Senior Automation Engineer in Leeds

Location: Peterborough | Full-time, Permanent | Competitive salary depending on experience

If a food factory's production line is running reliably six months after handover because the integration was done correctly and the documentation was complete, that is your standard. You develop, support and own the technical quality of automation systems that run in UK food factories. You are the technical authority on your work. You follow controlled processes, maintain accurate configuration records, and take ownership of issues through to full resolution.

The work spans PLC controls, SCADA, HMI systems, MES integration, industrial networking and OT/IT architecture. You will act as a Level 3 escalation resource for complex automation support tickets. You will need to diagnose problems methodically under pressure and communicate clearly with both engineering teams and customer operations staff.

If you have proven experience developing and supporting industrial automation systems and you want a role where getting it right matters, where process, precision and accountability are valued, this role is built for that.

What this role actually looks like

The work moves between development, support escalation and project delivery. Some periods are desk‑based: programming, documenting, reviewing architectures and maintaining configuration control. Others require you to be on site at a customer facility, working through a commissioning phase or resolving a live production incident.

On development and project work, you configure and support PLC, SCADA, MES and integration solutions across customer environments. You ensure all changes follow controlled processes and documented procedures. You maintain version management across automation platforms and contribute to the standardisation of engineering practices across OAL's project and support contracts.

On escalation and support, you act as the Level 3 resource for complex automation and OT/IT incidents. You take ownership of high-impact issues through to full resolution, provide structured root cause analysis and corrective action reports, and maintain clear escalation pathways. You make sure SLA response and resolution targets are met.

A typical week depends on where your projects and support contracts sit in the cycle. During development phases you will be at OAL's Peterborough base, configuring systems and running tests. During deployment or go‑live phases you will be at customer sites leading commissioning or resolving issues. Between projects you will be involved in architecture reviews, knowledge base development and SOP improvement.

Your skills probably already fit

This role suits engineers who have built, supported and improved industrial automation systems in structured environments. If you have acted as a senior technical resource, worked to defined procedures and SLAs, and taken ownership of complex incidents, you already have the core of what we need.

Relevant Technical Experience Includes

• PLC and industrial controls: Rockwell, Siemens TIA Portal, Mitsubishi or equivalent — programming, commissioning, fault‑finding
• SCADA and HMI: iFix, FactoryTalk, Ignition, Wonderware or similar platforms
• Systems integration: getting multiple technologies to work together reliably on a production line
• Industrial communication protocols: Ethernet/IP, PROFINET, MQTT, fieldbus and integration principles
• OT/IT infrastructure: Windows Server, SQL Server, industrial networking, VMware or VEEAM
• Edge technologies: Node‑RED, RevPi or similar (desirable)

Engineers who do well in this role at OAL have typically come from systems integrators, automation suppliers, managed service or support environments, or manufacturing engineering roles where they owned the technical quality of what they delivered. You do not need food manufacturing experience. The engineering is transferable. You will learn the specifics of food production environments through project delivery and customer support work.

What you should expect from us, and what we expect from you

We will be direct about this, because it helps both sides. You are accountable for technical accuracy. Whether you are writing a SCADA configuration, responding to an escalation or supporting a go‑live, the quality and correctness of your work is your responsibility. We will support you with clear processes, good tooling and experienced colleagues. The work is methodical. You will follow documented procedures, maintain version control, produce structured reports and communicate to a defined standard. Engineers who find structure useful rather than frustrating thrive here. This is not a role where informal or undocumented work is acceptable.

Escalation periods require calm under pressure. When a production line is down and the customer is waiting, you need to diagnose, decide and act clearly. We need engineers who work through problems systematically, even when the stakes are high. Standards are high. OAL delivers automation systems that run 24/7. The work you do — the configurations you maintain, the documentation you produce, the decisions you make under pressure — directly affects whether a customer's line stays running.

Travel is part of the role. Customer sites are across the UK. Deployment and commissioning phases require time on site. We ask for flexibility around this and we are realistic about planning it.

In Return, You Get

• A role with clear scope, defined responsibilities and the tools to do the job properly
• Exposure to a wide range of automation technologies: PLC, SCADA, MES, networking, OT/IT integration
• Variety across different customers, sites and technologies
• A team of engineers who take quality seriously
• The satisfaction of knowing the systems you support are genuinely reliable because of how carefully you work
• Progression based on what you deliver, not how long you have been here

What we are looking for

• Proven experience developing and supporting PLC, SCADA and HMI systems
• Strong knowledge of at least one major automation platform (Rockwell, Siemens TIA Portal, Mitsubishi)
• Experience working within structured support or managed service environments
• Experience acting as a senior escalation point for complex automation or OT/IT incidents
• Solid understanding of industrial communication protocols and integration principles
• Ability to interpret P&IDs and electrical drawings
• Strong troubleshooting, root cause analysis and technical documentation skills
• Comfortable working to defined procedures and service level agreements
• Full UK driving licence
• Willing to travel and stay away from home when projects require it

Experience in food manufacturing is not required. If you have the automation engineering and support skills, we will help you apply them in this sector.

The mission you are contributing to

OAL automates UK food manufacturing. Food factories face labour shortages, tightening compliance requirements and pressure on costs. The systems you develop and support directly address those problems. You will work on packaging verification systems that prevent product recalls, robotic cells that replace repetitive manual work, and vision systems that catch errors human inspection cannot sustain. These systems run on live production lines across the UK. You will build them, commission them, support them and make sure they keep running long after the project closes.

Interested? Click on “APPLY” today!