Staff Advanced Process Control Engineer

Valero; San Antonio (TX); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive Pay

401K match

Company-sponsored Pension Plan

Healthcare and Wellness programs

Onsite facilities

Fitness center

Onsite cafeteria

Job summary

Valero is seeking a Staff Advanced Process Control Engineer to implement and maintain APC applications across multiple refinery units. The role involves extensive on-site work at Valero refineries and collaboration with site resources to optimize DMC/APC performance and train operators.

The position requires a chemical engineering degree and at least eight years of APC-focused process control experience, with travel up to 30%.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or higher in Chemical Engineering (or similar) is required.
• 8 years of process control engineering experience in Refining with APC implementation experience is required.
• Must be willing to travel up to 30% domestically or internationally as required.

Responsibilities

• Designs and maintains APC optimization for refinery units, including pretests, sensor development, tuning and training.
• Manages multiple parallel APC projects at refineries with site and contract resources.
• Leads APC network meetings and contributes to corporate APC standards and training.

Skills

APC implementation

Process control engineering

On-site collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s or higher in Chemical Engineering

Tools

Aspen DMCplus

DCS interfaces

DMC3 Builder

Job description

Valero is the best-in-class producer of essential fuels and products that are foundational to modern life. We invite you to join our ~10,000 employees to drive exceptional results for our company, the energy industry and our community.

Staff Advanced Process Control Engineer serves as a corporate resource for implementing and maintaining Advanced Process Control (APC) applications on typical units across multiple refineries, supporting APC and similar advanced control applications and interfaces to DCS systems, and consulting with site resources on APC and related issues. This role spends a significant percentage of time working onsite at the various refineries conducting pretests, step tests, inferential sensor development, application commissioning, troubleshooting and operator training activities related to the implementation of APC applications.

Duties

At Valero, this role performs duties that support our commitment to advancing the future of energy through innovation, ingenuity, and unmatched execution, including:

• Designs and implements the optimization and maintenance of Aspen DMCplus for new and existing process units. Includes pre-testing of refinery units, making instrument recommendations, inferential sensor development, DCS loop tuning, control strategy improvement, step testing, model development, commissioning, troubleshooting and operator/engineer training for the APC applications.
• Manages multiple parallel projects at a refinery with a mix of site and contract resources.
• Hosts/leads APC network meetings.
• Assists sites in developing and generating corporate monetary and utilization metrics.
• Develops, modifies and audits corporate APC standards.
• Assists and/or leads corporate-sponsored APC training activities.

This position is salaried exempt status, which means you are not eligible for overtime pay.

Primary Location

US-TX-San Antonio

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor’s or higher level degree in Chemical Engineering (or similar discipline), required.
• 8 years of process control engineering experience in the Refining industry with extensive demonstrated hands‑on APC implementation experience, required.
• Must be able to travel up to 30% of time domestically and/or internationally as required.
• Able and willing to work on-site, in‑person at the Valero San Antonio location, required.

Preferred Requirements

• Master's degree or Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering (or similar discipline), preferred.
• Experience with latest versions of DMC3 Builder (9 and 10) and related products as mentioned above, preferred.
• Large unit/multi‑unit real‑time optimization experience, preferred.
• Experience with AI tools such as neural networks, preferred.

Benefits

Need more reasons to work for a company that is both professionally challenging and culturally rewarding? Take a look at some of our best-in-class benefits:

• Competitive Pay and Annual Bonus Program
• 100% match on 401(K) up to 7%, with immediate vesting
• Company-sponsored Pension Plan
• Comprehensive Healthcare and Wellness Programs
• Onsite Daycare Center
• Onsite Employee and Family Wellness Centers (Physician & Pediatrician)
• Onsite Pharmacy
• State‑of‑the‑art 24‑hour Fitness Center free for employees and spouses with access to Tennis and Basketball Facilities
• Onsite cafeteria open for breakfast and lunch
• Sprawling campus with walking paths and access to biking trails

Benefits described above are highlights only, subject to an employee’s eligibility and work location.

All successful candidates must be eligible to obtain a TWIC card (Transportation Worker Identification Credential). It is Valero’s policy that employees must wear this card at all times while working at the refinery. Please review eligibility criteria at https://www.tsa.gov/for-industry/twic .

Position level and salary will be commensurate with qualifications and experience.

Company Culture

Valero's employees and team-focused culture drive our success. We’re invested in our dedicated workforce through a comprehensive, customizable benefits package, while supporting a caring culture that delivers a rewarding work environment built on teamwork, excellence and career growth. To explore the ways we build a stronger team, visit Valero.com/Careers .

Valero is an EEO Employer. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to legally protected status, including race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran or any other status protected by applicable federal, state or local laws.

Please be advised, if you are viewing this position on a website that lists an estimated salary rate/range, it was not provided by Valero. Valero’s market specific salary rate/range will be provided during the recruiting process and tends to be higher than what is estimated by such websites.

The posting may close earlier than the advertised date based on applications received.

Note: Valero’s pre‑employment process includes successful completion of a background check and hair‑analysis drug screen.