Plant System Integration Specialist, Ford Energy

Ford; Kentucky; On-site; USD 99,000 - 166,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision coverage

Flexible family care days

Tuition assistance

Paid time off & holidays

Vehicle discount program

Job summary

Ford Energy seeks a hands-on software specialist to design and build new applications and tools for production operations. You will connect plant data, create dashboards, and contribute to the initial MES integrations, delivering end-to-end solutions aligned with FPS standards.

The role requires 3–5 years of experience, strong Python/SQL skills, and cloud platform exposure (preferably GCP). A mix of low-code and custom development options is encouraged to achieve rapid, reliable outcomes.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in electrical, automation, or computer engineering; computer science.
• 3–5 years of experience in a similar role.
• Experience designing and building software applications or tools from the ground up, including ownership of the software development lifecycle.
• Experience gathering requirements from business or operational stakeholders and translating them into working software.
• Hands-on experience with a cloud platform; Google Cloud Platform preferred, with AWS or Azure experience also welcome.

Responsibilities

• Partner with team leaders to identify needs and design, build, test, deploy, and support digital applications and workflows.
• Balance build-versus-buy, low-code, and custom development options.
• Align digital solutions with FPS priorities and support adoption through training, documentation, and deployment planning.
• Connect applications to plant and enterprise systems (MES, IIoT, ERP, SCADA, PLCs).
• Build and maintain data pipelines, APIs, and semantic models for consistent production data.
• Develop dashboards and reporting tools for real-time SQDCMEP decisions and data traceability.
• Maintain data quality, master data, metadata, and documentation; troubleshoot issues.
• Administer SharePoint and automate workflows with low-code/no-code tools.
• Ensure solutions follow cybersecurity and IT/OT security standards.
• Lead root-cause analysis and collaborate to pilot and scale improvements.

Skills

Python

SQL

REST APIs

GraphQL

FastAPI/Flask

React/Vue

Low-code tools

Data modeling

Education

Bachelor’s degree in electrical, automation, or computer engineering; computer science

Tools

Google Cloud Platform (GCP)

BigQuery

Cloud Storage

Dataflow

Pub/Sub

Composer/Airflow

Looker/LookML

dbt

Cube.js

Job description

We made history, and now we work to transform the future – for our customers, our communities, and our families. You'll see your work on the road every day, helping people move freely and pursue their dreams. At Ford, you can build more than vehicles. Come build what matters.

Ford Energy is a newly formed, wholly-owned subsidiary of Ford Motor Company dedicated to accelerating U.S. energy independence. Leveraging Ford’s century of manufacturing excellence and world‑class battery energy storage systems (BESS) technology, Ford Energy designs, manufactures, and services grid‑scale and commercial DC battery energy storage systems (BESS). Ford Energy is uniquely positioned to capture the growing demand for reliable, US‑built energy storage systems. We are not just building batteries; we are building the infrastructure for the next generation of the American grid.

Why Ford Energy?

At Ford Energy, you have the backing of an industrial manufacturing powerhouse with the agility of a dedicated energy startup offering industry‑leading technology. We offer a competitive compensation package including performance‑based bonuses, Ford vehicle discounts, and the opportunity to shape the energy strategy of one of the world’s most iconic brands.

In this position...

This hands‑on role sits at the intersection of application development, plant‑floor systems integration, and data engineering. The specialist will design and build new software applications and tools that solve operational problems on the plant floor. Examples include custom tracking and scheduling tools, workflow apps, and purpose‑built dashboards. The specialist will also contribute to the initial setup of connections between production equipment and the Manufacturing Execution Systems.

You will own problems end‑to‑end. That means gathering requirements from plant stakeholders, designing, and building the solution, and deploying and supporting it in line with Ford Production System (FPS) standards. You will work closely with Team Managers, Supervisors, Digital Champions, data analysts, and application developers to find gaps where no tool exists and build the solution.

We value curiosity and the ability to learn quickly. You don't need to have used every tool listed. You do need to show that you can pick up new technologies and deliver working results with them.

What you'll do...

• Partner with team leaders and plant stakeholders to identify needs and design, build, test, deploy, and support digital applications and workflows.
• Select appropriate platforms and approaches, balancing build‑versus‑buy, low‑code, and custom development options.
• Align digital solutions with FPS priorities and support adoption through training, documentation, and deployment planning.
• Connect applications to plant and enterprise systems, including MES, IIoT, ERP, SCADA, and PLCs.
• Build and maintain reliable data pipelines, APIs, and semantic models that make production data consistent and accessible.
• Develop dashboards and reporting tools that support real‑time SQDCMEP decisions and data traceability.
• Maintain data quality, master data, metadata, and documentation; troubleshoot system, connectivity, and production‑record issues.
• Administer SharePoint and automate workflows using low‑code/no‑code tools where appropriate.
• Ensure solutions follow cybersecurity and IT/OT security standards.
• Lead root‑cause analysis and corrective actions, and collaborate across teams to pilot and scale digital improvements.

You'll have...

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical, automation, or computer engineering; computer science; or a related field—or equivalent education and experience.
• 3–5 years of experience in a similar role.
• Experience designing and building software applications or tools from the ground up, including ownership of the software development lifecycle.
• Experience gathering requirements from business or operational stakeholders and translating them into working software.
• Hands‑on experience with a cloud platform; Google Cloud Platform preferred, with AWS or Azure experience also welcome.

Even better, you'll have...

• Experience with manufacturing systems and plant‑floor technologies, including MES, SCADA, PLCs, and related communication protocols.
• Strong Python and SQL skills, with experience working with structured data and data modeling.
• Experience building APIs with REST or GraphQL and frameworks such as FastAPI, Flask, or Node.js/Express.
• Experience with cloud data services, especially GCP tools such as BigQuery, Cloud Storage, Cloud Functions, Dataflow, Pub/Sub, and Composer/Airflow.
• Experience building semantic or metrics layers using tools such as dbt, Looker/LookML, or Cube.js.
• Experience developing internal applications with React, Vue, or similar—or prototyping with low‑code/no‑code tools such as Power Apps or Retool.
• Familiarity with data catalog or metadata tools, BI platforms, and Industry 4.0 concepts.
• Experience building or scaling a new system at a manufacturing site, preferably in automotive, manufacturing, or connected‑vehicle data.
• Experience training plant teams or supporting change management during technology rollouts.
• Demonstrated ability to learn new technologies and apply them to deliver results.

You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!

As an established global company, we offer the benefit of choice. You can choose what your Ford future will look like: will your story span the globe, or keep you close to home? Will your career be a deep dive into what you love, or a series of new teams and new skills? Will you be a leader, a changemaker, a technical expert, a culture builder…or all of the above? No matter what you choose, we offer a work‑life that works for you, including:

• Immediate medical, dental, vision, and prescription drug coverage
• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp‑up programs, subsidized back‑up child care and more
• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more
• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases
• Tuition assistance
• Established and active employee resource groups
• Paid time off for individual and team community service
• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day
• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.

This position is a salary grade 8 and ranges from $99,100-$166,200. Final determination of salary grade will be based on the candidate's skills and experience, and base salary will be set within the applicable range according to job scope, responsibility, and competitive market value.

For more information on salary and benefits, click here: https://fordcareers.co/GSR

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Candidates for positions with Ford Motor Company must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status. In the United States, if you need a reasonable accommodation for the online application process due to a disability, please call 1-888-336-0660.

Company: As Ford establishes a wholly owned subsidiary focused on Battery Energy Storage Systems, this role will initially be employed by Ford and is expected to transition to the subsidiary within one year.