Group: Kaynes Group (Publicly Listed)
Founded in 2019, GridCrest Technologies is one of the fastest-growing smart metering companies globally and part of the publicly traded Kaynes Group. We deliver end-to-end Meter-to-Cash solutions, including smart meters, communication infrastructure, software platforms, and services—impacting over 10 million people through our products, solutions, and services.
Job Description
Position: Firmware Engineer – Smart Metering/Device Systems
Location: Hyderabad, Telangana, India
Department: R&D – Embedded Systems / Smart Metering Solutions
Reporting To: Head- Embedded Systems & Software - Noida
Position Overview
We are seeking a highly competent and technically accomplished Firmware Engineer specializing in Smart Energy Metering Systems and Embedded Product Development. The ideal candidate must possess deep expertise in low-level embedded firmware development, metrology integration, communication stack implementation, and real-time embedded architectures for Class 0.2 / 0.5 / 1.0 precision smart energy meters.
This role demands hands-on proficiency in firmware architecture, hardware-near debugging, protocol integration, power-sensitive embedded design, and compliance-oriented firmware development for utility-grade metering products.
The candidate will be responsible for complete firmware lifecycle ownership including architecture definition, driver development, protocol stack integration, debugging, validation, optimization, and field issue resolution.
Role & Responsibility Areas
1. Embedded Firmware Development & Architecture
Core Responsibilities
- Design, develop, optimize, and maintain embedded firmware for advanced smart energy meters.
- Develop modular, scalable, and maintainable firmware architectures for:
- Single-phase and three-phase smart meters
- Static energy meters
- Prepaid smart metering systems
- AMI/AMR compatible metering products
- Implement firmware for:
- Energy measurement
- Load profiling
- Event logging
- Tamper detection
- RTC synchronization
- Demand calculations
- Power quality monitoring
- Develop real-time deterministic embedded applications with stringent timing requirements.
- Design state machines and interrupt-driven firmware architectures.
- Develop low-power firmware strategies for battery-backed systems and power-failure handling.
Technical Expectations
- Expertise in:
- Bare-metal firmware development
- RTOS-based systems
- ISR optimization
- Memory-constrained systems
- Bootloader implementation
- Firmware upgrade mechanisms (FOTA/OTA where applicable)
2. Metrology & Energy Measurement Systems
Responsibilities
- Implement and optimize metrology algorithms for:
- Active energy
- Reactive energy
- Apparent energy
- RMS voltage/current calculations
- Harmonic analysis
- Power factor calculations
- Integrate metrology ICs and ADC subsystems with embedded firmware.
- Ensure firmware compliance with:
- IS standards
- IEC standards
- DLMS/COSEM specifications
- Utility certification requirements
- Develop calibration logic and calibration utilities.
Required Technical Exposure
- Class 0.2 / 0.5 / 1.0 accuracy systems
- Metering ICs and DSP-assisted metrology
- Energy accumulation algorithms
- Tamper detection logic:
- Magnetic tamper
- Neutral disturbance
- Earth load tamper
- Reverse current tamper
3. Communication Stack Integration
Responsibilities
- Integrate and validate communication interfaces for smart metering applications.
- Develop and debug firmware stacks for:
- DLMS/COSEM
- MODBUS
- UART protocols
- SPI/I2C communication
- Interface and integrate communication modules:
- 2G/3G/4G/NB-IoT modems
- RF modules
- Zigbee
- BLE/Bluetooth
- Wi-SUN (preferred niche skill)
- LoRaWAN (preferred niche skill)
Advanced Requirements
- Experience in:
- TCP/IP stack integration
- MQTT/CoAP protocols
- Secure communication frameworks
- AES encryption
- TLS-based embedded communication
- Debugging serial communication using protocol analyzers.
4. Hardware–Firmware Co-Design
Responsibilities
- Collaborate closely with Hardware Design Engineers during:
- Schematic reviews
- Board bring-up
- Prototype validation
- Signal integrity troubleshooting
- Interpret:
- Schematics
- Datasheets
- Timing diagrams
- Register maps
- Develop and validate peripheral drivers for:
- UART
- SPI
- I2C
- ADC
- DMA
- EEPROM/Flash
- RTC
- GPIO
- Timers/PWM
Board-Level Debugging
- Perform hardware-near debugging using:
- Oscilloscopes
- Logic analyzers
- JTAG/SWD debuggers
- Multimeters
- Power analyzers
- Support PCB validation and EMI/EMC troubleshooting.
5. Firmware Verification, Testing & Validation
Responsibilities
- Develop unit tests and integration test procedures.
- Conduct:
- Functional testing
- Regression testing
- Stress testing
- Reliability testing
- Long-duration endurance testing
- Participate in:
- Code reviews
- Static code analysis
- Root cause analysis (RCA)
- Failure analysis
- Maintain firmware traceability and compliance documentation.
Tools & Practices
- Static analysis tools:
- PC-Lint
- Coverity
- Cppcheck
- Version control:
- Git
- GitLab/GitHub workflows
- CI/CD exposure for embedded systems preferred.
6. Production & Field Support
Responsibilities
- Support manufacturing firmware release activities.
- Diagnose and resolve:
- Field firmware defects
- Communication failures
- Metering inaccuracies
- Firmware upgrade failures
- Work with Quality and Service teams on:
- Product validation
- Customer complaints
- Failure investigations
Required Qualifications
Educational Qualification
- Bachelor's Degree in:
- Electronics Engineering
- Electrical Engineering
- Electronics & Communication Engineering
- Embedded Systems
- Master's Degree preferred for advanced architecture roles.
Required Experience
- 3–5 years of relevant experience in:
- Smart Metering
- Embedded Firmware Development
- Industrial Embedded Systems
- Utility Automation
- AMI/AMR systems
Mandatory Domain Experience
- Smart Energy Metering industry experience is essential.
- Experience in utility-grade embedded systems preferred.
Mandatory Technical Skills
Embedded Systems
- Strong Embedded C programming expertise
- Hands-on low-level register programming
- Memory optimization techniques
- Interrupt-driven programming
- Linker scripts and memory mapping
Microcontroller Platforms
Strong experience in at least one:
- MSP430
- Renesas RL78
- STM32
- NXP LPC series
- TI ARM Cortex platforms
Peripheral Interfaces
Hands-on experience with:
- UART
- SPI
- I2C/SMBus
- ADC/DAC
- DMA
- RTC
- EEPROM/Flash interfaces
Debugging
Strong debugging proficiency using:
- JTAG/SWD
- Lauterbach
- Segger J-Link
- Logic analyzers
- Oscilloscopes
Mandatory Domain Knowledge
- DLMS/COSEM protocol
- Metering standards and compliance
- Energy metrology concepts
- Smart meter communication architecture
- Embedded communication protocols
- Real-time embedded systems
Preferred / Niche Skills (Highly Desirable)
Advanced Embedded Skills
- RTOS (FreeRTOS/ThreadX/Zephyr)
- Secure boot implementation
- OTA/FOTA firmware upgrades
- Embedded Linux exposure
- BSP development
Advanced Communication Technologies
- NB-IoT integration
- LTE Cat-M1
- Wi-SUN stack implementation
- LoRaWAN stack integration
- BLE Mesh networking
Cybersecurity for Embedded Devices
- Secure firmware architecture
- PKI implementation
- Secure key storage
- Cryptographic libraries
- IEC 62443 awareness
Smart Grid & Utility Technologies
- Head-End System (HES) integration
- MDM system understanding
- AMI ecosystem exposure
- Grid communication standards
Testing & Automation
- Python scripting for embedded testing
- Hardware-in-loop (HIL) testing
- Automated regression frameworks
Competencies Required
Technical Competencies
- Strong analytical and debugging skills
- Firmware architecture thinking
- Hardware abstraction design capability
- Root cause analysis expertise
- System-level problem-solving
Behavioral Competencies
- Ownership mindset
- Engineering discipline
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Technical documentation capability
- Ability to work under tight release schedules
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
- Firmware quality and defect density
- On-time delivery of firmware releases
- Communication stack stability
- Metering accuracy compliance
- Reduction in field firmware issues
- Code quality metrics
- Test coverage and validation completeness
Working Environment
- R&D and embedded lab environment
- Interaction with hardware, testing, manufacturing, and field engineering teams
- Involvement in utility-grade certified product development lifecycle
