Senior Automation Controls Engineer — Precision Machinery

Connect Force; Bloomfield Hills (MI); On-site; USD 115,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

Connect Force Recruiting partners with a precision machinery manufacturer in Farmington Hills, MI, seeking a Senior Controls Engineer to design, program, troubleshoot, startup, and optimize advanced automation systems. The ideal candidate has 6+ years of controls engineering, strong PLC and HMI skills, and experience with Siemens platforms, machine tools, and cross-functional teams.

This role emphasizes safety, quality, and reliability in high-precision manufacturing, with occasional travel and

Qualifications

• 6+ years of controls engineering, automation, or related industrial equipment experience.
• Strong PLC programming and troubleshooting experience.
• Experience with HMI development, machine software support, and electrical controls troubleshooting.

Responsibilities

• Develop, modify, troubleshoot, and support PLC and HMI programs for advanced industrial machinery.
• Support controls engineering activities for custom machine builds, retrofits, upgrades, and customer-specific projects.
• Troubleshoot electrical, software, automation, and machine-control issues during build, startup, commissioning, and service.
• Work with PLCs, HMIs, drives, sensors, motion systems, safety circuits, and industrial communication networks.
• Read and interpret electrical schematics, controls drawings, machine layouts, and technical documentation.
• Support machine startup, debug, validation, customer acceptance, and field commissioning activities.
• Collaborate with mechanical engineering, electrical design, service, production, and international technical teams.
• Provide technical support for customers, internal service teams, and production personnel.
• Assist with controls standards, documentation, process improvements, and troubleshooting best practices.
• Maintain a strong focus on machine safety, quality, reliability, and long-term equipment performance.

Skills

PLC programming

HMI development

Electrical troubleshooting

Cross-functional collaboration

Safety compliance

Tools

TIA Portal

Siemens HMIs

Job description

Connect Force Recruiting partners with a precision machinery manufacturer in Farmington Hills, MI, seeking a Senior Controls Engineer to design, program, troubleshoot, startup, and optimize advanced automation systems. The ideal candidate has 6+ years of controls engineering, strong PLC and HMI skills, and experience with Siemens platforms, machine tools, and cross-functional teams.

This role emphasizes safety, quality, and reliability in high-precision manufacturing, with occasional travel and