Automation Engineer

HelloFresh; Chalfont St. Peter; On-site; GBP 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

HelloFresh in the United Kingdom is seeking an experienced Automation Engineer to act as site SME for controls, automation and robotics. You will work with facilities and maintenance teams to keep conveyors and related equipment running reliably.

You will monitor, fault‑find, repair and perform preventive maintenance on automation systems, document work in CMMS, and mentor junior engineers while leading root‑cause analyses of downtime events.

Qualifications

• Qualified in automation, electrical, mechanical or manufacturing engineering.
• Hands-on experience with automation, maintenance and robotics in manufacturing.
• Proficient in PLC-controlled systems, troubleshooting, repair and maintenance.

Responsibilities

• Monitor, fault-find and repair systems to ensure high equipment availability.
• Perform preventive maintenance and inspections on automation and control panels.
• Troubleshoot out-of-service equipment and escalate to leadership/vendors as needed.
• Document all work in CMMS and ticketing systems.
• Mentor maintenance personnel and develop automation knowledge.
• Lead root cause analysis of major downtime events.
• Act as a network resource for technical issues and RCA.
• Develop maintenance knowledge on automation and robotics.
• Partner with engineering on commissioning of new controls systems.
• Audit vendor work for quality and SLA performance.
• Write/modify PMs to standardize across the network.

Skills

PLCs & automation

Troubleshooting

Mechatronics

Electrical engineering

CMMS

Mentorship

Root cause analysis

Process monitoring

HMI & VFDs

Documentation

Tools

SCADA

CMMS software

Job description

As an Automation Engineer you will be the site Subject Matter Expert (SME) within the team, for all controls systems, maintenance engineering, sensors, PLCs, communication protocols, and automation for the site. You will work with the facilities and maintenance teams and colleagues to maintain and repair conveyance, automation and facilities equipment to support operations uptime and improve reliability of our systems.

• Work in a hands-on manner to actively monitor, fault find and repair systems in order to provide a high level of equipment availability to internal customers.
• Perform preventive maintenance and routine inspections on assigned automation, robotics and control panels.
• Perform troubleshooting of assigned out of service equipment and correct issues, act as an escalation point for lower level technicians, and escalate to leadership and/or vendors as needed for additional troubleshooting.
• Document all work in the computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) and ticketing systems as appropriate.
• Mentor all maintenance personnel in developing appropriate skill sets and knowledge of equipment specializing in automation, controls and robotics.
• Lead root cause analysis of major downtime events.
• Act as a network resource for technical issues and lead network-wide root cause analysis.
• Develop maintenance personnel knowledge on intermediate to advanced automation, controls and robotics.
• Partner with engineering on commissioning of new controls systems.
• Audit vendor work to provide feedback to leadership on quality of work and SLA performance.
• Write and/or modify PMs to standardize across the network and increase effectiveness., You are required to cooperate with HelloFresh in all health and safety matters. You are responsible for ensuring you take reasonable care of your own health, and safety as well as others who may be affected by the work activities you undertake. You must report incidents immediately and actively raise health and safety-related concerns to your Line Manager. As part of our commitment to maintaining a safe and secure environment, we will process Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks to the successful individual. Failure to disclose relevant information at application or throughout the process could affect your employment with the company.

If you are currently a HelloFresh employee, please make sure you have discussed your application with your Line Manager.

• Qualified or Solid practical understanding in Mechatronics, Electrical & Electronic, Mechanical, or Manufacturing Engineering
• Experienced in Automation, Mechanical, or Maintenance Engineering, ideally within a manufacturing or production environment such as FMCG.
• Proficient in PLC-controlled systems and automated processes, including programming, troubleshooting, repair, and maintenance of PLCs, HMIs, VFDs, and related control systems.
• Comfortable interpreting technical manuals, engineering drawings, and schematics to support diagnostics and solutions.
• Skilled in both reactive and preventative maintenance, with a track record of handling second-line escalations and completing CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System) tasks.
• Adept in material handling systems, with exposure to flow analysis, capacity visualization, and process monitoring.
• A confident communicator and mentor, capable of coaching junior engineers and stepping in as proxy for senior automation engineers when required.
• Experienced in leading Root Cause Analysis, supporting CI (Continuous Improvement) initiatives, and familiar with DIQ and WMS systems.