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Optical Transport Engineer Jobs (NOW HIRING)

FiberLight LLC

Capacity Planning Engineer

Allen, TX · On-site

Optical Transport & Spectrum Management * Monitor wavelength utilization across FiberLight ... Engineering Standards & Governance * Develop and maintain engineering standards, policies, and ...

FiberLight LLC

Capacity Planning Engineer

Allen, TX · On-site

Optical Transport & Spectrum Management * Monitor wavelength utilization across FiberLight ... Engineering Standards & Governance * Develop and maintain engineering standards, policies, and ...

Nokia

Optical Test Lab Engineer Coop

Richardson, TX

With expertise across fixed, mobile and transport networks, powered by the innovation of Nokia Bell ... test optical transport equipment according to test plans. * Work closely with engineering and ...

Nokia

Optical Test Lab Engineer Coop

Richardson, TX · On-site

$20.10 - $70.40/hr

Install, configure, and test optical transport equipment according to test plans. * Work closely with engineering and marketing teams to execute test plans effectively. * Collaborate with customers ...

Arcadian Infracom Inc

Network Engineer III

San Ramon, CA · On-site

$145K - $167K/yr

The position combines hands-on optical transport and DWDM engineering with fiber-plant design and day-to-day network operations, and serves as a senior technical voice across construction, operations ...

Nokia

Principal/Staff Software Engineer

Richardson, TX

$122K - $164K/yr

As a Principal Embedded Software Engineer, you will play a critical role in designing and implementing firmware for advanced optical transport systems. Acting as the bridge between hardware and ...

Nokia

Principal/Staff Software Engineer

Richardson, TX · On-site

$125K - $232K/yr

As a Principal Embedded Software Engineer, you will play a critical role in designing and implementing firmware for advanced optical transport systems. Acting as the bridge between hardware and ...

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All JobsOptical Transport Engineer Jobs

Optical Transport Engineer information

See salary details

$83K

$143.6K

$168.5K

How much do optical transport engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Jul 22, 2026, the average yearly pay for optical transport engineer in the United States is $143,611.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $129,000.00 and $167,000.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is an Optical Transport Engineer job?

An Optical Transport Engineer is responsible for designing, implementing, and maintaining optical network infrastructure to ensure high-speed data transmission. They work with fiber-optic technology, wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM), and transport protocols to optimize network performance and reliability. Their role involves troubleshooting network issues, upgrading hardware, and collaborating with teams to support telecommunications and data center operations.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive in the Optical Transport Engineer position, and why are they important?

To thrive as an Optical Transport Engineer, you need a strong grasp of optical networking concepts, fiber optic communication, and a degree in electrical engineering or a related field. Familiarity with network management systems, DWDM/ROADM technologies, and industry certifications like Cisco or Juniper are often required. Strong problem-solving abilities, attention to detail, and effective communication skills help engineers excel in team environments and when troubleshooting network issues. These competencies are essential for designing, implementing, and maintaining reliable and high-capacity optical transport networks.

What are some common challenges Optical Transport Engineers face in their daily work?

Optical Transport Engineers frequently encounter challenges such as troubleshooting complex network outages, integrating new technologies with legacy infrastructure, and ensuring minimal downtime during system upgrades or maintenance. Staying current with rapidly evolving optical technologies and adhering to strict performance and security standards also add to the complexity of the role. However, these challenges foster continuous learning and skill development, and engineers often collaborate closely with network architects, field technicians, and vendors to resolve issues efficiently. Tackling these obstacles is crucial for maintaining high-quality, reliable network services.

More about Optical Transport Engineer jobs
What cities are hiring for Optical Transport Engineer jobs? Cities with the most Optical Transport Engineer job openings:
What are the most commonly searched types of Optical Transport Engineer jobs? The most popular types of Optical Transport Engineer jobs are:
What states have the most Optical Transport Engineer jobs? States with the most job openings for Optical Transport Engineer jobs include:
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Optical Transport Engineer jobs near you
Infographic showing various Optical Transport Engineer job openings in the United States as of July 2026, with employment types broken down into 96% Full Time, 1% Part Time, and 3% Contract. Highlights an 87% Physical, 5% Hybrid, and 8% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $143,611 per year, or $69 per hour.
Capacity Planning Engineer

Capacity Planning Engineer

FiberLight LLC

Allen, TX • On-site

Full-time

Posted 5 days ago

Job description

The Capacity Planning Engineer is responsible for the strategic planning, forecasting, monitoring, and optimization of FiberLight's transport, IP/MPLS, Ethernet, optical, and backbone network infrastructure. This role ensures sufficient network capacity is available to support customer growth while maximizing the utilization of existing assets, minimizing service delivery delays, and supporting the company's long-term network expansion strategy.
As part of the Strategic Engineering team, the Capacity Planning Engineer develops and maintains the tools, dashboards, engineering standards, and forecasting models used to monitor network utilization, identify capacity constraints, and proactively initiate augmentation projects before customer demand or network performance is impacted.
This position serves as the subject matter expert for network capacity management across FiberLight's MPLS backbone, Layer 2 Ethernet services, optical transport infrastructure, DWDM spectrum utilization, fiber route availability, and infrastructure expansion planning. Success in this role enables predictable service delivery, informed capital planning, improved network efficiency, and scalable growth across the organization.
Essential Job Functions
Network Capacity Planning
  • Develop and maintain long-term capacity strategies for FiberLight's national and regional network infrastructure.
  • Monitor utilization across IP/MPLS, Ethernet, optical transport, DWDM, and backbone network environments.
  • Forecast network growth using historical utilization trends, customer demand, sales projections, and strategic business initiatives.
  • Identify potential capacity constraints and recommend infrastructure augmentations before service delivery or network performance is impacted.
  • Maintain short-term and long-term capacity forecasts ranging from 30 days to 36 months.

MPLS & Ethernet Network Capacity Management
  • Monitor and analyze utilization across all MPLS backbone links and core network infrastructure.
  • Track Layer 2 Ethernet service consumption and available switching capacity.
  • Develop and maintain capacity models that support customer growth while preserving network performance and reliability.
  • Establish and manage oversubscription policies for customer-facing services.
  • Define utilization thresholds and engineering triggers requiring capacity review or augmentation.

Optical Transport & Spectrum Management
  • Monitor wavelength utilization across FiberLight's optical transport platforms.
  • Maintain visibility into available optical spectrum across all transport routes.
  • Track channel assignments, wavelength availability, amplifier loading, route diversity, and overall transport capacity.
  • Identify risks related to spectrum exhaustion and recommend capacity upgrades, route optimization, or network redesigns.
  • Develop standards and policies governing wavelength allocation and spectrum utilization.

Capacity Monitoring, Reporting & Automation
  • Design and develop dashboards that provide actionable visibility into network utilization and capacity trends.
  • Create and maintain automated reporting for:
  1. Backbone utilization
  2. Optical spectrum availability
  3. Port utilization
  4. Circuit consumption
  5. Fiber pair utilization
  6. Transport capacity
  7. Equipment capacity
  8. Growth and demand trends
  • Partner with Business Intelligence and IT teams to automate reporting, forecasting, and capacity analytics.
  • Develop predictive tools and models that identify future network constraints before they affect customer orders or operational performance.

Engineering Standards & Governance
  • Develop and maintain engineering standards, policies, and procedures related to:
  • Capacity planning methodologies
  • Oversubscription ratios
  • Backbone utilization thresholds
  • Optical spectrum management
  • Capacity augmentation triggers
  • Demand forecasting
  • Equipment lifecycle planning
  • Strategic customer capacity reservations
  • Establish engineering review processes that support consistent capacity planning and decision-making.
  • Maintain comprehensive documentation supporting capacity planning processes, forecasting models, and engineering methodologies.

Network Augmentation Planning
  • Identify and prioritize backbone expansion requirements and capacity upgrade opportunities.
  • Recommend router, switch, optical transport, fiber, and infrastructure augmentations to support future growth.
  • Develop business cases and technical justifications supporting capital investment decisions.
  • Coordinate augmentation projects with Engineering, Construction, Procurement, Operations, and Finance teams.
  • Ensure augmentation initiatives align with business objectives, customer demand, and network performance goals.

Strategic Engineering & Cross-Functional Collaboration
  • Partner with Product Management to assess infrastructure requirements for new service offerings.
  • Support Sales Engineering by validating network capacity for strategic customer opportunities.
  • Participate in network architecture planning and long-term infrastructure initiatives.
  • Evaluate emerging technologies that improve scalability, efficiency, automation, and network performance.
  • Support mergers, acquisitions, and network integration efforts through capacity assessments and planning activities.

Operational Excellence
  • Reduce emergency capacity augmentations through proactive forecasting and planning.
  • Improve installation success rates by ensuring adequate network resources are available before customer orders enter implementation.
  • Monitor and analyze capacity-related service impacts and identify root causes.
  • Develop and maintain Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that measure network utilization, growth, performance, and overall network health.
  • Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on planning methodologies, reporting capabilities, operational processes, and engineering efficiency.
  • Ideal Candidate Profile

Requirements
Required Qualifications:
  • Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Telecommunications, Computer Science, or a related technical discipline, or equivalent industry experience.
  • 8+ years of experience in telecommunications engineering, transport engineering, IP engineering, network planning, or strategic engineering.
  • Strong understanding of:
  1. MPLS networking
  2. Layer 2 Ethernet services
  3. DWDM optical transport
  4. ROADM architectures
  5. Optical spectrum management
  6. Carrier Ethernet
  7. Fiber infrastructure
  8. Backbone engineering
  • Experience with network capacity planning methodologies.
  • Experience forecasting network growth and developing augmentation strategies.
  • Strong understanding of oversubscription models and utilization planning.
  • Ability to analyze large datasets and identify utilization trends.
  • Experience developing engineering dashboards and reporting tools.
  • Strong analytical, organizational, and communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications:
  • Experience with Fujitsu 1Finity optical transport platforms.
  • Experience with Juniper routing and switching platforms.
  • Familiarity with NetBrain, Netcracker, GIS systems, SolarWinds, or other network management platforms.
  • Experience with Python, Power BI, SQL, or other automation and reporting tools.
  • Knowledge of hyperscale networking and high-capacity transport architectures.
  • CCNP, JNCIP, MEF, or equivalent industry certifications preferred.

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