Controls Engineer/Manager

We are seeking a Control Engineer Manager to join a local manufacturing company in the Appleton, WI area for a direct hire.

Target Pay: $120,000 - 140,000

Description:

This position requires an individual that can currently design custom control systems at an OEM level, but is also looking to expand their individual technical and project management skills to grow into the lead position for the Controls Department. This position requires excellent communication skills, as communication is key, not only within the department, but also between departments and with our customers.

The Controls Department Manager must closely monitor the Production Schedule dates with regard to all Engineering and Assembly functions and have a clear understanding of the capabilities and capacities of each individual in order to achieve daily, weekly, and long term goals. Success depends on the ability to motivate and inspire enthusiasm among team members. emphasizes and coaches a team approach to problem solving throughout the organization. You will have continuous support from all departments.

Daily activities as a Controls Project Engineer will involve:

- Managing projects from definition through manufacturing, testing and startup, in a manner that meets customer acceptance criteria within the given time frame

- Collaborating with both internal and external Project Managers, Engineers and other resources to understand project scope, define, and document changes as needed

- Driving project schedules while working closely with design and construction to ensure milestones and completion dates are on track

- Creating Bills of Materials (BOM’s) for all required project materials

- Giving direction to Electrical Designer to create electrical schematics and panel layouts

- Developing programming for PLC’s, Servos and HMI’s for equipment. Some projects will be able to utilize old code from previous projects as a starting point, but most will require the ability to program from scratch

- Giving direction to Mechanical Designers and/or Electro-Mech Techs/Electrical Assemblers on where and how to mount sensors, other control devices, cable trays, route cables, etc...

- Developing basic manuals and documents for equipment operation and training use

- Starting up equipment in PAI shop and participating in customer inspections (aka FAT or VAT)

- Leading and/or supporting start-up of equipment at the customer site (note travel requirement below)

Daily activities as the Controls Department Manager will involve:

Controls Engineering Management:

- Participating in project Kick-Off meetings and setting the Production Schedule for the Controls Engineering and Controls Assembly departments as a member of the Production Team

- Assigning work for all resources of the Controls Engineering department and making changes to assignments to adapt to changes from customer, suppliers or internal issues

- Scheduling field service work for Controls Engineers along with the Service Manager

- Discussing the mechanical project scope and sequence of operation to Controls Engineering before they begin drawing and programming work

- Overseeing all Controls Engineering solutions to ensure we are meeting customer requirements and standards while staying within job budget and schedule

Electrical Assembly Management:

- Assisting the Electrical Assembly Supervisor with technical issues or resource planning

- Working closely with the Production Manager and Mechanical Assembly Supervisor to be sure the electrical/controls scope for all projects are in alignment with the mechanical scope to ensure customer requirements and schedules are met

- Adhering to current schedule for inspection and delivery dates

Overall Department:

- Providing daily leadership, technical direction, and mentoring to 2-4 Engineers, 1 Controls Designer, the Electrical Assembly Supervisor, and 3-4 Electrical Assemblers and Electro-Mech Techs, all of varying degrees of experience

- Communicating daily with other department managers to maintain Controls Engineering and Assembly schedules

- Determine when outside resources may be required to meet production goals and discuss with Senior Management Team

- Collaborating with Controls Estimating, other team leaders, and departments to ensure everyone’s task are in alignment

- Planning for department continuous improvement projects and presenting plans to management in an organized manner for approval

- Providing training and planning for employee development

- Maintaining quality standards for controls construction and assembly

- Ensuring that feedback from Service and Manufacturing is incorporated into existing and future designs as part of Continuous Improvement Process

- Enforcing policies and procedures while watching for ways to improve departmental and company efficiencies

- Maintaining relationships with suppliers to keep updated on new technology, deliveries, cost and software agreements.

- Communicating technical controls information to non-technical stakeholders and potential customers

Additional responsibilities may include:

- Taking on small Engineering projects yourself to keep other Engineers focused on larger ones

- Creating or editing ACAD-Electrical drawings and schematics as needed

- Assisting the Controls Estimator with project estimates

- Possible R&D Team participation

- Leading diagnosis of service issues

Basic Requirements:

-5 to 10 years of experience with design, programming and implementation of the following:

- Rockwell Control Logix & Guard Logix PLCs

- HMIs (Studio 5000 ME with some knowledge of SE)

- Kinetix motion controllers and drives

- AC & DC drives

- Technical Degree

- Must be willing to travel. Approximately 15%-20% travel for startup assistance is REQUIRED for the Engineering part of this position. The travel requirement will be reduced as the role transitions into the Department Manager

- Must have strong written and verbal communication skills. You must be able to act as the “interpreter” for introverted Electrical and Mechanical engineers, as well as non-technical people.

- Must be detail oriented, have strong organizational skills, and demonstrate ability to handle multiple tasks effectively

- Ability to read and understand layout, schematics, and other technical drawings

- Understanding of various product manufacturing processes as it relates to material handling

- Have good computer skills (Word, Excel, E-mail, ERP systems)

- Must be able to balance personal workloads to meet changing deadlines

- Must be able to balance the needs of Pack Air and the customer

- Demonstrate the ability to drive a project to keep it on schedule while controlling quality, project scope, and cost

- Ability to follow instructions and give clear instruction to others

- Ability to work independent or as part of a team

Preferred Experience:

- 5 years of experience in conveyor or custom equipment manufacturing

- AutoCAD 2D experience

- AutoCAD Electrical experience

- AutoCAD 3D (Inventor) or Solidworks experience

- Bachelors Degree

- UL Inspector Certification

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