Principal Instrumentation Technician

Lonza•Vacaville, CA

7d•$78,750 - $131,250•Onsite

About The Position

The Principal Instrumentation Technician is a fully site-based role in Vacaville, California. The position serves as a liaison among Instrument Services, MSAT, and Reliability Engineering, troubleshooting complex issues and providing oversight, guidance, mentoring, and training to build knowledge within Instrument Services. The technician also serves as a subject matter expert on the Maintenance Optimization team, helping reduce equipment downtime, eliminate waste, and develop integrated technological solutions. The role provides advanced hands-on troubleshooting for instrumentation and mechanical equipment, supports equipment design and lifecycle activities, leads continuous improvement and root cause efforts, and improves preventive maintenance practices in alignment with cGMP and regulatory requirements. The schedule is Tuesday through Friday, four 10-hour shifts, on swing shift.

Requirements

High school diploma.
At least 5 years of relevant experience in a GMP environment.
Strong understanding of industrial process instrumentation principles and systems.
Ability to lift up to 50 lbs with reasonable accommodations.
Valid driver's license.

Nice To Haves

5 to 10 years in manufacturing process instrumentation, control systems, or analytical instrumentation.

Responsibilities

Provide advanced hands-on troubleshooting for complex instrumentation and mechanical equipment failures, resolve out-of-tolerance conditions, and restore production uptime.
Serve as the Instrument Services subject matter expert on the Maintenance Optimization team and advise cross-functional governance teams on equipment design, procurement, commissioning, and qualification.
Partner with Production, MSAT, and Reliability Engineering to identify and lead continuous improvement initiatives focused on safety, quality, and cost efficiency.
Conduct root cause assessments for process discrepancies and Quality investigations using systems such as Track Wise/Veeva; implement corrective actions and initiate maintenance documentation updates.
Identify and implement equipment and procedural improvements within the Preventive Maintenance program to align with cGMP standards and regulatory requirements.
Coordinate work as a team lead, exercise independent judgment on critical site tasks, and design and deliver continuing technical education for maintenance staff.
Perform in-process and post-completion field audits to enforce quality execution, verify adherence to maintenance procedures, and prevent rework.
Provide oversight, guidance, and mentoring and create training to build technical knowledge within the Instrument Services group.