Automation Engineer (Manufacturing)

Location: Based at the Chesterfield plant, with support and visits to the Bradford site, other UK and European manufacturing plants, suppliers, and customers.

Company

hirify.global manufactures composite cans and recyclable paperboard cylindrical packaging for food and powdered beverage products.

What you will do

• Improve the efficiency, reliability, safety, quality, and waste performance of plant manufacturing processes through automation and continuous improvement projects.
• Provide daily electrical, mechanical, and automation support, including breakdown analysis, root-cause troubleshooting, repair, diagnostics, and fault elimination.
• Configure, program, debug, and test Siemens and Allen Bradley PLCs, HMIs, drives, servo systems, robotic programs, automatic machines, semi-automatic machines, and conveyor systems.
• Plan and coordinate automation projects, equipment upgrades, installations, Factory Acceptance Tests, commissioning, machine qualifications, system testing, and new product introduction trials.
• Maintain and develop hardware, software, robotics solutions, schematics, electrical drawings, P&IDs, operational manuals, backups, documentation, and programming standards for the Chesterfield and Bradford sites.
• Work with manufacturing, engineering, warehouse, supply chain, suppliers, sister plants, and other stakeholders; train and mentor shift engineers, process improvement engineers, apprentices, and operators.

Requirements

• HNC or degree qualification in Electrical Engineering.
• Proven knowledge and experience with Siemens S5, Siemens S7, and Allen Bradley, including drives, inverters, and programming.
• Proven problem-solving capability, including methods such as 8D, Green Belt Lean Six Sigma, UPS, or A3.
• Experience in an FMCG environment.
• Ability to analyse complex data quickly and prioritise daily activities alongside medium-term projects.
• Ability to train and coach people, communicate effectively in written, spoken, and visual formats, and work with stakeholders at all levels.
• Excellent computer skills, particularly Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, and email.
• Curiosity, willingness to learn, bias for action, enthusiasm for continuous improvement, teamwork, interpersonal skills, logical thinking, attention to detail, and customer focus.
• Willingness to travel in the UK and Europe.

Nice to have

• Graduate Master’s or Bachelor’s degree in a technical, manufacturing, or science subject.
• Two or more years of experience in a process control or engineering role.
• Electrically biased, multiskilled engineering background.
• Lean Six Sigma Green Belt qualification or equivalent.

Culture & Benefits

• Work within a manufacturing operations and engineering environment focused on safety, quality, efficiency, reliability, and waste reduction.
• Collaborate with teams across manufacturing, engineering, warehouse, supply chain, sister plants, suppliers, and customers.
• Support training and knowledge development for apprentices, shift engineers, process improvement engineers, and operators.
• Work across the Chesterfield and Bradford production sites and visit UK and European facilities as required.
• Equal opportunity employment with a prohibition on discrimination based on legally protected characteristics.