Engineer- Analytics II USA

First Solar reserves the right to offer you a role most applicable to your experience and skillset.

Basic Job Functions:

• The Analytics Engineer II is responsible for the development, validation, and continuous improvement of methodologies that accurately characterize the performance of First Solar photovoltaic products and systems. He/she will achieve results through leadership of cross-functional teams to identify research needs, develop and execute methods and test plans, and ensure quality of data collection, analysis and reporting.
• The successful candidate will be able to adapt quickly to new data and analytical requests from across the First Solar organization. This may include engineering statistical analysis, contract analysis, policy analysis and project management tasks.
• The ideal candidate will build relationships with internal and external groups to research state of the art Simulator IV measurements, third party lab validation, meteorological analysis, statistical analysis, and energy prediction methods & tools. He/she will be capable of independently identifying novel solutions to problems presented and communicating results to both a technical and non-technical audience.

Education/Experience:

• Bachelor's degree in Materials Science, Physics or Electrical Engineering with 5-8 years of relevant work experience in a manufacturing and/or research environment with related statistical analysis, data mining and technical leadership skills. OR
• Masters degree in Materials Science, Physics or Electrical Engineering with 2-5 years of relevant work experience in a manufacturing and/or research environment with related statistical analysis, data mining and technical leadership skills. OR
• PhD degree in Materials Science, Physics or Electrical Engineering with 0-3 years of relevant work experience in a manufacturing and/or research environment with related statistical analysis, data mining and technical leadership skills
• At least 3 years in a Photovoltaics, Power Engineering, or other renewable energy field.
• At least 3 years in working with PV Solar Third Party Agencies.
• At least 3 years in physical/technical data analysis.

Required Skills/Competencies:

• Familiar with solar PV module IV characterization, Solar Simulator Calibration, Third Party Lab collaboration.
• In-depth understanding of solar PV device behaviors and field performance of various technologies.
• Proficient with programming languages (Python, Matlab, R, or similar), relational databases (SQL server), data analysis and visualization software's (preferably jmp, Tableau, SAS).
• Proficient with solar simulation software (PVSyst, PlantPredict, PV Sol, PV Design Pro or similar).
• Experienced with standard data science and machine learning packages such as Numpy, Pandas, Matplotlib, seaborn, bokeh, plotly
• Have solid understanding of the machine learning model stack (regression, classification, neural networks, time series) and packages (Scikit learn, Xgboost, Keras, Pytorch, Tensorflow, statsmodels)
• Familiarity with renewables energy prediction modeling (preferably solar) and processing meteorological data and understanding of power engineering.
• Excellent communication, organization and interpersonal skills, comfortable to interpret data and modeling efforts to a large audience on a regular basis and publish results in reputed PV conference and journals.
• Strong self-direction, initiative, and ability to prioritize multiple tasks from various requestors, demonstrated ability to manage multi-faceted projects;
• Demonstrated results in developing and delivering customer-facing technical collateral

Essential Responsibilities:

• Develop solar module device characterization methods
• Collaborate with third party labs for external validation.
• Design, plan and execute testing to evaluate module performance to obtain competitive knowledge and insights.
• Forecast/Model long-term energy performance of First Solar modules in production/field environments, perform model vs actual analysis on a periodic basis. Identify areas of improvement in the models. Validate model predictions with measured data from plant monitoring systems and field test results.
• Evaluate the feasibility of new products, model energy performance of new module technologies under various meteorological climates, improve model through successive iterations, ensemble results to develop a robust model and validate model prediction with testbed before production deployment.
• Use advanced analytics tools such as Python, R, and Matlab to automate data analysis. Write and document reusable scripts with a mix of API's and packages.
• Develop methods to determine the statistical level of certainty around the quantity and quality of solar insolation at various project sites. This will include familiarity with short term and long term meteorological data sets and understanding industry accepted methods for interpolating data.
• Other duties as assigned.
• Job description subject to change at any time.

Reporting Relationships:

• Reports to Head of Performance and Prediction Analytics.
• This position will not have direct reports.

Travel:

• 0% - 5% (On occasion/as needed for training, etc.)

Estimated Annual Salary Range:

• $68,800 - $90,000 Estimated Annual Salary

US Physical Requirements:

• Will sit, stand, or walk short distances for up to 12 hours per day.
• Required to use hands to grasp, lift, handle, carry or feel objects on a frequent basis.
• 20/40 vision in both eyes (with or without correction) and the ability to distinguish between red, yellow, and green is required.
• Must comply with all safety standards and procedures.
• Ability to wear personal protective equipment is required (including, but not limited to: steel-toed shoes, cut-resistant gloves, jackets, aprons &/or arm guards, safety glasses or goggles, hearing protection & respirators) and a condition of employment and continued employment (may require little or no facial hair).

Office Physical Requirements:

All positions in our office require interaction with people and technology while either standing or sitting. To best service our customers, internal and external, all associates must be able to communicate face-to-face and on the phone with or without reasonable accommodation. First Solar is committed to compliance with its obligations under all applicable state and federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. In keeping with this commitment, it attempts to reasonably accommodate applicants and employees in accordance with the requirements of the disability discrimination laws. It also invites individuals with disabilities to participate in a good faith, interactive process to identify reasonable accommodations that can be made without imposing an undue hardship.

Potential candidates will meet the education and experience requirements provided on the above job description and excel in completing the listed responsibilities for this role. All candidates receiving an offer of employment must successfully complete a background check and any other tests that may be required.

Equal Opportunity Employer Statement: First Solar is an Equal Opportunity Employer that values and respects the importance of a diverse and inclusive workforce. It is the policy of the company to recruit, hire, train and promote persons in all job titles without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity. We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a driving force in the success of our company.