Senior Sales Engineer - Industrial Automation & Controls

Koester Corporation; Napoleon (OH); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Dental, Health, and Vision insurance

Life insurance

Paid time off

Paid vacations

401(k)

Job summary

Koester Corporation, based in Napoleon, OH, is seeking a technically strong Senior Sales Engineer to lead our engineering sales within the Electrical Engineering department. You will walk the plant floor, scope systems, layout panels, and price jobs to ensure success from day one.

Responsibilities include growing customer relationships, defining project scope, developing BOMs and system architectures, and leading the proposal engineering function as the team expands.

Qualifications

• Eight years of experience in controls engineering, systems integration, or technical sales in industrial automation.
• Four-year Engineering Degree (Electrical, Mechanical, or Electrical Engineering Technology) or equivalent experience.
• Strong understanding of control panel design, including UL 508A requirements.
• Proficiency with Rockwell or Siemens controls equipment and PLCs.
• Familiarity with HMI/SCADA software.
• Proven ability to scope and estimate controls projects accurately.
• Strong communication and presentation skills with engineers, maintenance, and management.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Excel and Word.
• Highly organized and detail-oriented, with ability to manage multiple quotes and deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary technical sales contact for existing customers.
• Build long-term relationships with plant engineers, maintenance managers, and purchasing.
• Identify and pursue new customers and markets as the sales team grows.
• Maintain an accurate sales pipeline, quote log, and forecast.
• Conduct site walks and meetings to define project scope and panel requirements.
• Develop preliminary panel layouts, BOMs, and system architectures.
• Build quotations using standard building blocks: panel design, PLC programming, HMI/SCADA, startup/commissioning.
• Set pricing, prepare proposals, and present to customers.
• Negotiate scope, terms, and change orders; follow up on quotes to close new work.
• Hand off won projects with scope, budget, and schedule to engineering.
• Support project engineers as the customer’s point of contact for scope changes.
• Review quoted vs actual hours to improve estimating accuracy.
• Help develop and refine quoting standards, templates, and sales processes.
• Travel to customer sites regionally and nationally.

Skills

Controls engineering

Technical sales

Estimating/proposals

Communication/presentation

MS Office (Excel/Word)

Project coordination

Travel readiness

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical/Mechanical/Engineering Technology

Tools

Rockwell PLCs

Siemens PLCs

HMI/SCADA software

Job description

Koester Corporation, based in Napoleon, OH, is seeking a technically strong Senior Sales Engineer to lead our engineering sales within the Electrical Engineering department. You will walk the plant floor, scope systems, layout panels, and price jobs to ensure success from day one.

Responsibilities include growing customer relationships, defining project scope, developing BOMs and system architectures, and leading the proposal engineering function as the team expands.