Energy News

Today’s global power industry is in transition. Collectively, we’re actively evolving towards a carbon neutral position and—almost universally—our energy mix is shifting towards a greater share of renewable generation. However, the transition is not without its challenges. Integration headaches and aging assets are causing reliability issues in some regions. And all the while, demand continues to grow.

For over 70 years, professional services provider, Jacobs, has been delivering infrastructure, technology and intelligence solutions for a smarter, more connected and sustainable world. For its dedicated Power Solutions team, this means joining forces with clients and pooling knowledge and imagination to reinvent the way the industry is tackling some of the biggest challenges and bringing innovative solutions to life. Led by recently appointed Director of Operations Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) Aaron Hochwimmer, the team is helping clients move towards a cleaner and greener energy future.

A power engineer and business leader with over 23 years of experience in the sector, Aaron has spent the last decade with Jacobs in various technical, project delivery, engineering management, and business leadership roles. Most recently he served as leader of its East Asia operations, overseeing a period of multi-sector growth in the region from his base in the Philippines. Now, recently returned to New Zealand, Aaron is embracing his new role as leader of Jacobs’ ANZ power solutions business. 

“I am delighted to have the opportunity to lead the power business across ANZ,” said Aaron. “We have a strong team and I’m focused on harnessing their expertise, bold ideas and fresh thinking to deliver world-class solutions with our clients in the power sector. “

“We know our clients are looking for affordable, technology-driven solutions that demonstrate clear value for their shareholders and customers. We can leverage our core capability and the broad cross-sector expertise that runs through our business, to deliver a more holistic offering of advisory services, engineering design and management services, and new energy technologies, for our clients.”

Specialist capability and regional and global connectivity driving positive outcomes for clients

Jacobs’ power solutions team provides a full range of transmission and distribution, generation and energy storage solutions and advisory services to power utilities, developers, and other cross-market power consumers (e.g. water, transport, facilities) throughout the Asia Pacific region.

Specific power transmission capabilities include power system studies, transmission line detailed design and cable route development, substation planning and design, protection coordination, and earthing design for systems ranging from extra high voltage (EHV) transmission systems (up to 500 kV AC) to sub-transmission and distribution systems (33 kV, 22 kV, 11 kV and 6.6 kV). New Zealand’s power transmission and distribution team has over 190 years of combined experience and is supported by a global team who together have delivered over 60 projects across ANZ.

“The ability for Jacobs to also provide in-house civil, structural, geotechnical and electrical engineering services means our clients have access to a wider breadth of services from a single source streamlining their procurement processes and project management interfaces,” says Aaron.

In New Zealand, the power team also possesses specialist geothermal power expertise. In fact, the New Zealand team has worked on more than 100 geothermal projects, both locally and across the globe, contributing to over 3,000 MW of generating capacity in over 20 countries.

According to Aaron, a recent notable geothermal project was an earthquake remediation project to reinstate a geothermal power plant on the remote Philippine island of Leyte.

“The project pulled together 86 people from 11 different offices including a number of key people in ANZ. Under challenging conditions, they worked with the client to reinstate power supply in a relatively short period of time,” explains Aaron.

“The project has received a number of internal business excellence awards and really showcases what can be done with a distributed Jacobs Power team working remotely. By taking a cross-regional market approach we can rapidly deploy power consultants from anywhere in the world to any project, and this delivers huge benefits to our clients.”

Navigating a new and unexpected path forward with clients

Global connectivity and the ability to work remotely have set the team in good stead as they—like the rest of the world—come to terms with the impacts of the global Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on its business and the way they continue to support client’s projects through this difficult time. The team is rapidly adapting to the new circumstances and will continue to provide “business essential” services to power clients during the lockdown conditions that exist during COVID-19.

“Our teams can continue to work remotely to support our clients and maintain strong business continuity,” says Aaron. “For example, we have successfully run a number of virtual project workshops and thought leadership sessions with distributed teams, along with some online training courses and knowledge transfer for our geothermal clients in particular. We are also planning to host a series of virtual power conferences to connect utilities, project developers, and thought leaders across regions to share insights and solutions to common challenges facing the industry and will be releasing more information on this soon.”

“It has been inspirational for me to see how our staff and people in general are banding together to help one another through the COVID-19 crisis. Jacobs is responding to this unprecedented and uncertain time by keeping the safety and well-being of its employees, clients and communities as its top priority.”

Aaron attributes the quick transition to remote working to a strong culture of caring and a workplace that values safety, positive mental health and the inclusion and belonging of all staff.

Jacobs is a leading advocate for inclusion and diversity in the workplace globally. In March, the business signed up to the newly launched Diversity Agenda Accord. The Diversity Agenda is a joint initiative from Engineering New Zealand, the New Zealand Institute of Architects and the Association of Consulting Engineers New Zealand to drive greater inclusion and diversity, including 20% more women engineers and architects in the industry.

Looking to the future

Looking to the future, the power solutions team is navigating its way through these difficult times with optimism and looks forward to working with clients to deliver meaningful power solutions that deliver a resilient and sustainable future for communities.

To learn more about Jacobs’ Power Solutions capability, get in touch:

Aaron Hochwimmer, Director of Operations Power, ANZ
Aaron.Hochwimmer@jacobs.com

or

Scott Henderson, Sales Lead Power, NZ
Scott.Henderson@jacobs.com

About Jacobs

Jacobs is challenging today to reinvent tomorrow by solving the world's most critical problems for thriving cities, resilient environments, mission-critical outcomes, operational advancement, scientific discovery and cutting-edge manufacturing, turning abstract ideas into realities that transform the world for good. With $13 billion in revenue and a talent force of more than 55,000, Jacobs provides a full spectrum of professional services including consulting, technical, scientific and project delivery for the government and private sector. Visit jacobs.com and connect with Jacobs on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter.