Controls and Automation Engineer

The Controls and Automation Engineer will be responsible for the full lifecycle of industrial control systems for cooling and ventilation installations at CERN, including defining requirements, designing, implementing, commissioning, and maintaining control solutions based on industrial technologies such as PLCs and SCADA systems.

Responsibilities

• Define control system requirements and produce functional specifications for cooling and ventilation installations.
• Select and apply appropriate control and automation strategies to meet operational, reliability, and energy efficiency objectives.
• Design, develop, test, and validate PLC application software for cooling and ventilation installations, ensuring compliance with applicable EN-CV-CL standard solutions and CERN UNICOS framework.
• Configure, test, commission, maintain, and upgrade industrial control systems throughout their lifecycle.
• Collaborate with project leaders, process engineers, operators, and other stakeholders throughout all project phases.
• Coordinate technicians and junior engineers and supervise contractors during implementation and commissioning activities.
• Manage technical procurements, service contracts, and interactions with industrial suppliers.
• Provide expert operational support and troubleshooting for cooling and ventilation control systems.
• Evaluate emerging technologies and engineering methodologies, and contribute to technical studies internal EN-CV-CL standards improvement.
• Produce and ensure that technical documentation is complete, structured and up to date, in line with quality standards.

Requirements

• Master's Degree or equivalent relevant experience in the field of Industrial Automation, Process Control or a related field.
• Proficiency in designing, implementing, and commissioning PLC-based industrial control systems using IEC 61131-3 programming languages.
• Experience in specifying industrial control systems, including hardware architectures and control strategies.
• Experience in testing, validation, and troubleshooting of industrial control systems.
• Experience in SCADA/HMI configuration and deployment.
• Experience operating and maintaining industrial control systems.
• Experience providing support to control system users.
• Experience with Siemens and/or Schneider PLC platforms.
• Knowledge in high-level programming languages (C++, Python, Java) and AI technologies.
• Knowledge of advanced control techniques (adaptive, predictive, model-based control).
• Knowledge of the CERN UNICOS framework.
• Knowledge in cooling or ventilation domains.
• A valid driving licence.
• Participation in a regular stand-by duty, including nights, Sundays and official holidays.
• Work in Radiation Areas.
• Interventions in underground installations.
• Work during nights, Sundays and official holidays, when required by the needs of the Organization.

Skills

• Industrial Automation Engineering
• Process Control
• PLC Programming
• IEC 61131-3
• Industrial Control Systems
• Control Systems Validation
• Control Systems Troubleshooting
• SCADA configuration
• HMI Deployment
• Siemens PLC programming
• Schneider PLC
• Control system testing
• High-level programming languages
• C/C++ Programming
• Python Programming
• Java Programming
• AI Technologies
• Advanced control techniques
• Adaptive Control
• Predictive Control
• Model-based Control
• CERN UNICOS Framework
• Cooling Systems Knowledge
• Ventilation Systems
• Control System Support

Languages

English, French