Instrumentation & Automation Engineer

Ecolab•Houston, TX

6d•$135,400 - $203,000•Hybrid

About The Position

This role is responsible for implementing, maintaining, and enhancing instrumentation, control, and automation systems used in industrial facilities such as oil and gas, chemical manufacturing, manufacturing, and water treatment to ensure plants operate safely, efficiently, and reliably. This is an important technical role that responsible for implementing, maintaining, and enhancing instrumentation, control, and automation systems such as Ecolab's proprietary programs of 3D TRASAR, HX IQ, TLM IQ, and other Digital Premium Services in Downstream business that would generate $42MM digital revenue in 2026. The role will also support the digital adoption, utilization, installation and troubleshooting of our automation at site.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or a related discipline, or a high school diploma with 10+ years of experience in electrical or controls engineering.
2+ years of experience in an industrial manufacturing or process plant environment, preferably in chemical, refining, or water treatment operations.
2+ years of experience in PLC and HMI troubleshooting and programming.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical, Electronics, Instrumentation, Automation, or Mechatronic Engineering.
Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering with controls or instrumentation experience.
Experience with Rockwell Automation PLCs, including RSLogix 5000 and ControlLogix programming.
Networking experience, including familiarity with industrial Ethernet, SCADA, and cloud-connected IoT platforms such as ECOLAB3D™.
Strong problem-solving and analytical skills in a deadline-driven, customer-centric environment.
Familiarity with arc flash safety requirements, NFPA 70E, IIoT, historians, and digitalization tools.
Knowledge of control systems and process automation, including P&IDs, loop diagrams, wiring diagrams, and control narratives.
Experience with chemical process automation, water treatment control systems, or midstream and downstream oil and gas operations is a strong plus.

Responsibilities

Provide engineering and technical support for Nalco Water’s process and water treatment equipment operations and projects, including installation, commissioning, troubleshooting, calibration, rebuilding, and repair of electrical equipment and automated dosing systems such as 3D TRASAR™ and ECOLAB Heat Exchanger IQTM control platforms, using digital multimeters and other electrical diagnostic tools.
Apply digital technologies, including ECOLAB3D™ connected sensors such as 3D TRASAR™ for cooling water, boilers, and process applications, to improve productivity, reduce waste, and enhance the efficiency of chemical manufacturing and water and process treatment operations.
Ensure maximum reliability of sensors and instrumentation used for monitoring, chemical feed, blending, treatment processes, procedures, and automation equipment supporting downstream refinery and petrochemical customers.
Incorporate PLC and HMI programming enhancements into chemical production and water treatment automation systems to improve process reliability, reduce electrical energy costs, minimize cycle time, and increase throughput for Nalco Water’s downstream chemical product lines.
Troubleshoot networking, server, and SCADA issues across plant automation systems, including connectivity to ECOLAB3D™ cloud platforms, remote monitoring services, and the Ecolab Global Intelligence Center (EGIC) for 24/7 operational support.
Support implementation of Nalco Water equipment data connectivity, including 3D TRASAR and related platforms, to customer DCS systems for data visualization and actionable insights.
Create and maintain current documentation, including operating manuals for process control systems, automation equipment, digital platform configurations, and standard operating procedures aligned with Nalco Water and Ecolab design standards.
Build cross-functional collaboration among manufacturing, R&D, marketing, sales, supply chain, field engineering, and customer-facing teams to achieve project goals in safety, production, equipment quality, and customer satisfaction—core tenets of Nalco Water’s downstream service model.
Work closely with internal digital teams to develop PLC logic programming and HMI operator interfaces for chemical blending equipment, 3D TRASAR™ controllers, automated dosing skids, and other process automation platforms.
Work closely with site teams on continuous improvement projects (TVD) in refining, chemical manufacturing, and water treatment automation through the design, selection, and installation of new process equipment, control systems, and digital monitoring solutions.
Work closely with RDE to design and specify machine and gauge control systems, HMI systems, and data collection systems according to Ecolab and Nalco Water design standards, including integration with ECOLAB3D™ digital platforms for predictive analytics and prescriptive decision-making.