Field RF Engineer

Description

Sun Corridor Network (SCN), as Arizona’s Research and Education Network, is among the country's fastest-growing organizations. Formed as a collaboration between Arizona’s public universities our mission is to advance connectivity, research, and education at gigabit speeds for all Arizonans. The SCN is at the forefront of advancing innovative technologies to address Arizona's most pressing needs, including educators, researchers, and society. These challenges include digital inclusion, science instruction & engagement, research data transit, cloud computing, and regional-scale innovation. Embedded within Arizona State University’s Enterprise Technology division we act in concert with the technology experts from all three state Universities.

ASU, the largest state university and recognized for the last 7 years by US News & World Report as the most innovative university, is committed to maintaining the most dynamic and productive learning experience in higher education. Enterprise Technology (ET) is at the forefront of developing IT platforms and tools that add value to the student experience.

The ideal SCN Research Engineer, Field Networks develops and maintains data networking, power systems, and user device integration solutions for forward-facing remote field site technology deployments within SCN, focused on supporting academic research and related education at Arizona’s leading research universities and state/community colleges, as well as within regional multi-state partnerships engaged by our research institutions. This includes leadership, collaboration, and contribution to major technology- and network-dependent science and engineering projects across Arizona and the national research and education technology ecosystem. An interest in working with new technologies and pushing the envelope on existing technology is a must.

The Research Engineer, Field Networks works under the supervision of SCN’s Technical Director, with other SCN core engineering teams, distributed university faculty and staff, and regional partners. The position possesses and continually develops a deep knowledge of remote site field operations, configuration and deployment of networking and computing hardware in harsh environments, troubleshooting, and technical management procedures. Primary technical areas of focus will be assigned based on the incumbent’s skills and/or SCN’s needs in areas of research engagement and support. Additional technical areas of focus will be assigned based on cross-training needs in SCN. Technical areas of focus include, but are not limited to: field operations (e.g., construction and maintenance of infrastructure and technology systems in remote environments), off-road vehicle operations (e.g., 4x4 truck, OHV, OSV), wilderness operations (e.g., navigation, survival and safety,emergency communications), elements of data network hardware and software (e.g., fiber and copper circuits, routers, switches, wireless bridges, wireless gateways, edge computing hosts), network control (e.g., routing protocols, security, cellular architecture), operating system environments (e.g., Linux, Windows, software containers), scientific sensor systems (e.g., Campbell Scientific, Onset, Solinst), power and electrical systems (e.g., photovoltaic generation, DC distribution, charging and regulation, circuit design, outdoor enclosure fabrication, power protection methods and tools). Technologies and solutions built by this position for research service areas will contribute to regional Team Science projects spanning Arizona institutions and regional university and agency partners. The Research Engineer, Field Networks expands SCN off-fiber networking capabilities with deeper subject matter expert-level understanding of wireless, wide-area wilderness operations, and edge technology systems.

Skills

RF engineering, RF design, wireless, hardware, Troubleshooting, Install

Additional Skills & Qualifications

● Knowledge of computer networking, server, operating system, and data concepts directly applicable to wide-area networking, sensor systems, data acquisition systems, internet-of-things, and digital security.

● Advanced knowledge of Radio Frequency (RF) engineering, signal propagation concepts, wireless communication methods, and wireless solutions design.

● Knowledge of electrical systems (especially DC, photovoltaic, and battery systems) design, integration, operation, and troubleshooting.

● Knowledge of IT systems monitoring, telemetry methods, and basic analytics.

● Experience in wireless hardware configuration, deployment, and operation.

● Experience in computing and networking hardware deployment and operation.

● Experience in OS (or device “firmware”) systems administration and management.

● Experience in field or wilderness operations: safety measures, planning and communication, weather and environmental conditions assessment, and equipment/logistics preparation.

● Experience with off-road operations: 4x4 trucks, off-high-vehicles, over-snow-vehicles, operations techniques, vehicle recovery.

● Experience with mechanical and fabrication tools: metal structure/frame assembly, antenna and mast assembly, and electrical enclosure assembly.

● Experience analyzing and troubleshooting technology as part of pilot or R&D deployments.

● Experience with Microsoft productivity tools (Visio, Word, Excel, Teams, Sharepoint).

● Ability to effectively prioritize multiple tasks based on criticality and workload.

● Ability to effectively communicate with users, peers, and management objectively and with a courteous and professional attitude.

● Ability to discern when independent action, peer collaboration, or escalation through a chain of command is needed to resolve issues.

● Ability to exercise strong analytical and problem-solving skills with a creative mindset.

● Effective verbal and written communication skills across a variety of audiences, including technical and non-t