Senior Controls Engineer, SCADA
Form Energy · Weirton, WV
- Level
- Senior
- Team
- Controls
- Degree
- Required (or equivalent experience)
- Experience asked
- 6+ years
- Industry
- Industrial
- Posted
- 4 days ago
The role in 30 seconds
A senior controls role at Form Energy (industrial) in Weirton, WV. In this role you will be responsible for design, development, and deployment of SCADA and MES to novel equipment used to manufacture Form Energy’s Iron-Air battery.
- They ask for
- 6+ years · degree required (or equivalent experience)
- Tools it names
- PLC, Robotics, Automation, MES, EHS / safety
- Day to day
- some off-shift / weekend coverage · relocation help
Read from the posting. The full description is below.
From the plant jobs report · week of October 19, 2026
Controls Engineer roles in the US: typical posted base $97k–$141k.
Median of the low and high ends of 285 live postings that list pay, out of 875 controls engineer openings in the US, read from manufacturers' own careers sites.
West Virginia plant jobs report →Pay by team and state →What moves pay →
How this role compares
Against 874 other live controls postings in the US.
- Base pay
- Not listed in this posting
- Experience asked
- More than usual (6+ vs 5+)
Typical $97k–$140k, from 282 postings that list pay.
Similar roles usually ask 5+ years.
Skills these teams ask for most
- ✓ Automation 73%
- ✓ PLC 70%
- ✓ Robotics 40%
- Validation (IQ/OQ/PQ) 25%
- Root cause 25%
✓ = this posting asks for it too. % = share of similar postings that mention it.
At a glance
Pulled from the posting text. If it's not listed here, the posting didn't say.
How to get in at this plant
Five moves over a week or two. The first one takes ten minutes.
- 1
Pick 2–3 people on the Controls team at Form Energy
Engineers who joined in the last year or two reply the most. Use the team search on this page to find them.
- 2
Send a short, curious note
One real question about their work. No favors yet. Each person gets a different note, written for this role.
- 3
Turn a reply into a short call
Questions worth asking about this team:
- What does a normal week look like on your team?
- How does off-shift and weekend coverage work?
- How did you land the job? What stood out in your interviews?
- 4
Apply with someone vouching for you
If the call went well, ask whether they’d pass your résumé to the hiring manager. Send your résumé link, apply that day, and let them know.
- 5
Bring proof to the interview
One page of before-and-after numbers from projects you led: scrap, OEE, cycle time, cost. Plant managers hire on results.
This plant: Form Energy in Weirton
1 other open role at this site.
- Senior Process Engineer: Scale-Up for Energy Storage · Process · Senior
Full description from Form EnergyAs posted on their careers site.ShowHide
What you'll do
- ◆Responsible for design, development, and deployment of industrial control and execution systems under the direction of staff level SCADA controls engineers
- ◆Serve as a technical lead on SCADA projects, coordinating with controls engineers for Automation, Robotics & Vision, and Electrical & Instrumentation to assure all technical
requirements
are met on budget and on schedule
- ✓Provide technical guidance and mentorship to less experienced SCADA controls engineers
- ✓After escalation from our sustaining team, provide SCADA support for the production operations and maintenance departments, including troubleshooting SCADA, HMI, MES, and problem resolution as they relate to equipment and process downtime, throughput improvement, and/or any safety concerns
- ✓Rotating on-call
responsibilities
for off-hour escalations from our sustaining team
- ◆Work directly with equipment vendors to assure they are following Form Energy Equipment Standards to deliver quality control systems, including executing FATs at vendor sites and SATs at Form Factory 1
- ◆Execution of internal projects, as directed by staff controls engineers, including development and testing of SCADA & HMI programming and integration with PLCs, Robotics, Vision, and MES
- ◆Utilize input from production, maintenance supervisors, operators, vendors, and service providers to provide troubleshooting assistance and make improvements
- ◆Responsible for following all Safety and Environmental policies and procedures
- ◆Programming and troubleshooting MES data transactions within Edge Gateways and the Primary Gateway
Show full description ↓Show less ↑
Are you ready to build America’s energy future? Form Energy is an American manufacturing and energy technology company. We’re revolutionizing energy storage with cost-effective, multi-day technology designed to keep the electric grid secure and reliable, even during extended periods of stress. By strengthening the electric system and reimagining what’s possible, we’re giving clean energy a whole new form!
In recent years, Form Energy has earned a number of accolades, including being named by TIME as a “Best Invention”, MIT Technology Review as a “Top Climate Tech Company To Watch”, and Fast Company as “One of the Next Big Things In Tech”. We are making rapid progress on our mission of delivering energy storage for a better world, and our team is growing just as rapidly to meet demand. We have signed contracts with leading electric utilities across the United States and production of our iron-air batteries is underway at our first high-volume manufacturing facility in West Virginia.
Working for Form Energy is more than just a job, it’s a chance to be part of something extraordinary. And now - right as we significantly scale up battery manufacturing - might be the most exciting moment in the company’s history to join. We are assembling a team of highly talented and driven individuals across the country. Driven by our core values of humanity, excellence, and creativity, our team is determined to deliver on our mission and transform the energy landscape for the better.
Feeling energized to make a meaningful impact on the world? Then keep reading - you’ve come to the right place.
Role Description
We are looking for a senior level controls engineer to join the Manufacturing Control and Execution Systems - SCADA team. In this role you will be responsible for design, development, and deployment of SCADA and MES to novel equipment used to manufacture Form Energy’s Iron-Air battery. This role offers an exciting opportunity to be part of a mission critical team that owns control and execution systems throughout their lifecycle including design, development, deployment, and sustaining.
Reporting to our Senior Controls Engineering Manager, Manufacturing Control and Execution Systems, you will be part of a quickly-growing manufacturing control and execution systems team. You will have opportunities in this role to lead efforts to design and develop innovative solutions, as we work together to deploy manufacturing equipment control and execution systems and to make continuous improvements to our equipment, processes, and systems.
Bringing your significant experience in SCADA and HMI design, development, and deployment; you will work closely with a variety of teams, both technical and operational, at Form Factory 1.
Relocation assistance is available.
What you'll bring
- •6+ years of applied experience designing and troubleshooting industrial control systems in a high-volume manufacturing environment.
- •6+ years of industry experience with SCADA and HMI platforms, specifically Ignition Perspective, Siemens WinCC, or Rockwell FTView.Advanced PLC proficiency in Siemens TIA-Portal and Rockwell Studio 5000, with the ability to program and execute independently.
- •Strong technical foundation in functional safety programming, including ProfiSafe and CIP Safety protocols.
- •Expertise in reading, interpreting, and redlining complex electrical schematics and using data tools like iba or Octoplant for system analysis.
- •Familiarity with integrating vision systems and barcode scanners, such as Keyence or Cognex, into automated workflows.
- •Excellent technical communication skills and the ability to translate complex controls concepts for diverse audiences.
- •Pragmatic problem-solving skills and a commitment to intellectual rigor when tackling first-of-a-kind automation challenges.
- •Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechatronics, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
Where you'll work
This role is based at Form Factory 1 in Weirton, WV—an easy commute from the city of Pittsburgh, PA. This 550,000-square-foot facility is our hub for high-volume battery production and a leader in the new era of American energy manufacturing. Relocation assistance is available.
Humanity is a cornerstone of Form Energy’s culture, and we make sure our compensation and benefits reflect tha