Specialist, Automation Engineer (Onsite)

Merck; New Jersey; On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Merck in Rahway, New Jersey is seeking a Specialist - Automation Engineer to join the Enabling Facilities team. The role spans design, startup, commissioning, and integration of PEMI SCADA (Ignition-based) supporting a range of equipment.

You will collaborate with chemists and engineers, support GMP documentation, and help drive uptime, safety, and efficiency in a fast-paced, construction‑phase facility.

Responsibilities

• Troubleshoot automation and instrumentation issues; perform root cause analyses.
• Support PEMI design, startup, and commissioning; integrate SCADA system.
• Collaborate with Operations, Maintenance, and IT to align automation with uptime and safety.
• Assist in standardization and diagnostics for utility equipment.

Job description

Job Description

The Enabling Facilities (EF) group within the Chemical Engineering Research & Development (CERD) Department is seeking a highly motivated individual to work in a fast-paced job that provides both technical and project management responsibility. The Specialist - Automation Engineer position will report to the Director, Engineering, Automation Lead position and will be a member of the EF Team in the Rahway NJ facility. EF is responsible for development of new technologies/capabilities, execution of capital and non-capital improvement projects, and the automation system assets spanning Pilot plant production, utility systems and associated IT-OT infrastructure.

Responsibilities of the Specialist - Automation Engineer include the following:

The automation engineer role at the Specialist level will serve as technical resource to support new and/or existing facilities across the Small Molecule Process Research & Development (SM PR&D) network. Primarily, will support the Protein Engineering Microbial Infrastructure (PEMI) Project. This is a new non-GMP lab area and Plot Plant currently under construction in Rahway, New Jersey. The automation engineering role at the Specialist level will serve as a team member of the PEMI design, startup, and commissioning, supporting the integration of the PEMI SCADA system (an Ignition-based platform) that will perform data acquisition and orchestrate flexible batches / experiments on the following OEM equipment; Sartorius AMBR250 system, Getinge Fermenters/Bioreactors, Tangential Flow Filtration (TFF), two Lyophilizers & Containment Isolators, Homogenizers, Mixing tanks and Raman PAT integrations.

As the facility is currently under construction, the selected candidate will contribute to automation scope and Ignition software design, system commissioning, as well as other critical activities to enable facility startup and operational readiness. The selected candidate is expected to be a key part of the EF Automation Team and foster a culture of collaboration, learning and innovation. This position will also require close collaboration with the development engineers & chemists, compliance representatives, and other team members.

This role will be part of the broader Enabling Facilities team supporting facility operations, process development activities, compliance investigation, change management and the authoring of GMP documentation in any of our enabling facilities.

Key Responsibilities:

• Troubleshoot automation and instrumentation issues, perform root cause analyses, and implement corrective and preventive actions to improve reliability, safety, and operational effectiveness.
• Manage system patches, firmware upgrades, backup and restore strategies, and cybersecurity hardening activities aligned with corporate IT policies.
• Ensure robust data integrity and audit trails that support operational requirements.
• Support capital projects involving the design, installation, and commissioning of new equipment, including the preparation, review, and execution of test documentation.
• Provide on-call support as part of the facility operations rotation.
• Collaborate closely with Operations, Maintenance, and IT teams to align automation solutions with uptime, safety, sustainability, and efficiency objectives.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives, including standardization, modular code libraries, alarm rationalization, and enhanced diagnostics and monitoring for utility equipment.

Additional Supported Areas

• GMP-capable Process Chemistry / Prep Lab facility that supports development and preparation of clinical and research materials, including ADC-related batches and process chemistry operations. Automation support may be required for Siemens PLC controlled Lyophilizer, Isolator HMIs, and SCADA interfaces.
• Small Scale Organics Pilot Plant (SSO): The SSO uses an Emerson DeltaV Distributed Control System. The SSO is a Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) manufacturing facility in the Process Research and Development (PR&D) organization. The pilot plant's mission is to serve as PR&D's internal node for small molecule drug substance clinical manufacture, and as preferred site for first pilot of commercial small molecule processes, enabling gain of critical internal experience with scale-up of manufacturing GMP steps, demonstration of new manufacturing technology/processes, training opportunities for improved manufacturing process development and seamless tech transfer to commercial sites.
• Hazardous Reactions Lab (HRL) : The Hazardous Reactions Lab (HRL), uses GE PLC 90-30 processors and Genius I/O blocks. The Graphical interface is an Intellution iFix platform run on redundant SCADAS and seven workstations, with historical data collected on a local historian as well as OSI PI. The B801 High Pressure Lab and Low-Pressure Lab Automation Systems