Automation Engineer

About the role

We’re looking for a qualified, motivated Automation Engineer to join our team and create automated systems for use in a production and manufacturing environment. You will collaborate with departmental and corporate leadership to determine existing automation capabilities and future opportunities, creating detailed project road maps for automation projects that support our business objectives.

Responsibilities

• Develop controls documentation like interface descriptions, sequence of operations, etc. for automation projects; perform reach studies and time calculations for robot cells and other automation equipment.
• Program robots (Yaskawa, Universal, Omron) and automation equipment (Omron, Mitsubishi, Allen-Bradley – Rockwell, Keyence).
• Human Machine Interface Programming.
• Assist in programming/troubleshooting of Injection Mold presses, Blow molding presses, associated Robots (Star, ARI, Yushin), and automated assembly equipment.
• Recommend, develop, and implement enhancements and improvements to increase production volume or precision in high-throughput operations.
• Wire controls, including working knowledge of safety relay circuitry.
• Work with other departments to ensure project completion and success.
• Develop studies and run cycle time calculations.
• Act as the point of contact and liaison between the company and customer to ensure product accuracy.
• Supervise and train Automation Technicians.
• Design and build automated equipment (cells) with the automation team in-house.
• Identify processes currently running for automated improvements.
• Work with Automation vendors to provide equipment for current/future processes.
• Create and maintain program backups of all automated processes.
• Able to use Autodesk 2D and Inventor 3D or Fusion 360.
• Other duties as assigned.

Work Styles and Abilities

• Attention to Detail – Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
• Analytical Thinking – Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
• Persistence – Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
• Inductive Reasoning – Must be able to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Adaptability and Flexibility – Must be open to change and to considerable variety in the workplace.
• Innovation – Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.
• Communication – Job requires strong ability to communicate to be understood.
• Stress Tolerance – Ability to work under pressure, accept criticism, and deal calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.
• Dependability – Job requires being reliable, responsible, dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Tools Used

• Bar code reader equipment – bar code readers.
• Camera-based vision systems for automated data collection – vision systems.
• Desktop or notebook computers.
• Digital camcorders or video cameras – digital video cameras.
• Force or torque sensors – Torque meters.
• Microcontrollers – programmable logic controllers (PLC).
• Multimeters.
• Oscilloscopes.
• Scanners – laser scanners.
• Signal conditioners.
• Signal generators – function generators.

Qualifications

• 2-4 years' experience with automation in a production environment.
• Bachelor’s degree (preferred) in engineering with a focus on automation, electrical engineering, or a relevant field.
• Continuous Improvement and Lean Manufacturing experience preferred.