Controls & IoT Engineer

Production Engineering - Controls & IoT Engineer

TMH Production Engineering prepares new manufacturing processes and supports production activities by continuously improving safety, quality, and productivity and reducing downtime and environmental impact. Strategic tasks for Production Engineering include the introduction of new automation to maintain productivity in an increasingly competitive labor market, the increase of production capacity to meet sales forecasts, and the improvement of material flow within the plant to reduce lead time and improve safety. Production Engineering has experienced significant growth to support our strategic objectives and increase our level of process ownership and support. We are currently seeking new qualified full-time members for our team to support our aggressive goals. Our manufacturing facility includes processes for laser cutting, saw cutting, CNC machining, press brake and hydraulic press forming, manual and robotic MIG welding, resistance welding, powder coating, painting, assembly, inspection, and material handling, as well as hydraulic cylinder and hose manufacturing.

Our Customers

1. The TMH Manufacturing Department. Our manufacturing associates are fulfilling the core function of our company, and they are our primary customers. We serve them in various ways, from day-to-day support on minor issues to new process development, safety improvements, equipment upgrades, and hundreds of minor process improvements per year.

1. The TMH Production Engineering Department. The controls and systems engineers are typically not the 'process owners' within the production engineering group. As such, our fellow engineers are our customers as we provide controls and system support on projects throughout the department.

1. Our fellow TMH associates. We provide technical expertise for TMH as a whole, not only Production Engineering or Manufacturing. We have the flexibility and responsibility to fulfill our company mission of 'Helping People Carry the Load' by providing support wherever needed.

Responsibilities:

1. Operations Support:
   Support daily production activities, including Maintenance Technicians, by improving issues related to industrial controls on manually controlled equipment, automated processes, and robotics. Respond to emergency production issues as they arise when technical support is needed.

1. Systems and Data Utilization Improvement:
   Play a key role in standardizing and improving the generation, communication, and utilization of process and equipment data to improve company KPIs.

1. IT Interface:
   Act as liaison and technical resource, helping to support coordination and alignment of the activities of all groups as they relate to systems architecture and data collection and utilization in the company.

1. Project Support:
   Support capital investment projects that the Production Engineer process owners are leading. Ensure precise control specifications and approved electrical drawings meet company standards. Support equipment run-off, debugging, and adjustment before and during mass production implementation.

General Requirements:

• Strong technical experience and troubleshooting capability, and willingness to work hands-on
• Commitment, resourcefulness, ambition, and the ability to aggregate & balance multiple projects
• Ability to work professionally with all levels of the organization

• 4-year degree in Engineering or Engineering Technology (mechanical/industrial/electrical)

Job Specific Skills/Experience

• Experience with industrial control system design and troubleshooting (PLCs, HMIs, VFDs, and Servos).
• An understanding of industrial networks, including shop floor equipment, production servers, and office workstations.
• Experience writing and modifying PLC ladder logic and structured text programs.
• Experience developing and working in VB Script and SQL.
• A desire to pursue new technology as it becomes available from equipment suppliers.

• The willingness and ability to work hands-on to repair or improve equipment.
• A sense of urgency to quickly implement countermeasures to production issues.
• The capability to prepare concise project justifications and requests for capital investment.

A successful Controls Engineer should have (must be interested in actively pursuing):

• Experience in the following programming languages/methods (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, C#, Python, VB / VBA)
• Experience in one or more of the following technologies (Angular, Azure, MQTT, MT Connect)
• Experience in one or more of the following data sources (MS SQL Server, IBM DB2, SAP)
• Experience with the use of InduSoft, Ignition, WonderWare, or other similar SCADA systems for communication, data manipulation, and data logging.
• A working understanding of applicable ANSI, NFPA, and OSHA standards and the capability to select equipment components and implement safe control systems.

• Experience with Omron controls systems.

Related Information:

• This position reports to the Controls Production Engineering Manager and will work with a team of experienced controls engineers in multiple processes in the plant.

Examples of work:

Preparing an Andon system for a production line:
Prepare the specification, obtain quotes, prepare the approval documents, and seek approval for the project. Complete the procurement of a control panel, radio remote pushbuttons, wired inputs, and LCD monitors. Procure the contractor work, including the physical installation of the monitors, the electrical connections, and network connection. Prepare the PLC program, connect the PLC to the Indusoft service running on the server. Map the memory locations and prepare the visualization to be displayed on the monitors in Indusoft. Follow-through to successful implementation.

Implement a production history visualization:
Investigate the identified request and clarify the desired outcome of the project. Evaluate any hardware changes or additions necessary to complete the project. Estimate/quote the cost of purchased components, prepare the approval documents and obtain approval for the project. Procure the required hardware, contractor work and coordinate the installation of the hardware/wiring. Integrate the new hardware within the PLC program and make any other necessary changes within the machine control PLC and HMI systems. Prepare SQL database tables for storing the necessary data, make appropriate SQL user and role security settings, and write stored procedures to extract the data in a format usable for display. Complete communication and scripting setup to store the data from the PLC at appropriate intervals using Ignition, Kepware, or other middleware systems. Prepare appropriate front-end and back-end logic to retrieve and display the data in a way that solves the initial problem or achieves desired improvement.

Prepare standards documents:
Investigate available options in the marketplace related to a given product or technology. Evaluate potential use cases for said product or technology in the company and summarize benefits, drawbacks, and r.