Automation Engineer

R3 Lithium Inc.; Covington (GA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

R3 Lithium Inc. Covington, Georgia is seeking an Automation Engineer to lead process automation across our lithium manufacturing facility.

You will design, implement, and optimize control systems for handling, disassembly, and processing spent EV batteries, with a focus on reliability and data integrity. The role requires a technical degree and hands-on experience in industrial automation, with travel opportunities.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or technical diploma in Electrical, Process Controls, or Chemical Engineering with automation experience.
• 5+ years of experience in controls design, programming, and troubleshooting in manufacturing.
• Experience with control panel design and low voltage electrical systems.
• Knowledge of Siemens or Allen-Bradley programming is a plus.
• Strong data-driven decision making and problem solving.

Responsibilities

• Provide process automation leadership for capital projects, including technical specification and standard creation, vendor selection and qualification, instrumentation and control system design review and approval, FAT, SAT, installation, commissioning, startup, and process optimization.
• Interface with EPC firms and construction contractors to effectively design and execute plant automation and data management systems
• Lead efficiency improvement automation projects in multiple brown and green field sites. Modify and debug process control systems to achieve continuous process optimization and downtime reduction.
• Interface with R&D team and contractors to implement automation systems of new processes
• Work with Quality team on quality control data management
• Support the production plant’s technical staff to meet plant metrics with robust processes and quality systems based on the APQP tool kit.
• Lead RCA (Root Cause Analysis) and troubleshooting effort to resolve process controls upset and product quality deviations
• Liaise IT team and contractor on providing enterprise production data reporting and analysis to corporate management
• Other duties and responsibilities consistent with the Employees position

Skills

Controls design

Programming

Troubleshooting

Industrial automation

Reading drawings

AutoCAD

Siemens/AB PLC

APQP tools

Lean & Six Sigma

MS Office

Education

Bachelor's degree or technical diploma in Electrical, Process Controls, or Chemical Engineering

Tools

Siemens PLC

Allen-Bradley PLC

APQP tools

FMEA

SPC

Lean Six Sigma

AutoCAD

MS Office

Job description

Automation Engineer

R3 Lithium Inc. Covington, Georgia, United States

About this position

In 2025, a facility in Covington, Georgia, became the first in U.S. history to produce commercial-scale, technical-grade lithium entirely from recycled battery materials. R3 Lithium acquired the facility in 2026 and retained the leadership team responsible for achieving that milestone.

Today, we are investing to advance the facility into continuous commercial operation, with a clear mandate: to produce battery-grade lithium carbonate domestically, at scale, using recycled feedstock.

Job Description:Automation Engineer. In such position, theAutomationEngineershallwork in theAutomationteam responsible forthe overallprocess automationdesignand optimizationofR3 Lithiummanufacturingfacilitieswhich includehandling, discharge,anddisassembly of spent EV batteries, shredding of such batteries,andchemicalprocessingof this shredded material intonew battery cathode.The AdvancedManufacturingEngineeringteamisresponsible forscaling our technology from demonstration plant scale to full production scale at multiple brown and green field sites in the US. In addition to process development, vendor selection,plant design, commissioning and installation,this group leads the technology scaling efforts as next generation technologies are proven in our R&D group.

Job Responsibilities

• Provide process automation technical leadership for capital projects, including technical specification and standard creation, vendor selection and qualification, instrumentation and control system design review and approval, FAT, SAT, installation, commissioning, startup, and process optimization.
• Interface with EPC firms and construction contractors to effectively design and execute plant automation and data management systems
• Lead efficiency improvement automation projects in multiple brown and green field sites. Modify and debug process control systems to achieve continuous process optimization and downtime reduction.
• Interface with R&D team and contractors to implement automation systems of new processes
• Work with Quality team on quality control data management
• Support the production plant’s technical staff to meet plant metrics with robust processes and quality systems based on the APQP tool kit.
• Lead RCA (Root Cause Analysis) and troubleshooting effort to resolve process controls upset and product quality deviations
• Liaise IT team and contractor on providing enterprise production data reporting and analysis to corporate management
• Other duties and responsibilities consistent with the Employees position

Education

Bachelor’s degree or technical diploma in Electrical, Process Controls, or Chemical Engineering with automation experience.

Skills and Requirements

• 5+ years of experience in controls design, programming, and troubleshooting of industrial manufacturing plant
• Knowledge of control system design for performance material or similar manufacturing process, and ability to read, interpret and generate engineering drawings and specifications
• Experience with Control panel design and low voltage electrical system
• Knowledge of Siemens and Allan Bradley programming is a plus
• Knowledge of and hands on experience using APQP tools (or equivalent) including FMEA, SPC, and design and process validation as well as Lean and 6 Sigma tools.
• Experience, judgement, and technical knowledge to drive data-based decisions
• Skilled user of MS office tools including Word, EXCEL, Outlook, Project, Autocad
• Written and verbal fluency in English
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally