activities involving elevated operational or safety risk.
- Participate in Job Hazard Analyses, safety audits, inspections, incident investigations, and corrective action planning.
- Ensure technicians and contractors comply with PPE, electrical safety, access-control, and site safety requirements.
- Support customer, regulatory, ISO, SOC, and internal audit activities.
- Ensure operational documentation remains complete, accurate, and audit-ready.
Incident Response & Business Continuity
- Serve as a technical leader during facility incidents, critical alarms, equipment failures, utility events, and emergency conditions.
- Evaluate technical conditions and determine appropriate response strategies to protect personnel, customers, and critical infrastructure.
- Direct troubleshooting, isolation, recovery, and restoration activities during operational incidents.
- Lead or participate in root cause analysis and post-incident reviews.
- Develop and track corrective actions resulting from incidents and equipment failures.
- Support emergency drills, disaster recovery planning, and business continuity readiness.
Projects & Commissioning
- Provide technical leadership for critical infrastructure upgrades, equipment replacements, capacity expansions, and improvement projects.
- Review project designs, equipment selections, specifications, and implementation plans for operational suitability.
- Coordinate project activities with Operations, Engineering, Construction, vendors, and customers.
- Participate in commissioning, testing, turnover, and acceptance of new or modified infrastructure.
- Identify operational risks associated with project implementation and recommend mitigation strategies.
- Ensure new equipment and systems are properly documented, integrated into maintenance programs, and transitioned into Operations.
Operational Excellence & Continuous Improvement
- Analyze equipment performance, maintenance trends, failure history, and operational data to identify opportunities to improve reliability and efficiency.
- Recommend infrastructure upgrades, capital improvements, and equipment replacement strategies.
- Support annual operating and capital budgeting by providing technical recommendations, lifecycle information, and maintenance forecasts.
- Identify and implement process improvements that strengthen reliability, safety, operational discipline, and team performance.
- Support capacity planning and evaluate infrastructure limitations or emerging operational risks.
- Identify energy-efficiency opportunities while maintaining critical system reliability and customer requirements.
- Prepare technical reports, recommendations, and operational updates for site leadership.
Required Experience
- 7+ years of experience in data center, mission-critical facility, industrial, utility, hospital, or similar critical infrastructure operations.
- Demonstrated experience operating, maintaining, and troubleshooting complex electrical and mechanical systems.
- Experience with critical infrastructure including UPS systems, generators, switchgear, electrical distribution, HVAC, cooling systems, BMS, EPMS, and fire protection systems.
- Demonstrated experience leading or providing technical direction to technicians, engineers, or skilled trades personnel.
- Experience developing or managing preventive and corrective maintenance programs.
- Experience troubleshooting complex equipment failures and conducting root cause analysis.
- Strong knowledge of mission-critical operational procedures, maintenance practices, and safety requirements.
- Ability to independently evaluate technical risk, prioritize work, and make sound operational decisions in a fast-paced environment.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to work effectively with employees, customers, vendors, contractors, and leadership.
Education
- Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Facilities Management, Engineering Technology, or a related discipline preferred.
- Equivalent combination of technical education, certifications, and significant mission-critical facility experience will be considered.
Preferred Qualifications
- Data center or colocation facility experience.
- OSHA 30 certification.
- NFPA 70E training or certification.
- EPA Universal certification.
- Electrical, mechanical, HVAC, or related trade license or certification.
- Experience with mission-critical equipment manufacturers such as Vertiv, Schneider Electric, Cummins, Caterpillar, Trane, or equivalent.
- Familiarity with ISO, SOC, environmental, and customer compliance requirements.
- Data center industry certifications such as CDCP, CDCS, or equivalent are a plus.
Core Competencies
- Technical Leadership
- Operational Decision Making
- Critical Infrastructure Reliability
- Risk Management
- Planning and Prioritization
- Problem Solving
- Root Cause Analysis
- Team Development
- Vendor Management
- Customer Focus
- Continuous Improvement
- Safety Leadership
Physical Requirements
- Ability to walk throughout active data center, mechanical, electrical, and office environments for extended periods.
- Ability to stand, bend, kneel, crouch, and work in equipment spaces as required.
- Ability to climb ladders and access elevated mechanical or infrastructure areas when necessary.
- Ability to occasionally lift or move equipment, tools, or materials weighing up to 50 pounds.
- Ability to safely work in proximity to energized electrical, mechanical, and rotating equipment while following applicable safety requirements.
- Ability to wear required Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), including arc-rated or other specialized PPE when applicable.
- Ability to work in environments with varying temperatures, noise levels, and equipment conditions.
- Ability to respond to operational emergencies and support after-hours maintenance activities as required.
Schedule
Full-time, onsite position based in Chester, Virginia. The normal schedule is primarily Monday through Friday; however, flexibility is required to support planned maintenance, critical infrastructure activities, customer requirements, and emergency response outside normal business hours. Participation in an after-hours or on-call rotation may be required based on site operational needs.
Job Type: Full-time
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Life insurance
- Paid time off
- Professional development assistance
- Referral program
- Retirement plan
- Vision insurance
Work Location: In person
