Calling All Electricians – Here’s Why You Should Consider a Data Centre Job

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Know an Electrical Trade? Why a Data Centre Job Could Be Your Perfect Match

Mission Critical • Oct 27, 2023

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There’s a bit of a misconception that data centres sit squarely within the tech industry. While that may be true of the services they provide, it’s certainly not when it comes to building and maintaining these behemoths. That’s a job for the construction industry.

As data centres run 24/7, they heavily rely on skilled electricians to manage and maintain the electrical infrastructure and systems that power their continuous operation.

For anyone with experience in the electrical trade, this article explains what data centre jobs involve and the exciting career benefits they provide.

What Do Data Centres Do?

Data centres are critical infrastructure in the modern digital age. They’re responsible for hosting and managing the vast amounts of data and services that power our online world. Mobile apps, office clouds, digital banking, social networking sites and streaming platforms wouldn’t exist without them.

Each data centre is a specialised facility purpose-built to house and manage a large collection of computer servers, networking equipment and other components essential for large-scale computing. This includes processing, storing and delivering data and applications.

No data centres can be constructed or maintained without qualified electricians. They’re needed to design, install and maintain the highly complex electrical systems housed within each centre.

What Roles Are Available for Electricians in Data Centres?

There are plenty of data centre jobs available for those with electrical trade qualifications and experience. Here are three main ones:

1. Data Centre Electrical Engineer: During a data centre’s construction, these engineers play a crucial role in the design and planning phase. They create and implement the electrical systems, including power distribution, backup generators and uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) to ensure continuous power to the equipment. They also make sure the electrical infrastructure meets safety and regulatory standards.

2. Data Centre Electrician: These professionals install, maintain and repair the electrical systems within data centres. This includes working on power distribution systems, backup generators, UPS, electrical circuits and the vast air conditioning systems that cool the servers.

3. Electrical Technician: Electrical technicians help install and maintain electrical components and systems within data centres. They troubleshoot electrical issues and perform preventive maintenance tasks alongside qualified electricians.

As data centre electrical systems are quite complex, there are further specialised electrical data centre jobs such as Power Systems Engineers, UPS Technicians, Generator Technicians, Control Systems Electricians, Electrical Safety Specialists, Energy Efficiency Experts, and Electrical Project Managers.

These roles highlight the important part skilled electricians and other electrical professionals play in the construction and operation of data centres, especially when it comes to the reliability, safety and efficiency of the electrical systems within them.

Salary and Working Conditions

In our inaugural Data Centre Remuneration Report, we surveyed almost 350 Australian data centre professionals across all management levels. When it comes to data centre engineer job salaries, we found the following averages:

Design Electrical Engineer

· Average base salary - $112,000

· Average total package - $129,000

· 90% receiving additional bonus or commission

Senior Design Electrical Engineer

· Average base salary - $134,000

· Average total package - $153,000

· 67% receiving additional bonus or commission

Principal or Associate Electrical Engineer

· Average base salary - $176,000

· Average total package - $202,000

· 70% receiving additional bonus or commission

Aside from the great pay, there are even more excellent reasons to consider working in the data centre industry. One is the exceptional job security, with the APAC data centre industry reporting a 300% growth in capacity over the past five years. The APAC data centre construction market is to expected reach a value of $24.17 billion USD by 2028, up from $15.17 billion in 2022. This has created an immense amount of demand for workers in the sector, placing candidates in the driver’s seat.

Another appealing perk of working in an electrician or data centre engineer job is the fantastic working conditions. Of those surveyed in our remuneration report:

· 66% feel valued for their work

· 73% find their role fulfilling

· 95% would recommend the data centre industry to others

Lifestyle factors are also a big drawcard for data centre employees. Unlike construction sites, which tend to be rough and dirty working environments (especially in the warmer months), a data centre job can have you working in a dust-free and cool environment all year round. If that sounds appealing, a data centre job could be your perfect match!

Qualifications and Experience Required for Data Centres

To work in an electrical role in a data centre, you must be a fully qualified electrician or electrical engineer. In addition, any direct experience working in a data centre or with USPs is a huge tick when applying for data centre jobs, such as data centre electrical engineers.

If you don’t have these qualifications yet, it’s a good idea to gain foundational knowledge of how data centres operate and the electrical systems they use. If you love learning new things on the job, as a qualified electrician you’ll also have many opportunities to undertake further training at work.

One of the best ways to get into the industry is to engage with a recruitment specialist who knows the data centre industry inside-out, like us here at Mission Critical. We can offer you advice about how to enter the sector with an electrical trade background and help you with the all-important interview prep.

Ready for a career shift? Please let us know how we can support your move into the highly rewarding world of the data centre industry, whether it’s just advice or to see what open data centre jobs we currently have.

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How to Cultivate the Next Generation of Data Centre Specialists

By Mission Critical • 31 Oct, 2023

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Construction Salaries: Are You Paying Enough?

By Mission Critical • 29 Aug, 2023

Are you paying your team enough? Money talks regardless of market conditions, and with the cost of living increasing, you can bet that salary is now the primary consideration for candidates and employees. As data centre recruitment in Australia is a niche and highly competitive market at the best of times, this is a question every employer must pay attention to. Several factors are placing upward pressure on construction salaries: the economic environment, record employment growth in the sector, and a strong pipeline for data centre projects that require specialist skill sets. Approximately 183,000 square kilometres of data centre construction is currently underway in Australia, according to CBRE data , with future growth linked to the rise of AI applications and gaming clouds. General inflation is also starting to bite. In 2023, the Avdiev Report forecasts salary increases between 1-5% slated for 70% of roles in the property sectors (including construction and project management), with pay rises of 6% and above for 30% of jobs. We’ll highlight the significant signs you’re not paying your team enough and what steps to take to avoid underpaying your employees. The Company Is Frequently Out Bid on Job Offers Does your organisation often find itself about to bring a candidate over the line with a shiny new job offer, only to find out at the eleventh hour that the candidate has chosen another role? Whether or not the candidate cites salary as the reason for turning down the offer, chances are that salary was the deciding factor. This proper preparation can help you avoid stumbling into this trap. Before recruitment starts, run a benchmarking exercise to compare the company’s salaries to the market average (or median), and what competitors are likely paying. If you need to argue for increasing salary budgets for critical roles, being armed with this data will help you make it. To access more in-depth salary trends that aren’t online, engaging an agency specialising in data centre recruitment in Australia will help. Recruiters are regularly privy to a range of relevant job descriptions, along with job offers and counteroffers, all of which are rich sources of market intelligence. Low Interest In Advertised Positions One of the common signs that you’re not paying your team enough appears at the front end of the recruitment process. While not all talent attraction challenges are linked to salary, pay does become critical wherever demand for specific skills or positions is high, and supply is limited. If your company would like more applicants for roles but isn’t finding them, consider whether your job ads have enough detail. Including the salary range in job ads can encourage more qualified people to apply while acting as an effective screening tool. Emphasising other perks, such as bonuses and non-salary benefits, is also essential for attracting good talent. Overall, it’s sensible to highlight the company’s generous remuneration and other great reasons to work there. Candidates will always compare positions based on competitive compensation and opportunities for growth. Staff Retention Is Poor Has the front door started to swing so much that it’s revolving? Poor retention can have more than one cause, but any uptick in resignations is a warning light that usually calls for evaluating current salaries. If employees are exiting the business within months of starting a new role or are being headhunted, these could be signs you’re not paying your team enough. Have your employees' roles and responsibilities evolved since their initial hiring? If their duties have expanded significantly without a corresponding salary increase, they are likelier to embrace a new role and score an instant pay rise. Word Is Getting Around If gossip about the company’s apparent stinginess is reaching the ears of management, that’s a vital clue that remuneration may be misaligned with the market. Rather than allowing negative talk to start driving away employees, getting in front of these concerns as quickly as possible is better. Listening to employee concerns and taking notes is a wise place to start addressing this issue. Employee satisfaction surveys and one-on-one conversations will help you gauge sentiment about salaries. These conversations can support pay reviews and help you take necessary steps to avoid losing valuable employees. Summary So, are you paying your team enough? While the answer can make managers uncomfortable, it’s always worth asking! Regularly reviewing pay and understanding trends influencing construction salaries will help you build loyal teams and spend less time on recruitment. For expert help with finding the right talent, salary advice and retention strategies, you may contact the friendly team at Mission Critical. As leading specialists in data centre recruitment in Australia, we can help you solve your talent problems and devise a pay strategy that ticks all the boxes. Check out our latest report here for in-depth salary trends relevant to data centre hiring.