Control Systems Engineer (PLC / SCADA / Functional Safety) — Lydney

📍 Lydney, Gloucestershire   💷 £40,000–£60,000 DOE   🏭 Permanent, site-based manufacturing

JustEng is recruiting a Control Systems Engineer for a long-established manufacturer of modular steel bridging systems — permanent, temporary, military and emergency bridging supplied to infrastructure projects across Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Middle East. The role is based at their Lydney manufacturing site in Gloucestershire.

This is a genuine ownership role rather than a support seat. You will own the design, delivery and lifecycle support of the industrial control and safety systems across the automated cells and lines — leading PLC and SCADA development, functional safety integration and on-site commissioning, and working hands-on with maintenance and operations to maximise uptime, quality and compliance.

What you will be doing

Controls and safety engineering

• Specifying, programming, modifying and testing PLCs — Siemens TIA Portal and Step 7, Mitsubishi, Beckhoff — along with motion and drive systems, with an awareness of IEC 61131-3
• Designing and implementing functional safety architectures: safety PLC and TwinSAFE, light curtains, floor scanners and radar, and interlocks such as Euchner and Fortress — including zoning, safe states, e-stops and reset logic
• Producing the safety documentation that goes with it — risk assessments, safety requirement specifications, validation plans, proof-testing and change logs, aligned to ISO 13849 and IEC 62061 principles

Systems integration and SCADA

• Developing HMI and SCADA, data acquisition, alarms, diagnostics and performance dashboards
• Integrating cells with plant networks, historians and MES where applicable

Project delivery

• Taking projects from concept through URS and functional spec, detailed design, FAT and SAT, to handover
• Planning, scheduling and running projects, upgrades and repairs with minimal production downtime

Reliability and continuous improvement

• Troubleshooting chronic faults and implementing root-cause fixes across electrical, PLC, sensor and comms layers
• Leading upgrades — infeed systems, door interlocks, zone logic, scanner coverage — to improve safety, throughput and maintainability

Stakeholder support, training and governance

• Acting as the go-to engineer for production and maintenance, and building clear diagnostics and HMI test screens so the system can be interpreted quickly
• Delivering training, operating procedures and commissioning/maintenance guides, and managing handovers
• Maintaining version control, drawings in AutoCAD and the technical file, and working to site standards, change control and audit requirements

What you will need

Essential

• HNC in Electrical, Controls or Mechatronics engineering — or equivalent experience
• Proven PLC and HMI design and commissioning experience, programming in Ladder and STL
• Hands-on functional safety integration — light curtains, door interlocks, scanners and radar, safety relays and safety PLCs — including reset and mute logic
• HMI/SCADA development, fault-finding and plant networking fundamentals
• Strong diagnostics across sensors, VSDs and servo drives, and fieldbus (Profinet, CC-Link)
• Solid documentation discipline — URS, FS, FDS, test protocols, drawings and change control
• Producing drawings in AutoCAD

Advantageous

• A recognised time-served apprenticeship
• Siemens TIA Portal and Mitsubishi GX Developer experience; Beckhoff TC2
• Industrial or manufacturing environment experience
• Safety systems exposure — ProfiSafe, TwinSAFE, Pilz, SICK, Euchner
• Knowledge of OEE systems such as zenon, or other SCADA platforms
• Up-to-date knowledge of the 18th Edition Wiring Regulations
• Familiarity with programming structures such as EDDI

The kind of engineer who does well here

• Analytical, with genuine critical thinking
• A clear communicator who can explain complex control concepts to non-specialists on the shop floor
• Able to work independently under time and production pressure
• Collaborative — this role sits between engineering, production and maintenance
• Precise, with strong attention to detail in design and documentation alike
• Adaptable as technologies and business requirements evolve
• Competent in structured troubleshooting and root cause analysis techniques such as 5 Whys
• Familiar with lean manufacturing and continuous improvement principles

What’s on offer

• £40,000–£60,000 depending on experience
• 33 days holiday per annum, including statutory bank holidays
• Generous pension scheme
• Private medical insurance
• Life assurance
• Income protection
• Discretionary annual bonus
• 24/7 virtual GP consultations
• Telephone wellbeing support — psychological, legal, financial and physical
• Healthshield cash-back plan for medical expenses including optical and dentistry, plus support with physiotherapy and dentistry
• Retail discounts
• Real opportunity for growth and development in a business investing in its automation

How to apply

To register your interest or arrange a confidential conversation, submit your CV here or contact JustEng directly. All approaches are handled in strict confidence.