PLC, Technical Lead

Novaspect, Inc.; Schaumburg (IL); On-site; USD 140,000 - 155,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

PAID TIME OFF & holidays

401K with company match

ESOP

Health & wellness benefits

Tuition reimbursement

Referral bonus

Job summary

Novaspect, Inc. seeks a PLC Subject Matter Expert to lead technical direction, customer engagement, and project delivery for PLC, HMI, SCADA, and migration services. You will drive modernization projects and cross‑functional collaboration with sales, engineering, and service coordination.

The role requires senior PLC expertise with Emerson/Allen‑Bradley platforms, DeltaV migrations, and a track record of delivering measurable operational outcomes for industrial facilities.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in electrical, controls, automation, or related engineering discipline, or equivalent education and experience.
• 7+ years of PLC programming, integration, and project delivery.
• Expert proficiency with Allen‑Bradley/Rockwell platforms and HMI/SCADA tools.
• Experience migrating PLCs to DeltaV or similar systems.
• Willingness to travel to customer sites as needed.

Responsibilities

• Lead PLC projects including control‑strategy design, programming, testing, startup, and commissioning.
• Engage customers to identify opportunities and shape solutions for PLC modernization and migrations.
• Develop scalable standards, tools, and templates across projects and teams.
• Collaborate with sales and service teams to define scope, estimates, and delivery plans.
• Mentor engineers and promote knowledge sharing across the PLC practice.

Skills

PLC programming

Project delivery

Customer engagement

Technical leadership

Travel readiness

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in electrical/controls/automation

Tools

Studio 5000

RSLogix 5000

FactoryTalk View

DeltaV migration

Job description

Novaspect is seeking a PLC Subject Matter Expert to combine business development, technical leadership, and project execution in growing and delivering our PLC, HMI and SCADA, and PLC migration services. The PLC SME will act as both a trusted customer advisor and a hands‑on technical contributor, helping customers identify needs, shape solutions, and achieve measurable operational outcomes. This position serves as the senior technical lead for Novaspect's approved Emerson and Allen‑Bradley platforms, leads PLC‑to‑DeltaV migrations and integrations, supports opportunity development, and helps build scalable standards, tools, and team capability. The role partners closely with sales, engineering, project delivery, and service coordination throughout the customer and project lifecycle.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Customer Engagement and Business Development

• Engage customer stakeholders across operations, engineering, maintenance, reliability, and leadership to identify PLC modernization, migration, reliability, and lifecycle-service opportunities.
• Build and maintain trusted relationships at both site and enterprise levels.
• Lead or support discovery sessions, installed‑base assessments, modernization workshops, and technical value discussions.
• Identify customer critical success factors, key performance indicators, operational risks, and business drivers related to PLC systems and control performance.
• Partner with sales teams to develop, qualify, and close PLC service opportunities and maintain a visible pipeline of potential work.

Solution Development and Technical Leadership

• Serve as the subject matter expert for approved Emerson platforms, including GE Fanuc and PACSystems MAS, Rx2i, Rx3i, and DeltaV 200 and 300 PLC, and Allen‑Bradley and Rockwell platforms, including Studio 5000, RSLogix 5000, ControlLogix, CompactLogix, and MicroLogix.
• Define solution approaches, control architectures, technical scope, and execution strategies aligned with customer needs and Novaspect standards.
• Lead PLC‑to‑DeltaV migrations and integrations that convert legacy control platforms to modern DeltaV solutions.
• Configure and support approved HMI and SCADA platforms, including FactoryTalk, Movicon.NExT, Beijer, and Maple, with responsibility for effective graphics, displays, and operator workflows.
• Quantify and communicate value‑based outcomes such as reduced downtime, lower obsolescence risk, improved maintainability, faster troubleshooting, and reduced lifecycle cost.
• Contribute to proposal development, including discovery findings, technical narratives, services calculations, effort estimates, assumptions, and risk identification.
• Apply Novaspect's PLC and HMI market guidelines by focusing on approved Emerson and Allen‑Bradley scope, directing safety and SIS requirements toward supported DeltaV SIS solutions, and flagging legacy or nonstandard platforms for review before quoting.

Project Execution and Delivery

• Lead or actively participate in PLC project delivery, including control‑strategy design, programming, testing, startup, and commissioning.
• Collaborate with project teams to define roles, delegate work, coordinate resources, and ensure successful execution.
• Provide technical guidance and troubleshoot complex issues throughout the project lifecycle.
• Promote standardization and reuse of tools, templates, code libraries, and methodologies across projects.
• Support on‑time delivery, technical quality, safe execution, customer acceptance, and effective project closeout.

Strategic Development and Best Practices

• Develop standardized PLC assessment, audit, migration‑planning, programming, and lifecycle‑service offerings.
• Create migration roadmaps and phased investment strategies aligned with customer operating requirements and capital plans.
• Develop and document reusable engineering standards, delivery methods, and internal intellectual property.
• Contribute to PLC go‑to‑market strategies, offering development, technical positioning, and target‑application selection.
• Monitor customer, market, and technology trends and recommend changes to Novaspect's PLC service portfolio.
• Work within and help improve Novaspect's proposal, services calculation, sales, project workflow, and execution processes as the PLC business matures.

Sales Enablement and Knowledge Sharing

• Develop and maintain reusable sales and delivery content, including assessment templates, proposal content, presentations, scope and estimate models, migration roadmaps, and case studies.
• Partner with sales and marketing to communicate PLC capabilities, customer outcomes, and success stories.
• Ensure consistent technical positioning and messaging across opportunities.
• Mentor and upskill PLC‑capable engineers through project participation, technical coaching, and internal knowledge‑sharing activities.

PLC, Technical Lead Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in electrical, controls, automation, or a related engineering discipline, or equivalent education and experience.
• Seven or more years of progressively responsible experience in PLC programming, integration, field troubleshooting, and technical project delivery.
• Expert proficiency with Allen‑Bradley and Rockwell technologies, including Studio 5000 or RSLogix 5000, ControlLogix, CompactLogix, and MicroLogix.
• HMI and SCADA configuration experience, including FactoryTalk View; exposure to Movicon, Beijer, or Maple is beneficial.
• Demonstrated PLC‑to‑DCS or DeltaV migration or integration experience.
• Experience across the full project lifecycle, including design, programming, testing, startup, commissioning, and customer acceptance.
• Demonstrated experience in both project execution and customer‑facing technical roles, including discovery, scoping, estimating, and technical sales support.
• Experience in process and hybrid industries such as chemical, refining, biorefining, food and beverage, life sciences, pulp and paper, or energy and district energy.
• Strong communication and presentation skills with the ability to work effectively with technical teams, customer stakeholders, and business leaders.
• Ability to travel within the territory and maintain a valid driver's license.

PLC, Technical Lead Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Emerson MAS, GE Fanuc, PACSystems Rx2i or Rx3i, and Emerson DeltaV.
• Rockwell or Emerson factory certifications.
• Experience developing installed‑base assessments, modernization roadmaps, front‑end engineering strategies, or value‑based business cases.
• Knowledge of panel design, OT cybersecurity, alarm management, and alarm rationalization.
• Experience mentoring or leading technical teams and developing scalable team capability.

PLC, Technical Lead Competencies and Attributes

• Technical leadership with the confidence to make and defend engineering decisions in front of customers.
• Customer focus and the ability to connect technical solutions to operational and business outcomes.
• Ownership and accountability for opportunity development and successful project delivery.
• Ability to balance hands‑on execution with business development and longer‑term offering development.
• Strong analytical, communication, collaboration, and problem‑solving skills.
• A mentoring mindset that grows the capability of the people and teams around the role.

PLC, Technical Lead Physical Requirements

• Ability to lift up to 30lbs (i.e., Workstation Monitors and Laptop Computers)
• Ability to work extended hours on a computer
• Ability to work in a loud industrial environment
• Must be willing to work at customer sites which include, but are not limited to, oil & gas sites, refineries, nuclear and chemical plants, paper, and steel mills
• Ability to travel to customer sites up to 35% of the time

PLC, Technical Lead Pay

• Base Salary Range: $140,000 - $155,000
• Potential Bonus: 5% Overtime Eligible

PLC, Technical Lead Benefits

• Generous paid time off; starting at 15 vacation days, 10 holidays, and 10 days of Paid Sick & Safety Time (PSST) 401K with 6% company match Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) Excellent health & wellness benefits Student debt & tuition reimbursement Referral bonus

Who We Are

Novaspect, Inc., is an employee‑owned company that engineers, sells, and services industrial process controls. Our Core Purpose is to improve our customer’s performance through the innovative application of technology.

We are passionate about creating effective processes and building customer relationships. We position ourselves to attract the best talent and ensure we are delivering local services with proven technologies. Novaspect seeks to increase the success and sustainability of our customers’ operations and our local communities. We do this by providing best‑in‑class industrial automation solutions.

As a 100% employee‑owned ESOP company, we are also looking for folks who share our desire to have a positive impact on customers and their communities, and with a personal investment in successful results.

Novaspect is a 2025 Great Place to Work Certified company