Controls Engineer - Milk Specialties Global

At Milk Specialties Global, our focus is to create highquality ingredients designed to optimize health and nutrition. We are passionate and dedicated people. Each day, we collectively explore new, innovative ways to enhance product performance and value through our broad human and animal nutrition portfolios. The human nutrition division focuses on industry leading whey and milk protein isolates, concentrates, and hydrolysates. The animal nutrition division is a leading supplier of functional fats, proteins and carbohydrates. Both divisions are backed by the speed, execution and passion it takes to exceed the expectation of our customers. We offer a comprehensive benefits package which includes medical, dental, vision and life insurance as well as a healthy 401(k) company match program.

The Controls Engineer is responsible for supporting and advancing MSG’s plant controls systems. This role provides operational support of our controls systems including troubleshooting manufacturing issues, optimizing system performance, and driving plant data collection and analysis. This role works closely with our engineering and operations teams for our Wisconsin plants to provide control system related specifications for plant expansion projects.

Responsibilities: 

• Perform duties related to preventative, routine, and emergency maintenance of the control/networking systems.
• Advise on, recommend, and engage in the selection of plant equipment and related controls needs with appropriate attention given to digital and analog I/O, cabinet, and system design requirements.
• Provide oversight of external controls vendors, including ensuring work requirements are clearly defined and appropriately delivered.
• Design, code, test, and debug moderate to complex programs, and modify existing programming to keep plant processes running effectively.
• Provide HMI development using easy to understand graphics and process diagrams for plant operators, automating steps where possible, and using necessary messaging and alerting to keep plants informed and running optimally.
• Drive standards to ensure reliability of control systems including developing a maintenance replacement plan for aging or problematic PLCs and related equipment.
• Adhere to standard operating procedures for development, documentation, and code backup.
• Ensure controls cabinets are properly managed, maintained, and documented.
• Oversee the controls network communications requirements working closely with IT network engineers to minimize network performance or security related problems or risks.
• Work closely with IT to promote practices that address appropriate security risks.
• Ensure necessary controls systems spare parts are maintained to reduce extended downtime risk.
• Maintain the proper licensing and support of controls software and hardware.
• Communicate routinely with plant management to keep them appraised of all controls system related activity.
• Provide the plants with support on 24x7 basis to address critical plant control systems issues.
• Provide local maintenance teams with the necessary documentation and training to handle common tasks that keep controls systems operating efficiently and effectively.
• Promote a safety first culture across the controls team that is evident in the teams interactions within the plant as well as within all controls systems.
• Stay updated on industry trends and advancements in Rockwell and related US automation technologies.

Position Requirements: 

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering preferred or a related controls or automation technical degree along with equivalent work experience.
• Minimum of 3 years of experience in controls engineering preferably in a food processing plant
• Experience working with Allen Bradley PLCs, related components, and Logix programming
• Experience working with various HMI development tools including Factory Talk View, Aveva InTouch and all related systems (tag/data servers, historians, etc)
• In-depth knowledge of automation technologies, control system design, and troubleshooting methodologies.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to prioritize and meet deadlines.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills for effective collaboration with internal teams and external resources