Controls Engineer

About the role

Wunderlich-Malec Engineering (WM) is a 100% employee-owned ESOP and one of the largest and most well-established engineering companies in the United States. As a Staff Engineer, you will play a critical role in designing and implementing advanced automation solutions for the water/wastewater, data center, and manufacturing industry sectors. Working within a dynamic system integration environment, you will be part of a team responsible for delivering high-quality, fit-for-purpose, regulatory-compliant automation that supports the business drivers of our client base. This is an opportunity to contribute to projects that impact the local community while growing within an employee-owned organization that values innovation and technical excellence.

Responsibilities

• Work on multiple projects of moderate size or portions of major projects
• Collaborate on standards, techniques, procedures, and criteria
• Develop or design with guidance
• Follow best practices consistently
• Lead design reviews
• Attain expertise in one or more technical areas
• Design complete projects, systems, components, or processes
• Prepare complete project documents
• Identify potential roadblocks to completing tasks efficiently
• Routinely test own work or work of associate engineers in area of technical expertise
• Develop, configure, and implement PLC-based (Rockwell experience preferred) control systems, ensuring alignment with customer specifications, WM standards, and industry best practices
• Collaborate with clients to gather requirements and develop customized automation solutions
• Engineer system architecture, hardware specifications, and control strategies to optimize manufacturing efficiency
• Procure/configure controllers, applications, HMI, and historian solutions while ensuring compliance with regulations
• Conduct Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) and Site Acceptance Testing (SAT) to validate system performance
• Develop instrument specifications, wiring designs, troubleshooting, and calibration; procure and manage installation of devices
• Develop and/or redline control drawings and electrical schematics detailing control system configuration, major hardware and wiring, and design of control panel layouts; provide work direction to technicians creating the drawings
• Provide on-site startup, commissioning, and troubleshooting support activities for deployed systems into production environments
• Ensure compliance with system and software development life cycle methodologies, including commissioning documentation
• Work closely with multidisciplinary teams, including electrical engineers, process engineers, validation engineers, and project managers, to deliver projects on time and within budget
• Mentor junior engineers and technicians, fostering knowledge-sharing and technical growth

Technical Qualifications

• Familiarity with Rockwell Automation hardware and software including ControlLogix and Studio5000
• Develop HMI/SCADA hardware/software platforms such as ICONICS Genesis64, Inductive Automation Ignition, Wonderware ArchestrA System Platform, GE CIMPLICITY, GE iFIX, Rockwell Automation FactoryTalk View, Emerson DeltaV, Schneider, and Siemens
• Familiarity with Historian, Alarm Management, and Advanced Control Strategies
• Experience with automation protocols (HART, Foundation Fieldbus, Profibus, Modbus TCP/IP, Ethernet/IP, OPC)
• Expertise in process control strategies, loop tuning, and system integration
• Understanding of industrial networking for communication between controllers, servers, and HMIs
• Familiarity with electrical design principles and working knowledge of AutoCAD is a plus
• Strong troubleshooting skills and the ability to diagnose and resolve complex automation issues
• Ability to translate high-level functional requirements into detailed software design
• Capacity to work independently and collaboratively on complex automation projects in industrial and manufacturing environments
• Strong written and verbal communication skills for technical documentation and collaboration with cross-functional teams and clients
• Passion for quality craftsmanship, innovation and problem-solving in mission-critical environments

Sales & Business Development

• Participate in proposals and write sections of proposals as directed by others
• Independently prepare proposals for small projects
• Provide support in developing estimates for project proposals
• Lead customer staff meetings when it affects assigned design tasks
• Identify opportunities to build relationships with client peers
• Field customer requests and evaluate them vs defined scope
• Identify potential customer needs and develop proposal or change order options for review

Project Leadership

• Project manage simple to moderately complex projects
• Prepare project execution plans
• Develop and communicate Status Reports, Earned Value Reports, Estimate to Complete Reports, and Committed Cost Reports for small to medium size projects
• Identify project risks and develop risk management plan
• Prepare level 2 project schedules with dependencies
• Manage budget, effort, change orders, invoicing, and variances

Education And Experience

• Professional degree in Electrical Engineering, Control Systems Engineering, Mechanical or Chemical Engineering, or a related field
• 3 to 8 years of experience in automation and control system engineering

Work Conditions

• Willingness to travel up to 50% for on-site support and commissioning and/or participate in multiple months of remote onsite rotational support
• Valid driver’s license and international passport (or ability to obtain quickly)

Physical Demands

• Ability to stand and move around job sites for up to 8–12 hours per shift
• Ability to frequently climb up and down stairs and ladders
• Ability to maintain balance and stability while performing tasks at heights
• Ability to occasionally lift, carry, and move objects up to 40 pounds as required
• Ability to hear and communicate with clear speech in industrial environments
• Ability to drive vehicles and operate simple machinery, with proper training, such as lifts
• Frequent reaching, bending, stooping, crouching, or crawling in and around machinery and production equipment as required during project commissioning and startup activities
• Manual dexterity sufficient to operate tools, instruments, or computer equipment
• Ability to wear required personal protective equipment (PPE) such as safety glasses, gloves, hard hats, and steel-toed boots
• Visual acuity and hand-eye coordination required for inspection, troubleshooting, and detailed technical work

Working Environment

• Working around construction and industrial production equipment and personnel
• Exposure to manufacturing environments with moderate to high noise levels, temperature fluctuations, moving mechanical parts, and industrial chemicals
• Electrical/Instrumentation device checkout and troubleshooting, including voltage testing, troubleshooting equipment on a ladder, and light electrical assembly (e.g., signal wiring in control panels/instruments)

Benefits

• Medical, Dental, Vision
• Basic and Supplemental Life and AD&D
• Long Term Disability
• Voluntary Short Term Disability
• Healthcare & Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts
• Health Savings Account
• Paid Time Off (PTO)
• Paid Holidays
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Referral Bonus Program
• 401(k)/Profit Sharing
• 100% ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan)
• Employee Assistance Program
• Will Preparation Resources
• Worldwide Travel Assistance