Malcolm Hodgins

malcolm.d.hodgins@gmail.com

I am an engineering physics graduate with specialization in electrical power systems and nuclear engineering. I also have experience in web development, robotics, and control systems. I consider myself a quick study and am always looking for something new to learn.

Education

Bachelor of Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON
Engineering Physics, 2016 - 2021
Focus on electrical power systems and nuclear engineering.
GPA: 11.3/12.0 or 3.9/4.0

Professional Experience

Nuclear Contract Analyst
Independent Electricity System Operator, Toronto, ON
June 2021 - Present

  • Performed due diligence activities on ARBPRIA submissions from Bruce Power including refurbishment, asset management, fuel procurement, and contract price adjustments to verify alignment with ARBPRIA criteria and to protect Ratepayer value.
  • Employed Excel VBA programming skills to automate price adjustment, scenario analysis, and supplement logging activities to greatly reduce user burden, promote efficiency, and reduce likelihood of errors.
  • Leveraged strong reporting skills to develop dashboards using Tableau, Excel, and Python for ARBPRIA topics to more effectively present existing data, reduce user burden, and utilize new data sources.
  • Performed economic scenario analyses to assess potential cost outcomes related to refurbishments, inflation environments, and fuel contracts.

Undergraduate Teaching Assistant
McMaster University, Hamilton, ON
September 2020 - December 2020

  • Conducted labs for 3rd year Engineering Physics electronics course: "Non-Linear and Active Components"
  • Communicated effectively when leading labs and meeting with students.

Operations Development Student
Bruce Power, Tiverton, ON
January 2019 - December 2019

  • Collaborated with a team to prioritize funding for Capital Projects proposed for start in 2020. Evaluated based on net present value, internal rate of return, and operational risk management.
  • Performed post-implementation assessments on equipment replacement projects to evaluate the project initiation and execution process at Bruce Power. Compared expected outcomes, budgets, and timelines to project results.
  • Coordinated planned work activities with multiple departments and made technical presentations to add work orders to reactor outage scope of work.
  • Automated maintenance and reporting of important nuclear safety metrics using Excel VBA. Prepared and executed test cases to improve software reliability.

Research Assistant
Deparent of Engineering Physics, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON
May 2018 - August 2018

  • Design and implementation of silicon photomultiplier pulse train capable of detecting gamma rays.
  • Consisting of a reverse biased silicon photomultiplier detector, preamplifier, comparator, and DAC.
  • Utilized Autodesk Eagle, Multisim, and LtSpice to design circuit and PCB for fabrication.
  • Constructed PCB using SMD components and used simulation test cases to evaluate the output from the detector pulse train.

Research Assistant
Deparent of Engineering Physics, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON
May 2017 - August 2017

  • Designed, implemented, and evaluated a particle image velocimetry (PIV) experiment seeking to demonstrate the effects of experimental setup uncertainties on measurements taken in high-gradient fluid velocity fields.
  • Developed Python and Matlab code which could efficiently convert raw data files from the data acquisition system into a variety of plots relevant to the data analysis.
  • Employed Autodesk Inventor to design flourescent laser positioning targets and a honeycomb flow straighter to minimize experimental uncertainty.
  • Produced the foundational work for this conference paper: Important issues in validation of computational fluid dynamics codes against CFD grade experimental results. 18th International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Reactor Thermal Hydraulics, NURETH 2019. 3978-3988. 2019

Projects

Development of a Newton Raphson Power Flow Solution Code
June 2022

  • Developed a power flow solution code in Matlab that utilizes the Newton Raphson method to determine power system operating parameters for n-number of P-Q buses connected in a power system to the grid.

OpenCV Inverted Pendulum Performance Evaluation
December 2020

  • Developed an OpenCV application in C++ that allows the performance of the Self-Balancing Inverted Pendulum robot to be evaluated.

Satellite Laser Beacon
September 2020 - May 2021

  • In partnership with QEYnet, capstone team is developing a space-based satellite laser beacon to be used to identify the location of a satellite in orbit.
  • Developed the laser-driving electronics and performed thermal analysis on the beacon module to assess heat load from the laser driving electronics.

Self-Balancing Inverted Pendulum
May 2020 - July 2020

  • Designed and implemented a free-standing inverted pendulum robot which can remain upright indefinitely and reject finite amplitude disturbances.
  • A gyroscope/accelerometer package was used to measure pendulum attitude and a quadrature encoder was used measure surface position and speed.
  • An Arduino Mega 2560 executed instructions as a full-state feedback controller, instructing DC gearmotors to provide control action.
  • The full-state feedback controller was designed using a Matlab model of the open-loop system based on the physical parameters of the structure i.e. height, mass, moment of inertia.
  • The pendulum housing was designed in Autodesk Inventor and 3D printed to compactly house all system components.

Sumobot
January 2017 - April 2017

  • Constructed a miniature robot suitable to compete in a sumo wrestling-style match.
  • Consisted of an Arduino Uno, DC gearmotor track chassis, ultrasonic rangefinders, light sensors, and motor driver.
  • The sumobot structure was designed in Autodesk Inventor and 3D printed to adhere to weight restrictions.

Extracurricular Activities

Volunteer Tutor
Engineering Physics Help Initiative
September 2018 - December 2018

  • Helped students as required with concepts and problems related to courses in engineering physics.
  • Fostered leadership and teamwork skills by communicating effectively.

Conference Presenter
Canadian Nuclear Society's 2018 Annual Conference, Saskatoon, SK
June 2018

  • Entered student paper based on particle image velocimetry research.
  • Utilized strong presentation skills when presenting at the student poster competition to convey research findings.