Department Leader, Maintenance Controls

Pharmavite•Opelika, AL

5d•$80,000 - $146,000•Onsite

About The Position

Leads maintenance controls activities that support reliable manufacturing operations, including troubleshooting, repair, improvement, and sustainment of plant automation, electrical systems, instrumentation, controls hardware, and related software. Partners with Maintenance, Engineering, Operations, Quality, and Safety teams to reduce downtime, strengthen equipment reliability, support capital and continuous improvement projects, and ensure work is completed safely and in compliance with applicable standards.

Requirements

Bachelor's Degree, or one or two years of college, technical school, apprenticeship training, or equivalent technical experience in electrical, automation, instrumentation, industrial maintenance, or a related discipline.
Requires five to eight years of experience in technical maintenance, electrical controls, automation, instrumentation, manufacturing equipment troubleshooting, or related technical disciplines
Working knowledge of preventative and predictive maintenance programs, computerized maintenance systems, and equipment reliability practices.
Strong electrical and controls troubleshooting capability, including PLCs, HMIs, VFDs, sensors, instrumentation, control panels, schematics, and industrial networks used in manufacturing environments.
Good understanding of mechanical systems and how electrical and controls issues affect equipment performance, safety, quality, and throughput.
Strong oral and written communication skills, good computer skills, and the ability to document technical work clearly.
Ability to lead and develop employees, prioritize competing work demands, and partner effectively across Maintenance, Operations, Engineering, Quality, and Safety.

Nice To Haves

Technical certifications related to PLCs, industrial electrical systems, instrumentation, controls, or automation are preferred

Responsibilities

Leads day-to-day maintenance controls support for plant equipment, automation systems, electrical controls, PLCs, HMIs, drives, sensors, instrumentation, and related manufacturing systems to minimize downtime and support production needs.
Provides technical direction to Controls Technicians and maintenance team members during troubleshooting, repair, installation, start-up, and continuous improvement activities.
Plans and prioritizes controls-related work orders, preventive maintenance, predictive maintenance, calibrations, equipment upgrades, and system improvements in partnership with Maintenance and Operations leaders.
Uses the computerized maintenance management system to document work activity, maintain accurate equipment histories, identify recurring failures, and support reliability improvement actions.
Supports the development and execution of controls standards, electrical safety practices, backup and recovery practices, change control, and documentation for PLC, HMI, panel, instrumentation, and automation assets.
Partners with Engineering and project teams on equipment installations, capital projects, process improvements, commissioning, validation support, and handoff to maintenance ownership.
Coaches, trains, and develops controls and maintenance staff to strengthen technical capability, safe work practices, troubleshooting discipline, and accountability for reliable execution.
Recommends, processes, and supports equipment and controls improvements that improve safety, quality, reliability, throughput, and maintainability.
Assists in developing and managing the departmental budget for controls-related labor, parts, service support, tools, and improvement projects.
Performs other related duties as assigned.