Lead-Technical (BESS)

Role Mandate

The BESS Product & Engineering Lead owns the product definition, engineering spine, and commercial-technical translation of the BU—converting cell technology, system architecture, and integration choices into a competitive product portfolio, a defensible cost envelope, and risk-balanced commercial terms.

This role is the BU’s internal technical authority for BESS product and technology. It works in close partnership with the Lead Procurement – China Sourcing: sourcing owns supplier discovery, day-to-day supplier management, and execution; this role owns what we buy, why, against what specs, and on what commercial-technical terms.

• Define BESS product specifications, cost envelopes, and technology tie-ups
• Shape product portfolio evolution—cell format and sizing trajectory, chemistry roadmap, and the 12 / 24 / 36-month product view
• Own system architecture and integration across BMS, PCS, EMS, thermal, and safety sub-systems
• Structure LTAs, warranty clauses, back-to-back terms, and the claim playbook—partnering with Procurement, Commercial, Finance, and Legal
• Govern the technical interface with 3rd party manufacturing vendors to ensure product fidelity at scale
• Use deep exposure to Indian tender requirements as an input to product design—so the catalog is tender-fit by construction, not retro-fit per bid

Key Responsibilities

1) BESS Product Specifications, Cost Envelope & Technology Tie-ups

• Define and maintain the standard BESS product catalog—container-level specs (capacity, C-rate, round-trip efficiency, augmentation logic, operating window, safety class) tuned for Indian site and duty-cycle conditions
• Set and defend cost envelopes (₹/kWh at system level) for each product variant; identify design levers to close cost gaps vs market benchmarks
• Lead technology tie-ups and joint-development engagements with cell, PCS, BMS, and EMS partners—defining scope, deliverables, IP boundaries, and technical milestones
• Provide the China Sourcing Lead with the technical scaffolding—specs, compliance matrices, acceptance criteria, and qualification evidence—so supplier nomination is grounded in engineering reality

2) Product Portfolio Evolution, Market View & Competitiveness

• Own the 12 / 24 / 36-month product evolution view—what the standard BESS container should look like now vs in 2026 vs in 2027 across capacity, cell format, chemistry, integration stack, and safety architecture
• Track the cell format and sizing trajectory (e.g., 280Ah → 314Ah → larger prismatic formats, stacked vs wound, long-cell formats) and decide when to ride each wave vs hold—balancing cost-per-kWh, maturity, supply depth, and warranty exposure
• Maintain a structured competitive view of the BESS product landscape: how domestic integrators, Chinese OEMs, and global EPCs are positioning on specs, price, reliability, and bankability—publish a refresh at a defined cadence
• Identify whitespace and inflection points (product variants, feature additions, architecture shifts) that unlock new segments or widen our cost-per-kWh advantage
• Use exposure to Indian tender requirements (SECI, NTPC, state utilities, C&I tenders; CEA connectivity norms; BIS/IS standards; fire and safety codes; ALMM/DCR evolution) as a design input so the catalog is pre-compliant—reducing bid-stage redesign and clarification load

3) System Architecture & Integration (BMS / PCS / EMS)

• Own the reference system architecture for standard and custom BESS offerings—module/rack/container sizing, electrical single-line topology, thermal management strategy, fire detection and suppression, and controls hierarchy
• Define integration standards and interface control documents (ICDs) for BMS, PCS, and EMS—communication protocols, state-of-charge logic, fault handling, safety interlocks, and cyber-hardening baseline
• Drive modular, platform-based design so the same core architecture scales across capacity variants and duty cycles—reducing engineering cycle time for repeat bids
• Partner with CTO, Manufacturing Engineering, and Quality to ensure architecture choices are manufacturable, yield-friendly, and compatible with traceability and PFMEA discipline
• Sign off on integration test plans, FAT/SAT protocols, and performance validation evidence before deployment

4) Cell Trajectory & Technology Landscape

• Maintain a living view of the cell technology landscape—LFP generations, cell format evolution (prismatic / large-format / stacked vs wound), safety feature roadmaps, and emerging alternatives (sodium-ion, LMFP, solid-state) with credible timelines
• Track cost curves, capacity announcements, and supply-demand dynamics across the global cell market; flag inflection points that shift our product roadmap or cost envelope
• Publish a cell selection rationale for each product generation—tying chemistry, format, and supplier tier to duty cycle, warranty exposure, and cost-per-kWh
• Define cell qualification protocols (performance, cycling, abuse, thermal) and review qualification evidence before any new cell enters the catalog
• Translate degradation and augmentation physics into defensible product-level performance commitments that flow into warranties and customer guarantees

5) LTAs, Warranty Structuring & Claim Playbook

• Partner with Procurement to structure Long-Term Agreements with key cell and critical sub-system suppliers—owning the technical-commercial logic: pricing protections, indexation formulas, FX risk structure, delivery safeguards (lead times, penalties, buffer strategy), audit rights, and change-notification requirements
• Decode supplier warranty structures—throughput warranties, degradation caps, cycle/calendar assumptions, operating-window limits, exclusions, and claim evidence requirements—and translate them into product-level commercial exposure
• Draft and maintain the standard warranty clause library for the BU; ensure back-to-back alignment between supplier warranties and customer commitments across hardware supply, EPC performance guarantees, and O&M SLAs—working jointly with Commercial, Finance, Legal, and OMS
• Quantify degradation and augmentation assumptions into reserves and contract guardrails; feed provisioning and pricing discussions with defensible technical inputs
• Build and own the claim playbook: evidence requirements, data-log standards, traceability, test-record retention, RCA governance, and escalation paths—so claims are won on substance, not correspondence

6) 3rd Party Manufacturing Vendors – Technical Support & Governance

• Act as the BU’s technical interface for 3rd party manufacturing / contract integration vendors—transferring the product design package (drawings, BOMs, process notes, test standards) and ensuring build fidelity
• Define the vendor technical qualification framework: line readiness, process controls, test infrastructure, traceability systems, and workmanship standards
• Govern engineering change control (ECN) across external build partners—no silent deviations; every change reviewed for product, safety, warranty, and tender-compliance impact
• Lead design-for-manufacturing (DFM) and design-for-assembly (DFA) reviews with vendors; close gaps that threaten yield, cost, or field reliability
• Support quality and operations teams on incoming inspection criteria, NPI ramps, first-article approvals, and field-failure RCA loopbacks into design

7) Cross-Functional & External Interfaces

• Work closely with the Lead Procurement – China Sourcing: sourcing owns supplier discovery, engagement, and execution; this role owns specs, qualification, commercial-technical structuring (LTAs, warranties), and product-level risk translation
• Partner with CTO, Commercial, Bid Desk, Manufacturing, Quality, Finance, Legal, and O&M / Asset Management to ensure product and contract decisions stay coherent end-to-end
• Represent the product in customer technical discussions, lender / IE (Independent Engineer) reviews, and tender clarification rounds—articulating architecture, safety, reliability, warranty logic, and bankability

Candidate Profile

Experience & Background

• 8–12+ years in BESS, lithium-ion battery systems, EV battery packs, or adjacent power-electronics / grid-scale storage domains
• Proven experience in BESS product definition, system architecture, or integration engineering—with demonstrated commercial-technical exposure (LTAs, warranties, supplier structuring), not purely R&D or purely sourcing
• Hands-on exposure to Indian BESS tender technical requirements (SECI, NTPC, state utilities, C CEA norms; BIS/IS standards; fire and safety codes; ALMM/DCR context)—used here as an input to product design, not as a bid-management role
• Experience working with Chinese / global cell and sub-system OEMs, including design collaboration, qualification, and LTA / warranty negotiation
• Prior involvement in utility-scale / EPC storage deployments is strongly preferred

Education

• B.E. / B.Tech in Electrical, Electronics, Mechanical, Chemical, or Energy Engineering
• Postgraduate specialization in Energy Systems, Power Electronics, or Electrochemistry preferred