AVEVA PI Engineer

Cognizant; Chennai District, Coimbatore District, Bengaluru; On-site; INR 1,500,000 - 2,600,000; Full time

Job summary

Cognizant is hiring an AVEVA PI Engineer/Consultant for the Life Sciences vertical in a hybrid role across Chennai/Bangalore/Kochi/Coimbatore. You will design, implement, and support enterprise historian solutions integrating manufacturing, lab, and utility systems with AVEVA PI.

The ideal candidate has 5–10 years of pharma/regulated experience, strong PI/OPC UA/DA, Modbus, and data integrity knowledge, enabling real-time monitoring and regulatory compliance.

Qualifications

• 5–10 years of experience in AVEVA PI engineering in pharma/regulated environments.
• Hands-on experience with AVEVA PI Data Archive, AF, Vision, and interfaces.
• Strong scripting abilities (PowerShell, Python) for automation.
• Experience with OPC UA/DA, Modbus, and PLC/DCS integration.
• Familiarity with GMP, CSV/CSV validation, and data integrity.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and support PI Data Archive/AF/PI Vision.
• Develop AF templates, event frames, and analyses for asset modeling.
• Configure PI interfaces for data acquisition from PLCs/DCS/SCADA.
• Create PI Vision dashboards and PI DataLink/Excel reports.
• Automate workflows with scripts and PI SDK/AF SDK.
• Integrate PI data with MES/ERP/SQL/data lakes.
• Monitor data quality, performance, licenses, and HA configurations.
• Provide Tier 2/3 support and root-cause analysis.

Job description

Job Title

AVEVA PI Engineer / Consultant

Industry Domain

Pharmaceutical / Life Sciences (GxP-regulated Manufacturing)

Experience Required

5-10 years

Employment Type

Full-time

Location

Chennai/Bangalore/Kochi/Coimbatore - Hybrid

Role Overview

We are seeking an experienced AVEVA PI (OSIsoft PI) Engineer with expertise in the Life Sciences/Pharmaceutical industry to design, implement, and support enterprise historian solutions. The candidate will be responsible for integrating manufacturing, laboratory, utility, and automation systems with the AVEVA PI System to enable real-time monitoring, data integrity, regulatory compliance, process optimization, and digital transformation initiatives.

The ideal candidate should possess strong knowledge of pharmaceutical manufacturing processes, GMP regulations, data integrity requirements, and industrial automation systems.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain PI Data Archive, PI AF (Asset Framework), PI Vision, and PI Interfaces/Connectors to collect, contextualize, and deliver real-time process data.
• Build and manage AF templates, element hierarchies, event frames, and analyses to model plant assets and business logic.
• Configure and troubleshoot PI interfaces (OPC DA/UA, Modbus, custom interfaces) for data acquisition from PLCs, DCS, SCADA, and historians.
• Develop PI Vision displays, dashboards, and PI DataLink/Excel reports for operations, engineering, and management stakeholders.
• Write and maintain scripts (e.g., PowerShell, Python, PI SDK/AF SDK, PI Web API) to automate data workflows, integrations, and system health checks.
• Integrate PI System data with other platforms (MES, ERP, SQL/historian databases, cloud data lakes, Aveva Data Hub/Connect).
• Monitor system performance, data quality, and tag counts; perform capacity planning and license management.
• Support PI System upgrades, patching, backups, disaster recovery, and high-availability (PI Collective) configurations.
• Enforce cybersecurity best practices for OT/IT systems, including PI System security (mappings, identities, firewalls).
• Document architecture, standards, naming conventions, and data governance processes.
• Collaborate with process/controls engineers to identify new tagging, KPI, and analytics requirements.
• provide Tier 2/3 support and root-cause analysis for PI System issues.Required Technical Skillset
• Strong hands-on experience with AVEVA System Platform (Application Server / Galaxy, Historian, InTouch, Web Client / Operations Control).
• Working knowledge of AVEVA MES / AVEVA Batch Management, or exposure to integrating third-party MES/LIMS/ERP with SCADA layer.
• Proficiency in OPC UA/DA, Modbus, and native communication drivers for PLC/DCS integration
• Experience with scripting (QuickScript/VBScript) and object-oriented Galaxy template design.
• Understanding of network/OT architecture, redundancy, cybersecurity hardening (ISA/IEC 62443 awareness a plus), and virtualization (VMware) for industrial systems.
• Familiarity with SQL Server/reporting tools for Historian data extraction and dashboarding (AVEVA Insight / Reports is a plus).

Pharmaceutical / Regulatory Domain Expertise (Preferred)

• Sound knowledge of GAMP 5 computerized system validation (CSV/CSA) lifecycle and documentation practices.
• Working knowledge of 21 CFR Part 11, EU Annex 11, and data integrity (ALCOA+) requirements.

Certifications (Preferred)

• AVEVA PI certification
• GAMP 5 / CSV training certification.

Soft Skills & Other Requirements

• Strong client-facing communication skills; ability to work directly with pharma quality, validation, and automation stakeholders.
• Ability to prepare and present technical estimations, proposals, and solution walkthroughs to client/hiring stakeholders.
• Strong documentation discipline suited to regulated/validated environments.
• Good analytical and troubleshooting skills for live plant support scenarios.