Automation Integration Engineer

Our Next Energy (ONE)•Farmington Hills, MI

41d

About The Position

This role serves as a critical link between manufacturing engineering, controls, equipment suppliers, operations, maintenance, quality, and IT/OT teams to ensure automated equipment is successfully integrated into ONE's manufacturing environment and achieves required safety, quality, throughput, reliability, and operational performance. The Automation Integration Engineer will provide hands-on technical leadership during equipment installation, commissioning, launch, and production ramp. The ideal candidate combines strong controls and automation expertise with practical manufacturing experience and is comfortable troubleshooting complex equipment directly on the production floor.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Controls Engineering, Automation Engineering, Mechatronics, Computer Engineering, or related technical discipline.
3+ years of experience supporting automation, controls, equipment integration, or manufacturing engineering in a highly automated manufacturing environment
Hands-on experience with PLC programming and troubleshooting
Experience with industrial HMI systems
Experience integrating automated manufacturing equipment
Working knowledge of industrial communication networks and protocols
Experience troubleshooting electrical controls, sensors, drives, servo systems, and automated equipment
Ability to read and interpret electrical schematics, control drawings, P&IDs, and equipment documentation
Demonstrated ability to troubleshoot complex equipment issues systematically
Experience supporting equipment installation, commissioning, and production launch.
Ability to work effectively with machine builders and automation integrators

Nice To Haves

Experience with Rockwell/Allen-Bradley ControlLogix and Studio 5000
Experience with Siemens PLC platforms
Experience with FANUC, ABB, KUKA, Yaskawa, or similar industrial robotics
Experience with Cognex, Keyence, or similar machine-vision systems
Experience with servo motion control and variable-frequency drives
Experience with EtherNet/IP, Profinet, OPC UA, Modbus TCP, or similar industrial communication protocols
Experience integrating manufacturing equipment with MES, SCADA, historians, or production databases
Experience with battery, automotive, EV, electronics, semiconductor, or other high-volume automated manufacturing
Experience with automated assembly, material handling, dispensing, welding, inspection, or end-of-line testing
Knowledge of industrial cybersecurity and OT network architecture
Familiarity with machine safety standards, risk assessments, and safety PLC systems
Experience working through new-product or manufacturing-equipment launches

Responsibilities

Integrate automated manufacturing equipment, controls, robotics, sensors, vision systems, and supporting technologies into ONE manufacturing operations
Develop, modify, troubleshoot, and optimize PLC and HMI applications
Support integration of PLCs, industrial networks, robots, drives, safety systems, vision systems, and manufacturing equipment
Establish and validate communication between machines, production systems, manufacturing execution systems (MES), databases, and other plant-level systems as applicable
Develop and maintain equipment communication standards and interface requirements
Review electrical controls architecture, schematics, control panels, I/O configurations, network architecture, and equipment documentation
Ensure automation solutions comply with ONE engineering standards and applicable industry requirements
Participate in equipment design reviews and provide automation and controls input throughout the equipment development lifecycle
Support Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT), Site Acceptance Testing (SAT), installation, commissioning, and production validation
Work directly with machine builders and system integrators to resolve controls, programming, communication, and equipment performance issues
Lead or support equipment debug during installation and production ramp
Verify equipment meets defined cycle time, uptime, quality, safety, and process capability requirements before final acceptance
Identify integration risks early and develop mitigation plans before equipment reaches the production floor
Support equipment handoff from Advanced Manufacturing Engineering to Operations and Maintenance
Integrate and troubleshoot industrial robotic systems used for material handling, assembly, dispensing, inspection, welding, and other automated processes
Support programming and optimization of robotic applications
Integrate machine vision, barcode/RFID, traceability, sensors, servo systems, drives, and automated material handling equipment
Support implementation of collaborative robotics and other advanced manufacturing technologies where appropriate
Evaluate new automation technologies that can improve safety, quality, productivity, flexibility, or manufacturing cost
Provide advanced technical support for automation and controls issues affecting production
Troubleshoot PLC logic, industrial networks, robotics, sensors, servo systems, drives, safety circuits, machine vision, and electrical controls
Lead structured root cause analysis for recurring automation-related downtime
Implement permanent corrective actions rather than relying on temporary equipment fixes
Analyze equipment downtime and performance data to identify opportunities for improvement
Partner with Maintenance and Operations to improve Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) and Mean Time to Repair (MTTR)
Provide escalation support for complex equipment failures
Support integration between production equipment and MES, SCADA, historian, traceability, and manufacturing data systems
Ensure equipment generates accurate and reliable production, quality, process, and traceability data
Partner with IT/OT and cybersecurity resources to ensure industrial networks and connected equipment meet ONE requirements
Support standardized communication protocols and data structures across manufacturing equipment
Participate in Industry 4.0 and smart manufacturing initiatives
Develop and maintain ONE automation and controls standards
Review supplier equipment designs for compliance with ONE specifications
Maintain PLC programs, HMI applications, robot programs, electrical drawings, network documentation, backups, and revision history
Develop troubleshooting guides and technical documentation for Maintenance and Operations
Support creation of spare-parts strategies for critical automation components
Ensure equipment changes follow appropriate change-control processes
Identify opportunities to improve equipment cycle time, uptime, quality, ergonomics, and reliability
Use manufacturing and equipment data to identify chronic losses and improvement opportunities
Support automation upgrades and equipment modifications
Participate in Lean Manufacturing, continuous improvement, and structured problem-solving activities
Develop standardized solutions that can be replicated across equipment lines and ONE facilities
Partner closely with Advanced Manufacturing Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Controls Engineering, Maintenance, Operations, Quality, IT/OT, EHS, and Supply Chain
Coordinate with external equipment manufacturers, automation integrators, and technology suppliers
Provide technical guidance and training to Maintenance technicians and production personnel
Communicate equipment risks, commissioning status, technical issues, and recovery plans to project and manufacturing leadership