Job at a glance
Title: Controls Engineer Reports to: Technology Team Leader Job Purpose: Designs, supports, and continuously improves industrial automation and control systems across manufacturing operations. Partners with operations, maintenance, engineering, IT/OT, and vendors to improve reliability, safety, data visibility, process capability, and equipment performance. Key Responsibilities and Accountabilities: • Develop, troubleshoot, and maintain PLC, HMI, SCADA, historian, and industrial network systems supporting production and utilities operations • Create and maintain control narratives, electrical drawings, I/O lists, panel documentation, program backups, change logs, and technical standards • Support automation design, programming, commissioning, FAT/SAT execution, startup, validation, and turnover for capital projects and plant improvement work • Partner with maintenance and operations to reduce automation-related downtime through root cause analysis, corrective actions, alarm rationalization, and preventive controls practices • Implement safe, reliable, and maintainable control solutions that support workforce usability, sanitation, food safety, production quality, and equipment reliability • Support data collection, dashboards, OEE/downtime reporting, historian tags, and integration between floor-level controls and business systems • Assist with control platform standardization, approved component selection, spare parts strategy, lifecycle planning, and obsolescence risk reduction • Work with vendors, OEMs, contractors, and internal stakeholders to specify, review, test, and implement automation solutions that meet company standards • Provide technical support for production issues, utilities systems, process improvements, safety upgrades, and continuous improvement initiatives • Promote a professional company image through clear communication, strong ownership, safe work practices, and effective collaboration with plant and corporate teams Requirements: • Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Controls Engineering, Automation Engineering, Mechatronics, or related technical field preferred; equivalent industrial controls experience may be considered • 5+ years of hands-on experience supporting PLCs, HMIs, SCADA systems, industrial instrumentation, motor controls, VFDs, sensors, and automated production equipment • Experience with Rockwell/Allen-Bradley controls platforms preferred; experience with Ignition or similar SCADA/historian platforms strongly preferred • Ability to read, interpret, and update electrical schematics, panel layouts, P&IDs, network diagrams, control narratives, and equipment documentation • Working knowledge of industrial Ethernet, control networks, cybersecurity basics, backup/version management, and safe change-control practices • Strong troubleshooting, root cause analysis, communication, and cross-functional collaboration skills • Ability to support occasional off-hours troubleshooting, project startups, plant shutdown work, and vendor/OEM commissioning activities as business needs require • Manufacturing, food processing, packaging, utilities, refrigeration, or regulated-industry experience preferred Salary Band: $90,000 to $120,000 depending on experience