Staff Instrumentation & Controls Engineer - Hardware

Valar Atomics•Orangeville, UT

10d

About The Position

Valar Atomics is seeking a Staff I&C Hardware Engineer to specify, design, install, commission, and maintain instrumentation and control hardware for nuclear fuel manufacturing facilities. The role is part of the I&C Engineering team within the Fuel Manufacturing group and covers field instruments and final elements, control panel and I/O architecture, hazardous-area equipment, safety instrumented system hardware, field wiring, physical OT network infrastructure, calibration, loop commissioning, and control-loop tuning. The position carries senior technical responsibility for complex projects, contractor oversight, and mentoring junior engineers. The engineer will work hands-on with I&C Software, process, electrical, mechanical, and nuclear safety engineers. Measurement quality and installation integrity support production reliability and nuclear safety. The team emphasizes technical depth, disciplined documentation, and a safety-first culture. Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States as a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (green card holder).

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Electronic, Mechanical, Chemical, or Systems Engineering, or a related discipline.
8+ years of instrumentation or I&C engineering experience in process industries, with demonstrated ownership of instrumentation scope on capital projects from specification through commissioning.
Demonstrated experience specifying and sizing field instruments and control valves, and leading instrument index and data sheet development for capital projects.
Experience developing instrumentation deliverables, including loop diagrams, hook-up drawings, I/O lists, and cable schedules.
Demonstrated experience leading hazardous-area classification and intrinsic safety loop verification for new and modified installations.
Ability to read and interpret P&IDs, electrical schematics, loop diagrams, and instrument data sheets.
Experience with instrument calibration, loop checking, and field commissioning.
Experience commissioning instrumentation and tuning regulatory control loops.
Working knowledge of control panel design, I/O architecture, and field wiring practice, including grounding, shielding, and signal segregation.
Working knowledge of field signal types and device protocols, including 4-20 mA/HART, Foundation Fieldbus, PROFIBUS PA, and Modbus RTU.
Demonstrated experience owning safety instrumented system hardware scope, including safety device selection, redundancy and voting architecture, proof-test planning, and SIL verification calculations to IEC 61511.
Legally authorized to work in the United States as a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (green card holder).

Nice To Haves

ISA Certified Automation Professional (CAP), Certified Control Systems Technician (CCST), or equivalent credentials.
Professional Engineer (PE) license or eligibility.
Experience with SIL verification calculations and IEC 61511 lifecycle documentation.
Experience with control valve and flow element sizing software, such as Emerson, Fisher, Flowserve, Samson, or equivalent.
Experience with instrument asset management systems, such as Emerson AMS, Siemens PDM, Honeywell FDM, or equivalent, and HART or Foundation Fieldbus device configuration.
Experience with analytical instrumentation such as gas analyzers, mass spectrometry, moisture analyzers, pH, and conductivity measurement.
Experience with radiation monitoring instrumentation, criticality monitoring, or nuclear-qualified instrumentation.
Experience selecting instrumentation for corrosive, high-purity, high-temperature, or molten salt service, including wetted-parts material compatibility.
Experience with instrument installation in cleanroom, glovebox, or contamination-controlled environments.
Familiarity with GAMP 5, 21 CFR Part 11, or nuclear quality requirements (NQA-1, 10 CFR 50 Appendix B) as applied to instrumentation and calibration records.
Experience with electrical and instrumentation CAD tools, such as AutoCAD Electrical, SmartPlant Instrumentation / INtools, AVEVA, or equivalent.
Familiarity with IEC 62443 or NIST SP 800-82 as applied to the physical OT network layer, including cabinet, switch, and cabling infrastructure supporting network segmentation.

Responsibilities

Select, size, and specify field instrumentation, including flow, pressure, differential pressure, temperature, level, and analytical devices; prepare instrument data sheets, specifications, and requisitions.
Size and specify final control elements, including control valves, actuators, positioners, regulators, on-off valves, and flow elements; perform valve sizing, noise and cavitation checks, and actuator thrust verification.
Design control panels and remote I/O architecture, including enclosure layouts and ratings, I/O module and channel allocation, terminal and marshalling arrangements, power distribution, UPS sizing, isolators, and intrinsic safety barriers.
Perform hazardous-area classification and select equipment for classified areas in accordance with NEC Article 500/505 or IEC 60079; prepare intrinsic safety loop calculations and verify entity parameters.
Own instrumentation engineering documentation for capital projects, including instrument indexes, loop diagrams, hook-up drawings, I/O lists, instrument location plans, cable schedules, and P&ID instrumentation mark-ups; establish drawing and tagging standards and review junior and contractor deliverables.
Own safety instrumented system hardware scope, including SIL determination, safety sensor and final element selection, redundancy and voting architecture, proof-test interval and procedure development, and SIL verification calculations in accordance with IEC 61511 and IEC 61508; review junior and contractor deliverables.
Tune PID and advanced regulatory control loops; commission field instrumentation; diagnose and resolve loop deviations, valve response problems, and measurement quality issues.
Establish and execute the instrument calibration program, including procedures, ranges, tolerances, traceability to NIST-referenced standards, calibration records, and recall scheduling.
Specify and oversee installation of field wiring and physical OT network infrastructure, including cable schedules, tray and conduit routing, media selection, signal and power segregation, grounding and shielding practices, and field switch and cabinet placement.
Prepare and execute hardware FAT, SAT, and commissioning plans; perform point-to-point continuity checks, loop checks, calibration verification, and end-to-end interlock testing from sensor through final element; produce turnover and as-built documentation.
Diagnose and resolve field faults, including I/O channel failures, transmitter drift, positioner and actuator faults, and wiring-, grounding-, or noise-induced signal problems; conduct root cause analysis and document corrective actions.
Support instrument reliability engineering, including criticality and spares analysis, failure-rate data collection, preventive and predictive maintenance strategy, and obsolescence planning.
Coordinate with process, mechanical, and piping engineers on instrument installation details, including process connections, tapping-point location, impulse lines, manifolds, heat tracing, and wetted-part material compatibility.
Coordinate with I&C Software Engineers on I/O assignment, tag naming, signal scaling, loop commissioning, and control of tuning parameter changes so field hardware and control logic remain consistent.
Provide technical direction to contractors, vendors, and installation crews; own vendor technical evaluation and package review; redline installation deliverables for compliance with project standards and nuclear quality requirements; mentor junior engineers on instrument specification and field practice.

Benefits

Competitive base salary
Equity ownership in a rapidly growing advanced energy company
Comprehensive medical benefits
Unlimited PTO
Free daily lunch
Generous PPE stipend
High-impact startup environment with significant ownership and autonomy
Opportunities for rapid career growth and internal advancement
Direct collaboration with experienced operators, engineers, and industry leaders
Opportunity to help build and scale transformative energy technology from the ground up