Staff Control Systems Engineer, Safety & Interlock Systems

Thea Energy Inc.; Kansas; On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Thea Energy is seeking a hands-on Controls Engineer to develop PLC-based and hardwired control systems for personnel access, interlocks and protective shutdown functions at our Kansas facility.

You will handle requirements, electrical and software design, hardware integration, testing, commissioning and operational support while collaborating with controls engineers, physics, operations and safety specialists.

Qualifications

• Strong controls development and troubleshooting skills.
• Practical experience with safety-rated hardware.
• Ability to apply functional safety requirements.

Responsibilities

• Develop PLC-based and hardwired control systems for personnel access, interlocks, and protective shutdown functions.
• Collaborate with controls engineers, subsystem owners, physics, operations and safety specialists to implement and verify protective functions.
• Contribute reusable PLC software, electrical designs, interface specifications and test methods across plant systems.

Skills

PLC programming

Job description

About Thea Energy

Thea Energy is leveraging recent breakthroughs in stellarator physics and engineering to create a faster and simpler approach to commercializing fusion energy. The company is reinventing the stellarator using computer-controlled arrays of planar coils thereby replacing the intricate, complex modular magnets required in all other stellarator architectures. Thea Energy is on a mission to create a limitless source of zero emission energy for a sustainable future.

Position Overview

You will develop PLC-based and hardwired control systems for personnel access, equipment permissives, interlocks, and protective shutdown functions. Your work will span requirements, electrical and software design, hardware integration, testing, commissioning, and operational support. You will collaborate with controls engineers, subsystem owners, physics, operations, and safety specialists to implement and verify the required protective functions.

As Eos advances through design and into construction, you will contribute reusable PLC software, electrical designs, interface specifications, and test methods that support consistent implementation across plant systems. This is a hands-on engineering role requiring strong controls development and troubleshooting skills, practical experience with safety-rated hardware, and sound judgment in applying functional safety requirements.

Diversity and Inclusion

Thea Energy is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating a company of diverse backgrounds. By creating a diverse environment, we will bring new ideas and approaches to solving some of the world's hardest (and most important) problems. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, family or marital status, age, disability, veteran's status, or other characteristic protected by applicable laws and regulations.