Staff Automation & Controls Engineer — Equity & Autonomy

Valar Atomics Inc.; New Mexico; On-site; USD 173,000 - 211,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive base salary

Equity ownership

Medical benefits

Unlimited PTO

Free daily meals

PPE stipend

Job summary

Valar Atomics is seeking Staff Automation and Controls Engineers to own the controls software across reactor and fuel manufacturing facilities. You will lead PLC/DCS, SCADA, ISA-88, alarm systems, and safety logic, while setting standards and mentoring teams.

You will drive architecture, validation, and integration with MES/ERP/LIMS, ensuring nuclear-quality documentation and collaborative execution across projects and sites.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Electronic, Computer, Systems Engineering, or a related discipline.
• 8+ years of controls software, PLC programming, or SCADA development experience in process industries.
• Demonstrated end-to-end ownership of the controls software scope on at least one major capital project.
• Track record of technical leadership: running structured code reviews and setting software standards.
• Expert-level PLC programming on major platforms across IEC 61131-3 languages.
• Expert-level SCADA development on major platforms with architecture-level design.
• Experience developing safety logic under IEC 61511 within software validation.
• Experience leading alarm rationalization and ISA-18.2, and designing ISA-101/HMI.
• Experience with ISA-88 batch software architecture.
• Knowledge of OT network architecture and cybersecurity (IEC 62443/NIST SP 800-82).
• Experience configuring historians and data models; mentoring and supervising engineers.

Responsibilities

• Serve as discipline technical authority for controls software across assigned systems.
• Review and approve PLC/DCS code, SCADA applications, safety logic, and test docs.
• Lead control strategy and software architecture development for novel plant problems.
• Lead design reviews, HAZOPs, and licensing-support activities; resolve cross-discipline conflicts.
• Define platform and integrator strategy; establish standards and change control practices.
• Mentor software engineers; run code reviews; contribute to hiring and training.
• Own PLC/DCS application architecture and SCADA/HMI architectures across platforms.
• Develop and approve software FAT/SAT/test plans and turnover documentation.
• Coordinate with I&C Hardware on I/O and tagging; manage change-control interface.
• Provide direction to contractors and ensure compliance with nuclear quality requirements.

Skills

PLC programming

SCADA development

HMI design

ISA-88 batch

IEC 61131-3

OT cybersecurity

Mentoring

Code reviews

Safety logic

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical/Electronic/CS

Tools

Rockwell ControlLogix

Siemens S7/TIA Portal

Emerson

Ignition

AVEVA

OSIsoft PI

Job description

Valar Atomics is seeking Staff Automation and Controls Engineers to own the controls software across reactor and fuel manufacturing facilities. You will lead PLC/DCS, SCADA, ISA-88, alarm systems, and safety logic, while setting standards and mentoring teams.

You will drive architecture, validation, and integration with MES/ERP/LIMS, ensuring nuclear-quality documentation and collaborative execution across projects and sites.