What are the responsibilities and job description for the Industry 4.0 Implementation Specialist position at VDS Consulting Group?
Contract | 6–12 months | Day rate expenses | Travel M–F, CONUS
The mandate
A narrow, technical, hands-on engagement: put connected technology onto production lines that were built before anyone used the phrase Industry 4.0, and make it produce a measurable operating result rather than a dashboard nobody opens.
What you'll own
- IoT sensor deployment and machine connectivity on legacy equipment, including retrofit approaches for assets without native connectivity
- Predictive and condition-based maintenance implementation, and the data pipeline behind it
- Robotic and automation integration onto existing lines — cobots, pick and place, palletizing, vision inspection
- OEE data capture that reflects reality rather than the number the plant would like to report
- MES and shop floor data system implementation or integration to the ERP layer
- OT/IT convergence and the network and security architecture it requires
- Business case development and post-implementation benefit validation
- Operator and maintenance training on everything you install
What you bring
- 10 years in manufacturing automation, controls, industrial engineering, or smart factory implementation
- Hands-on capability with PLCs, SCADA, historians, and industrial networking
- Practical retrofit experience — connecting equipment that was never designed to be connected
- Automation integration project delivery, including safety, validation, and commissioning
- Ability to build and defend a business case, then prove the benefit landed
- Comfort working on the floor in an active production environment
Strong plus: predictive maintenance analytics; machine vision; robotics integration; OT cybersecurity; experience across multiple sites or a smart factory program.