Automation Manager

Peak Energy•Sacramento, CA

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Automation Manager is responsible for building and leading the automation and controls infrastructure that keeps Peak Energy's sodium-ion battery manufacturing facility running at full capacity, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, across a 4-shift operation. This role is both strategic and deeply technical: you'll have direct input into the architecture of our control systems, hire and develop a team of Controls Engineers and Technicians, participate in the acquisition and commissioning of new industrial manufacturing equipment, and create the operational procedures that ensure rapid, reliable response when systems need attention. Our Sacramento manufacturing facility is in the planning and build-out phase. This person will be hired to help open it. That means participating in equipment design reviews and international Factory Acceptance Tests as manufacturing equipment is selected and commissioned, and building the controls team, procedures, and documentation standards the facility will run on from day one. There is no existing playbook to inherit; this person will write it. This role requires someone who is comfortable operating at both the technical and organizational level: debugging a control system issue and then writing the procedure that prevents the next one.

Requirements

Minimum 5 years of experience managing Controls Engineers in an industrial manufacturing environment, with a track record of building and developing high-performing teams
Hands-on technical experience with Beckhoff PLCs and TwinCAT v3; comfortable writing code and assessing the code of others
Demonstrated experience establishing connectivity between PLC/SCADA systems and MES platforms for production traceability and real-time data acquisition
Direct experience participating in equipment design reviews and Factory Acceptance Tests (FATs), including international travel to vendor facilities
Proficiency with SCADA systems, HMI design, and industrial data acquisition platforms
Proven ability to define and document operational procedures (escalation protocols, shift response standards, maintenance routines) that a 24/7 team can execute reliably
BS or MS in Electrical Engineering, Control Systems Engineering, or a related engineering discipline, or equivalent hands-on experience
Strong organizational and communication skills; able to translate complex system knowledge into clear procedures and reports for both technical and non-technical stakeholders
Comfort with the scheduling, staffing, and coordination demands of continuous manufacturing operations
Willingness to travel internationally (up to 25%) for Factory Acceptance Tests and equipment commissioning

Nice To Haves

Experience in battery manufacturing, semiconductor manufacturing, or other high-precision industrial environments
Familiarity with Ignition by Inductive Automation for SCADA and data acquisition
Experience at a company successfully scaling from pilot production to commercial-scale manufacturing
Familiarity with energy storage system architecture and battery manufacturing processes
Comfort using modern AI tools in day-to-day workflow; we operate with Claude as a company-wide platform and reward leaders who use these tools to compound their leverage

Responsibilities

Lead the controls and automation function for Peak Energy's Sacramento manufacturing facility, maintaining system uptime across a 24/7, 4-shift production schedule
Participate in design reviews for the acquisition of industrial manufacturing equipment, providing critical input on automation architecture, PLC platform compatibility, and control system specifications
Lead and participate in international Factory Acceptance Tests (FATs) and Site Acceptance Tests (SATs) for newly acquired industrial manufacturing equipment, ensuring systems meet Peak Energy's requirements before shipment and installation
Build, hire, and develop a team of Controls Engineers and Controls Technicians (7–12 team members) sized and structured to support continuous 4-shift, 24/7 operations
Define and own shift coverage models, escalation protocols, and response procedures; create all documentation governing how the controls team responds to automation issues at any hour
Establish and maintain PLC architecture standards across the facility, with Beckhoff TwinCAT as the primary platform
Design and implement connectivity between PLCs and MES systems to enable real-time production data, traceability, and process monitoring.
Evaluate the existing architecture implemented at Peak’s Burlingame manufacturing facility and incorporate applicable elements where appropriate.
Create, maintain, and continuously improve all automation documentation: control system designs, change management procedures, operator manuals, and maintenance protocols
Collaborate with equipment engineers, process engineers, and manufacturing leadership to ensure automation systems align with production goals and support ramp objectives
Own controls and automation KPIs: system uptime, mean time to repair (MTTR), alarm rationalization, and preventive maintenance compliance
Establish and enforce safety standards for control systems, including emergency shutdown procedures, safety interlocks, and compliance with applicable regulatory requirements
Identify and drive continuous improvement opportunities in automation that reduce manual intervention, improve yield, and increase throughput