Specialist, Technical Support
Merck
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Benefits offered by this job
Job summary
Merck is seeking an experienced Specialist, Plant Automation, OT Infrastructure, Controls & Industrial Automation to lead IT/OT initiatives in Rahway, NJ, with support across sites like West Point, PA. The role focuses on designing, implementing, and maintaining automation and control systems to ensure compliant, reliable plant operations in regulated labs and manufacturing environments.
You'll work with engineers, cybersecurity, quality, and regulatory teams to drive improvements across SCADA,
Qualifications
- 5 years of engineering experience in Automation in Chemical or Pharmaceutical industry.
- Strong technical competency with knowledge of pharmaceutical industry processes & practices.
- Demonstrated understanding of network, cloud and virtual server technologies.
- Knowledge of integrated software applications, including SCADA, MES and LIMS systems, in support of business processes in a pharmaceutical manufacturing environment.
Responsibilities
- Drive and support IT/OT infrastructure improvements for plant automation and process control.
- Design, implement, and maintain OT infrastructure for GMP manufacturing and pilot environments.
- Lead project activities from requirements through deployment and support.
- Collaborate with scientists and engineers to translate requirements into technical solutions.
- Support OT/IT inventory, documentation, and regulatory compliance.
Skills
Education
Tools
Job description
RaDS IT Development Science & Clinical Supplies (DSCS) is seeking an experienced
RaDS IT Development Science & Clinical Supplies (DSCS) is seeking an experienced Specialist, Plant Automation, OT Infrastructure, Controls & Industrial Automation to lead and support Operational Technology (OT), industrial automation, process controls, and IT/OT infrastructure initiatives within regulated research, pilot plant, and clinical manufacturing environments. This role is responsible for the design, implementation, integration, and lifecycle support of automation and control systems that enable reliable, compliant, and efficient plant operations. The primary location is Rahway, NJ and will provide support services to other sites like West Point, PA. The purpose of this role is to provide dedicated IT/OT support, including problem identification and troubleshooting of infrastructure, in compliance with cGMP standards for various Research laboratory & Manufacturing Plant systems. The role also contributes to continuous improvement initiatives supporting the Biologics development and clinical manufacturing & supplies.
This position partners closely with engineering, automation, infrastructure, quality, and business stakeholders to deliver secure, reliable, compliant, and scalable automation solutions that enable operational excellence.
- Drive continuous improvement of IT/OT infrastructure supporting plant automation, process control, industrial automation, and manufacturing operations by identifying technology gaps, performance trends, modernization opportunities, and infrastructure optimization initiatives.
- Design, implement, support, and maintain OT infrastructure for GMP manufacturing and pilot plant environments, including industrial networks, control systems, virtualization platforms, and cybersecurity controls.
- Lead and support project activities including requirements gathering, technical solution design, infrastructure planning, effort estimation, commissioning readiness, deployment, and operational support.
- Collaborate with scientists, automation engineers, process engineers, controls engineers, infrastructure teams, and external vendors to translate business and operational requirements into technical solutions.
- Contribute to the architecture and implementation of plant automation technologies, including SCADA, MES, PI Historian, virtualization platforms, industrial networking, on-premises infrastructure, and cloud-connected solutions.
- Provide technical expertise and operational support for automation and control systems through incident management, troubleshooting, root cause analysis, corrective actions, and continuous service improvement initiatives.
- Develop and maintain IT/OT architecture documentation, including network topology diagrams, system interfaces, data flow maps, server infrastructure, backup and recovery designs, and integration architectures.
- Partner with Research & Development and manufacturing stakeholders to identify opportunities for automation, digitalization, process optimization, and data integration across laboratory, pilot plant, and manufacturing environments.
- Evaluate and implement automation technologies through collaboration with equipment manufacturers, system integrators, automation vendors, and technology partners.
- Support investigations, diagnostics, issue resolution, and compliance activities while working closely with engineering, infrastructure, cybersecurity, quality, risk, and regulatory teams.
- Serve as a primary technical resource supporting manufacturing operations in Rahway, NJ acting as a key liaison with Networking, Infrastructure, and Global Information Organization (GIO) teams for incident and request management.
- 4 years of experience with upstream manufacturing systems, pilot plant automation, process automation, or manufacturing automation platforms such as DeltaV, Eppendorf, AMBR, DCS, PLC, HMI, SCADA, control systems, networking, virtualization, server management, capital projects, and PI Historian data integration.
- 4 years of hands‑on experience with Rockwell / Allen‑Bradley PLCs, HMI configuration, SCADA systems, OT cybersecurity, OT data architecture, MES, industrial networking, or IT/OT integration.
- 4 years of knowledge of VMware, virtualized OT environments, DeltaV, PI / PI Historian, MES, SCADA backup and archival, data retention, Windows servers, and regulated computer system support.
- 4 years of experience with industrial networking, switches, VLANs, subnets, firewalls, Windows Active Directory, virtual infrastructure, servers, and OT network segmentation.
- Experience supporting manufacturing software and hardware, including Ignition, MES, SAP, HMI, PLC, SCADA, DCS, industrial PCs, servers, switches, firewalls, and network equipment.
- Strong troubleshooting, root cause analysis, problem‑solving, incident management, and operational support skills in plant automation or industrial control systems.
- Experience building support models for plant automation, OT infrastructure, and industrial control systems, including ownership, escalation, runbooks, monitoring, and improvement.
- Ability to lead multiple IT, OT infrastructure, controls, automation, and system integration projects.
- Execute ITIL‑based service management processes, including incident, problem, change, and release management.
- Monitor system health, performance, availability, and reliability to ensure uninterrupted support of manufacturing operations.
- Establish strong partnerships with site leadership and stakeholders to ensure alignment on technology strategy, service expectations, and business objectives.
- Ensure Service Level Agreements (SLAs), operational metrics, and vendor governance processes are established, maintained, and effectively managed.
- Influence system design, deployment, and lifecycle management to deliver robust, scalable, sustainable, and highly available solutions that support critical manufacturing processes.
- Operate, administer, and maintain OT platforms, applications, and supporting technologies across manufacturing and pilot plant environments.
- Support asset lifecycle management, including asset inventory, configuration management, system documentation, and compliance reporting.
- Lead or support deviation investigations, SDLC ITIL change management activities, and engineering documentation processes while ensuring adherence to regulatory, quality, and compliance standards & best practices.
- Operational Technology (OT)
- Manufacturing Automation
- Process Control Systems
- Industrial Networks
- SCADA / HMI
- MES Platforms
- PI Historian
- GMP Manufacturing Support
- Cybersecurity for Industrial Control Systems
- IT Infrastructure & Virtualization
- Data Integration & Analytics
- ITIL Service Management
- Compliance & Validation
- 5 years of engineering experience in Automation in Chemical or Pharmaceutical industry
- High School Diploma required.
- Strong technical competency with knowledge of pharmaceutical industry processes & practices.
- Demonstrated understanding of network, cloud and virtual server technologies.
- Knowledge of integrated software applications, including SCADA, MES and LIMS systems, in support of business processes in a pharmaceutical manufacturing environment
- Enterprise mindset, entrepreneurial spirit, self‑starter, self‑guided, hands‑on person.
- Record of working in a team of multidisciplinary scientists, IT/OT personnel, Product teams & operating effectively in a matrixed environment with a customer centric attitude
Asset Life Cycle Management, Automation, Availability Management, Business Alignment, Change Controls, Change Management, Delivery Coordination, Incident Management, Management System Development, Monitor System Performance, Operation Maintenance, Problem Reporting, Quality Assurance (QA), Root Cause Identification, SLA Management, Software Configurations, System Maintenance, Virtualization, VMware Administration
Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.
As An Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, We Provide Equal Opportunities To All Employees And Applicants For Employment And Prohibit Discrimination On The Basis Of Race, Color, Age, Religion, Sex, Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, National Origin, Protected Veteran Status, Disability Status, Or Other Applicable Legally Protected Characteristics. As a Federal Contractor, We Comply With All AffAfitive Action Requirements For Protected Veterans And Individuals With Disabilities. For More Information About Personal Rights Under The U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Laws, Visit: EEOC Know Your Rights EEOC GINA Supplement We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.
$87,300.00 - $137,400.00
We offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.
San Francisco Residents Only: We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance.
Los Angeles Residents Only: We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance.
Regular
No relocation
No
No Travel Required
Hybrid
Not Indicated
Yes
N/A
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