Fire Protection Engineer - Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS)

Our Client is looking for a talented mid-level Fire Protection Engineer to join our growing team, specializing in fire and explosion safety for battery energy storage systems. This is a technically rich, high-impact role offering real opportunities to grow into a recognized subject-matter expert in one of the most rapidly evolving sectors in energy and fire protection.

About the Role

You'll work directly with our Clients manufacturers to navigate complex fire safety challenges - from code compliance and hazard analysis to large-scale fire testing and explosion protection. If you're passionate about cutting-edge energy technology and want your engineering expertise to shape how the industry approaches safety, this is the role for you.

What You'll Do

• Evaluate BESS products, installations, and technical documentation for compliance with NFPA 855, applicable fire and building codes, and project-specific requirements

• Prepare and review code compliance assessments, gap analyses, design comments, technical memoranda, and engineering reports

• Advise manufacturers on fire protection strategies covering system layout, separation distances, detection, suppression, ventilation, emergency response, and explosion control

• Review NFPA 68 deflagration venting and NFPA 69 explosion prevention reports, assessing technical appropriateness and supporting test data

• Evaluate explosion, gas dispersion, ventilation, thermal, and fire simulation models - including inputs, assumptions, boundary conditions, validation, and sensitivity analyses

• Review and witness UL 9540A large-scale fire testing, documenting conditions, observations, deviations, and results

• Support responses to Authorities Having Jurisdiction, fire departments, customers, and testing laboratories

• Coordinate across battery, electrical, mechanical, and modeling specialists to deliver integrated solutions

• Manage technical tasks, schedules, budgets, and deliverables with increasing independence

• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to internal standards and review procedures

• Stay ahead of evolving BESS technologies, fire protection practices, and regulatory developments

What You Bring

Required:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Fire Protection Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or a closely related field

• Active California Professional Engineer license in Fire Protection Engineering

• 3+ years of fire protection engineering experience with demonstrated BESS or explosion protection expertise

• Strong working knowledge of NFPA 855, NFPA 68, and NFPA 69

• Experience reviewing fire and explosion hazard analyses and engineering simulation models

• Familiarity with UL 9540A testing at cell, module, unit, or installation level

• Excellent technical writing, analytical, and problem-solving skills

• Ability to communicate complex technical and code-related concepts clearly to diverse audiences

• Willingness to travel to testing laboratories and project sites

Preferred:

• Direct experience supporting BESS manufacturers or system integrators

• Hands-on experience witnessing large-scale UL 9540A fire tests

• Knowledge of lithium-ion battery thermal runaway, off-gas generation, fire propagation, and deflagration hazards

• Familiarity with UL 9540, International Fire Code, California Fire Code, and California Building Code

• Experience reviewing CFD or numerical models using tools such as FDS, FLACS, or ANSYS Fluent

• Experience interacting with Authorities Having Jurisdiction and managing plan-review responses

• Project management, client management, or mentoring experience

Your Path Forward

This role is designed for someone ready to grow. The successful candidate will have a clear and supported path toward:

• Technical leadership on BESS fire and explosion safety projects

• Lead engineer and engineer-of-record responsibilities

• Direct management of strategic manufacturing clients

• Development of internal methods, standards, and technical guidance

• Mentorship and supervision of junior engineers

• Industry recognition as a subject-matter expert in energy storage fire protection