Papillion Foods-Lead Controls Technician 1st Shift

Hormel Foods Family of Companies•Omaha, NE

23h•Onsite

About The Position

Papillion Foods is seeking a Lead Controls Technician for the 1st Shift. This role serves as the site authority for control systems architecture, standards, and lifecycle management. The Lead Controls Technician will lead advanced troubleshooting of plant-wide control system interactions and OT network issues, perform complex troubleshooting of PLCs, HMIs, VFDs, servo systems, instrumentation, and OT networks. Responsibilities also include I/O testing, device replacement, wiring, verification, electrical inspections, testing, and calibration. The position involves analyzing system interactions to identify root causes of failures, designing and maintaining control applications, and leading OT cybersecurity improvements. The Lead Controls Technician will partner with IT and Engineering to reduce cybersecurity risk, direct control system upgrades, coordinate cross-functional teams and vendors, and train/mentor controls personnel. This role includes supervising daily work activities of assigned hourly controls staff, but does not involve disciplinary actions.

Requirements

Two‑year technical degree or equivalent experience in controls, electrical, automation, or related technical field.
Minimum of 5 years of advanced industrial controls experience.
Proven ability to troubleshoot PLCs, HMIs, VFDs, instrumentation, and OT networks.
Demonstrated site-level authority in PLC, HMI, SCADA, and OT system architecture.
Proven leadership in complex troubleshooting and large-scale automation projects.
Ability to supervise assigned hourly controls staff without disciplinary authority.
Ability to efficiently learn and use business and technical software tools—including Microsoft Office, AutoCAD, the company’s EAMS/CMMS, and Outlook—to support maintenance planning, documentation, and analysis.
Ability to perform the essential functions of the position with or without reasonable accommodation, including lifting up to 50 pounds; twisting, bending, kneeling, and crawling on top of or under equipment; working in hot and cold environments; operating aerial lifts; using ladders; and working at heights.

Nice To Haves

Rockwell Automation Logix Programmer or equivalent advanced certification
Experience leading OT cybersecurity initiatives, including system hardening, patch management, backups, and disaster recovery planning.

Responsibilities

Serve as the site authority for control systems architecture, standards, and lifecycle management.
Lead advanced troubleshooting of plant-wide control system interactions and OT network issues.
Perform complex troubleshooting of PLCs, HMIs, VFDs, servo systems, instrumentation, and OT networks.
Perform I/O testing, device replacement, wiring, and verification activities under supervision.
Perform electrical inspections, testing, and verification using multimeters, megohmmeters, and other approved test equipment as trained.
Apply precision calibration, tuning, and validation techniques to improve process stability and performance.
Analyze system interactions to identify root causes of intermittent or multi-equipment failures including mechanical issues.
Design, program, and maintain complex PLC, HMI, SCADA, and distributed control applications.
Lead and coordinate OT cybersecurity improvements including system hardening, account management, patch management, backup validation, disaster recovery planning, and vulnerability remediation in alignment with corporate OT security standards.
Partner with IT, Engineering, and external specialists to reduce cybersecurity risk to operational technology assets while maintaining system reliability and uptime.
Direct control system upgrades, migrations, and large-scale automation and OT network projects.
Coordinate cross-functional teams and external vendors on controls and OT-related initiatives.
Train and mentor controls personnel and establish technical competency standards.
Supervise the daily work activities of assigned hourly controls staff; this role does not include responsibility for issuing disciplinary actions.