Senior Automation Engineer – Biotech Manufacturing

NES Fircroft; Breda; On-site; EUR 85,000 - 115,000; Full time

Job summary

NES Fircroft is seeking an experienced Senior Automation Engineer in Breda to lead automation for filling, packaging, and related equipment. You will drive design, qualification, testing and optimization, ensuring GMP compliance and cybersecurity readiness across the equipment lifecycle.

Working with Engineering, Maintenance, Quality, and Project teams, you will manage automation deliverables, support NPI activities on site, and ensure robust documentation, FAT, and start-up processes.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Automation Engineering, Industrial Information Systems, or a related discipline.
• Minimum 5 years of experience delivering automation solutions within biotechnology/pharma or other regulated manufacturing industries.
• Experience delivering projects independently in cross-functional, global environments.
• Hands-on experience with labelling and packaging equipment.
• Strong knowledge of Industrial PCs, PLCs, HMI systems, SCADA platforms, Cognex Vision Systems.
• Experience operating within GMP-regulated environments.
• Excellent English communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Manage automation deliverables in line with project timelines and business requirements.
• Support New Product Introduction (NPI) activities on site.
• Participate in equipment testing, FAT, commissioning, qualification, and start-up activities.
• Ensure equipment complies with site automation and cybersecurity standards.
• Provide progress updates to project stakeholders and management.
• Support operational readiness and hypercare during equipment implementation.
• Author and review automation design documentation (URS, FDS, HDS, SDS).
• Support installation, testing, and commissioning of manufacturing equipment.
• Ensure successful integration into manufacturing networks (domain settings, network security, firewalls).
• Implement automation standards for hardware and software systems.
• Support connections to PI Data Historian systems.
• Participate in Data Integrity Assessments and Automation PM assessments.
• Develop backup/restore procedures and Asset Parameter Lists (APLs).
• Deliver automation training to Engineering, Maintenance, and Operations teams.

Skills

Automation engineering

GMP experience

Cross-functional delivery

English communication

Project execution

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in Automation Engineering

Tools

PLC systems

HMI systems

SCADA platforms

Cognex Vision Systems

Job description

NES Fircroft is seeking an experienced Senior Automation Engineer in Breda to lead automation for filling, packaging, and related equipment. You will drive design, qualification, testing and optimization, ensuring GMP compliance and cybersecurity readiness across the equipment lifecycle.

Working with Engineering, Maintenance, Quality, and Project teams, you will manage automation deliverables, support NPI activities on site, and ensure robust documentation, FAT, and start-up processes.