OT:controls engineer responsibilities

Hi all,
i am in need of your input in regards to the topic of what a controls engineer does.
i have been in that role for many years and did an interview for that position for existing equipment and did not get the position. so i wanted your thoughts.

for an oem, a controls engineer (what i have done)
1. does the electrical concept and either does the cad drawings or gives them to someone else to do. panel layout, electrical schematics, pneumatic/hydraulics.
2. does the functional write up for the process and in the order of operation.
2a. writes the instruction manuals.
3. does the plc and hmi programming himself or has someone do it using the instructions from step 2.
4. specifies the components and orders them.
5. manages the project from start to finish and oversees the commissioning.

but what are your thoughts in regards to what a controls engineers responsibilities are for a new plant that has just been built with equipment on the way and to be delivered in the next 2-3 weeks and he just got hired?

1. learn the equipment and line layout
2. learn as much as he can during installation and debug
3. learn as much as he can while the line is being runoff, take notes, learn the plc programming, robotics.
4. help train maintenance, help trouble shoot the system when maintenance has issues.
5. be able to modify plc / robotics code when required.
6. be on call 24/7/365 until another engineer is found and trained.

am i missing something?
all comments are welcome.
thanks in advance
James

How about: Interfaces with other engineers (mechanical, manufacturing, etc.) to assess control requirements.

Interface with Safety administrators to assess control requirements.

i would agree, but the equipment has already been built and is on the way to the plant.
thanks for your comment, i forgot that point.
james

Ensure the equipment is as per spec and if not, advise OEM on a snags list and rectify. Paying particular attention to safety. I have seen machines SAT'd whereby H+S press the E-stop and the machines stop so they are happy. What they didn't realise is the e-stop went to a standard non-safety digital input on a PLC.

Ensure all documentation provided is as-built.

Most of what you have described should be covered by the OEM under warranty and pre-SAT sign-off.

As an SI coming off of a new plant start up, here is what I would suggestion a plant controls engineer to focus on:

• Know WFT all this equipment is suppose to accomplish ie, makes a widget, makes multiple types of widgets, makes so many widgets of different types you won't ever know why you make them all.
  
• Know what your plant is responsible for and what the OEM/SI is responsible for. Fill the gaps! Who is responsible for field wiring? What about power distribution? Who handles network architecture? Compressed air, steam...utilities in general?
  
• Support OEM/SI to get equipment up and running as it relates to things your company owes them. Stay out of their way otherwise. Make small talk to get to know names/faces responsibilities but stay out of the technical details, plenty of time for that later.
  
• Figure out if your company is actually documenting anything as the plant comes alive, if it is a hot pile of garbage do something about it.
  
• Learn what each piece of equipment is suppose to do, how the SCADA/HMI interface works, how operators are suppose to interact with it. Participate in operator trainings
  
• Participate in maintenance trainings
  
• Learn how any process is suppose to work and how to troubleshoot the obvious. Instrumentation, pumps, VFDs, operators clearly not knowing what they are doing, installation issues.
  
• Don't touch anyone's PLC/SCADA/HMI code! Let the OEM/SI do their jobs, ask questions but don't take it upon yourself to impede.
  
• Ask GOOD questions! Politely interrupt me with a good question/observation I'll tell you all about it. Hover over me and I'll find a place to hide out or stone wall you.
  
• Appreciate the give and take, relationship building.
  
• If there aren't conventions in place, create them. Computer names? Usernames? Passwords? Automatic logon?
  
• For gods sake make decisions. Don't solicit OEMs/SIs for advice for how/where to install equipment you are responsible for. Don't ask how to terminate wiring, don't ask where to run conduit/tray, don't put it on the OEM/SI to make a decision that we have no vested interest in.
  
• Know when it's your time to take ownership!
• Master Document of PLCs/HMI brand, revision usage.
• Identify software you will need to support the equipment.
• Figure out how you're going to manage this influx of new code
• Identify critical process equipment/control points
• Identify critical spare parts
• Identify critical safety systems and SOPs related to them
• LOTO? Does a plan exist?
• Identify what might kill you
• Identify gaps in the project scope, identify areas that could be improved in a future project, identify simple items an SI/OEM may have overlooked and if you treat them right just might take a few minutes to improve the system w/o getting into a change order conversation.
• Don't make enemies.
• Jump in when a problem needs to be resolved in "grey" areas of a project.
• Get your hands dirty, help with running wiring, help with landing field IO, help where you know you can contribute without getting in the way or slowing things down.
• I guess you can spend time reviewing OEM/SI PLC/SCADA code now that all that other stuff is done.
  

It really depends where you work. I mostly program now and do some wiring. They pay me well enough that I will do what job needs to be done to keep them running. You shouldn't be afraid to use tools. I hate paperwork so maybe Im not a good engineer haha

James,

Sucks that you didn’t get the job, something will come along, and sometimes not getting the one you really wanted ends up being a blessing.

Do you have any type of maintenance or diagnostic experience? Meaning time on the floor diagnosing a problem then fixing it with parts that are available? If you do make sure that is on your resume.

In the last 5 years or so I have seen many “programmers” that were very software skilled but couldn’t diagnose a bad or miswired photo eye.

I was on a job once with an ex coworker, I came in a day later then he did. He spent the entire day before messing with one input card that wasn’t functioning. Turns out one of the commons was switched with one of the inputs. I found it in about 5 minutes. The dude could run circles around me in the software but lacked a fundamental understanding of how basic things outside the plc worked.

My point is, I’ve seen this becoming more and more common. If your not highlighting your abilities on the hardware and diagnostics side I would recommend you do so.

They probably thought you would want too much money.

James Mcquade said:

but what are your thoughts in regards to what a controls engineers responsibilities are for a new plant that has just been built with equipment on the way and to be delivered in the next 2-3 weeks and he just got hired?

1. learn the equipment and line layout
2. learn as much as he can during installation and debug
3. learn as much as he can while the line is being runoff, take notes, learn the plc programming, robotics.
4. help train maintenance, help trouble shoot the system when maintenance has issues.
5. be able to modify plc / robotics code when required.
6. be on call 24/7/365 until another engineer is found and trained.

am i missing something?
all comments are welcome.
thanks in advance
James

Click to expand...

I think as time goes on and stuff gets more complicated management just doesn't care as long as it "works" and uptime stays high.

I've also kind of recently switched companies and now they want me to be the expert over several large areas and others are basically saying I need to be the person to do all the work on anything that touches our network. It's actually pretty annoying and management is eating it up based on one older fellow that I view as a technician and not an engineer.

You either accept it and grind on, or you look for a new adventure and move on.

thanks for the replies,

Paullys50, a big thank you, lots of information.

_Dock_,
3 years in maintenance,
4 color web offset press
residential/commercial hvac
conveyor installation and debug
electrician at a data center, and printed circuit board maintenance.

i can also do remote trouble shooting, i have made a lot of maintenance men mad when i tell them they wired in a sensor wrong, or an overload is tripped,
remote rack is faulted, I/O card fuse is bad. strange how that i have to talk to the supervisor to get them to look, sure enough, the fuse was bad. only took an hour for them to fix the problem.

@ the map
what is SAT'd

again, thanks
james

Paullys50 said:

As an SI coming off of a new plant start up, here is what I would suggestion a plant controls engineer to focus on:

Click to expand...

So aside from all that, how did startup go?

James Mcquade said:

@ the map
what is SAT'd

again, thanks
james

Click to expand...

Likely Site Acceptance Test.

When a plant buys a piece of equipment, two common milestones (of many) are a FAT (Factory Acceptance Test) and SAT (Site Acceptance Test). The purchaser visits the OEM to validate the equipment before it ships to site (FAT), then once the equipment is up and running in the plant, it is often subject to real world production validation (SAT).

James Mcquade said:

1. learn the equipment and line layout
2. learn as much as he can during installation and debug
3. learn as much as he can while the line is being runoff, take notes, learn the plc programming, robotics.
4. help train maintenance, help trouble shoot the system when maintenance has issues.
5. be able to modify plc / robotics code when required.
6. be on call 24/7/365 until another engineer is found and trained.

Click to expand...

I have that role now in a chemical plant... I'd add:

7. catalogue every part used in these control systems and create a spare parts list.
8. manage the lifecycle obsolescence of the parts on said list (this is a paid service from Rockwell, but a little bit of digging at their website and programming magic makes it automated and simple to do. If a noob like me can do it off of Google fu, anyone can).
9. Maintain documentation for the systems. Update drawings, archive software revisions, document changes in software and systems.
10. provide input to the company's investment plan in the areas of automation, instruments, etc...
11. provide input in Root Cause Failure analysis.
12. lead continuous improvement projects. (you sort of covered this in making modifications).
13. Analyse data from the systems and propose improvements.
14. Maintain relationships with the equipment vendors (this can take up a lot of time, but can be really positive for all involved).
15. Be the security enforcer of whatever policies the company has and if none, create your own. This would involve managing the control system users.
16. Enforce machine safety and be involved in regular testing. Plenty of people take the shortest route (usually on night shift) on safety to get the plant going and someone should be above to enforce safety.

I do a lot more than this because we're short staffed and I enjoy looking at different things (though I hate civil works) and am also the electrical engineer.
But in a plant with someone dedicated for control systems that isn't falling to pieces with 90% of past projects left unfinished and with reasonable documentation in place, this would just about cover it.

It all depends on what is expected, the industry the list goes on, however, just to add one more point, make sure the brooms do not have pointed shafts, they hurt. perhaps some will not get that pun but you will be expected to do far more than be an engineer.

Yeah, you can sweep as you go