Smelter Operation Readiness - Engineer Network And Radio Systems

The purpose of this position is:

The Engineer Network and Radio Systems will be responsible for installing, monitoring, maintaining, configuring, upgrading, and supporting the organizations computer network with a focus on digital trunk two-way radios systems, including the infrastructure as well as the radio subscribers.

This role will work closely with production, maintenance, and security teams, providing support and ensuring the successful operations of our network and two-way radio communication systems.

This position will play a critical role in ensuring that the organizations two-way radio systems are designed, implemented, and maintained to meet business needs, while ensuring the security, reliability, performance, and regulatory compliance of the radio system and make important decisions to achieve these goals.

The key duties and responsibilities of this position are:

• Ensure the timely and accurate reporting of network and radio related issues and resolutions in accordance with ITSM standards.
• Monitor the two-way radios systems performance, capacity, and usage, including developing and implementing testing procedures to ensure the systems meet performance and quality standards.
• Work closely with operations, maintenance, and security departments to understand their needs.
• Monitor network and two-way performance and troubleshoot network issues to ensure uptime and performance targets of 99.95% are meet.
• Configure and tune two-way infrastructure as well as program handheld and base station subscribers.
• Configure and maintain network hardware and software, including routers, switches, wireless access devices, network controllers, and virtual appliances.
• Troubleshoot and resolve issues with two-way radio systems as they arise.
• Maintain the two-way radio systems to continuously meet the companys business requirements.
• Provide technical support and training to end users as required.
• Collaborate with other engineers to ensure seamless integration of the two-way radios systems with other systems and networks.
• Develop and maintain network and two-way radio documentation, including network diagrams, inventory lists and maintenance schedules.
• Planning and executing network infrastructure upgrades, such as upgrading hardware, software and security protocols and ensure these upgrades are implemented in a timely and efficient manner.

The key challenges in this position include:

• High Pressure Environment: Mining and smelting operations are often high-pressure environments where downtime can result in significant financial losses, you may need to deal with high-pressure situations where time is of the essence. You need to be able to make quick decisions and take appropriate actions to resolve issues promptly.
• Communication Skills: Need to have excellent communication skills to collaborate with other IT professionals, stakeholders, and end users. You must be able to explain complex technical issues in non-technical terms to ensure that everyone understands the problem and proposed solution.
• Network Security: Ensuring two-way radio and network security is a critical task for engineers. As hackers become more sophisticated, protecting networks against cyber-attacks is becoming more challenging. You will need to stay up to date with the latest security threats and implement measures to prevent them.
• Keeping up with Technology: Two-way radio and networking technology is constantly evolving, and it can be challenging to keep up with the latest trends and best practices. It is important to stay up to date with industry trends and advancement to ensure that you have the skills and knowledge necessary to provide effective support. This means you need to invest time and resources in continuous learning and development.
• Managing Customer Expectations: Customers may have high expectations with the resources and capabilities of the team. Effective communication and managing expectations can help mitigate these challenges.
• Troubleshooting: Communication outages can be detrimental to safety as well as the business operations and profitability. You must be able to diagnose and troubleshoot issues quickly and effectively to minimize downtime.
• Hazardous Environment: Smelting operations can be dangerous, you must be aware of and follow strict safety protocols when visiting and working in these environments, using specialized protective gear to ensure safety.

The background, education, and work experience needed to succeed in this job are:

Minimum Education & Experience

• Certification, Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) is a plus.
• 5+ Years of experience in implementing and supporting Motorola Digital Trunk Radio System.
• Bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering or related field.

Core Competencies (Knowledge, Skills & Characters)

• Ability to work independently and in a team environment.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience in mining or process automation industries is a plus.
• Strong knowledge of Department of KOMINFO regulations surrounding the importation, licensing, and use of RF devices.
• Strong knowledge of network protocols and technologies such as TCP/IP, routing protocols, VLANS, VPNs and QoS.
• Knowledge of safety procedures and regulations in the metal processing industry.
• Ability to troubleshoot issues and provide technical support.
• Strong knowledge of business network infrastructure and design including two-way radio system, telephone systems, digital trunk radio, network protocols, fiber optic / ethernet cabling standards and AC/DC power systems.
• Proficiency in spoken and written English, technical and conversational.
• Strong knowledge and understanding of radio frequencies and propagation technics.

The key areas in which you have decision-making responsibility are:

• Capacity planning: Must forecast the companys future two-way radio needs and make decisions about how to scale the radio system infrastructure to meet those needs. Must analyze traffic/call patterns, predict growth, and make recommendations for upgrades and expansions.
• Optimization of Radio System: Continuously work to optimize communication systems, ensuring that they are reliable, efficient, and meet the business needs. Optimize factors such as bandwidth, data rates, and signal strength/noise ratio to improve the overall performance of the system.
• Selecting hardware and software components: Must choose the right hardware and software components for the radio system, based on factors such as performance, compatibility, scalability, security, and cost. Must evaluate and compare different options and make recommendations to management.
• Collaborating: Working closely with other engineers, and stakeholders to ensure that the radio system meets the requirements of the operations. This may involve collaborating on design decisions, identifying, and resolving technical issues, and managing project timelines and budgets.
• Documentation: Maintain detailed records of the design and testing of the communication systems. Preparing documents including specifications, user guides, test plans, system documentation.
• Troubleshooting two-way radio and network issues: When issues arise, must diagnose the problem, and find a solution quickly. Must make decisions to ensure that the network is up and running as soon as possible and minimize downtime and data loss.
• Compliance: Ensure that the communication systems comply with government regulations and corporate standards, modifying systems and or applying for additional permits and license to ensure continuous compliance.

Dimensions

Financial

• Repair or Replace: Making decisions as to if repairing or replacing a device would be the most cost-effective long term.
• Cost Control: Will be responsible for controlling costs associated with network support, including identifying areas for cost savings.
• Approvals: Review end user requests for communication devices and peripherals and approving or rejecting these requests by determining business need and aligning with company policies and government regulations.

Non-Financial

• Maintain: Manage the lifecycle of two-way radio infrastructure and subscriber assets comprising two distinct and separate radio systems, one for Smelter operations and the other for the Precious Metal Refinery (PMR). With a total of 1,00 radio users.
• Customer Satisfaction: Meeting the needs of the organizations one thousand end users, spread across several geographic locations, including users working remotely and resolving technical issues in a timely and effective manner.

Dateline: 27 may 2023