What is an automation engineer?
Automation engineers are experts in simplifying processes. An automation engineer can improve the efficiency of various manufacturing or computer processes or systems by automating parts of them or the entire process or system to do work on their own. They may also design entirely new technology to automate a system or process.
Automation engineers are also referred to as test automation engineers and process automation engineers since testing and process improvement play such big roles in their work. Those who work specifically in industrial environments, like manufacturing plants, are known as industrial automation engineers.
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Project Engineer
Location: Broadmeadows
Branche: Life Sciences
Expertise: Quality Management
Experience: 2 years
This 12-month contract role is based across Parkville & Melbourne CBD. The Project Engineer will be supporting the consolidation of the R&D office into the clients Melbourne CBD site. The position will involce coordinating the relocation and re establishment of over 400 pieces of laboratory equipment. Coordinate the relocation of 400 laboratory equipment items, including planning, transport, and re-installation. Supervise and manage equipment vendors, ensuring timely completion of all activities. Support general coordination tasks associated with the move of staff and laboratory operations. Provide direction, follow-up, and ensure all tasks are completed in line with project schedules. Coordinate equipment vendors to pack up and relocate equipment
Communications Engineer
Location: Perth
Branche: Information Technology
Expertise: IT & Shared Services
Experience: 3 years
As a Communications Engineer, you will: Collaborate with asset engineers, project managers, and internal stakeholders to meet operational communication requirements. Develop medium- and long-term sustainment strategies for communications systems, ensuring reliability and compliance. Work closely with technical specialists to ensure the right expertise is applied throughout project development and delivery. Oversee contractor performance and benchmark service providers against agreed SLAs and standards. Ensure compliance with relevant legislation and industry standards by engaging with regulators and professional bodies. Drive functional excellence through knowledge sharing, lessons learned, and continuous improvement initiatives. Contribute to commercial outcomes by optimising supplier relationships and demonstrating cost leadership. Manage health, safety, and environmental aspects of service delivery, maintaining high safety standards across all activities.
Project Engineer
Location: Broadmeadows
Branche: Life Sciences
Expertise: Quality Management
Experience: 0 years
This opportunity will allow the successful Project Engineer to work on smaller scale projects that focus on construction, contractor management and GMP compliance. This will be a hands on role managing and coordinating trades onsite, permits, and follwo up works to ensure all projects are delivered on time. . Project responsibilities will require the Project Engineer to spend the majority of their time within the office environment and other times within the production or service plants to supervise contractors in the performance of their duties. Perform commissioning activities, visit equipment suppliers for shop audits/technical reviews or visit engineering workshops to inspect work in progress. Manage contractors and trades on-site, ensuring safe and efficient project delivery. Oversee permits, compliance, and construction management activities. Support project planning, scheduling, and execution within GMP frameworks. Ensure follow-up projects and incomplete works are closed out effectively. Projects can be but not limited to Tank replacements Security office expansions Equipment replacement projects Utilities upgrades
Project Engineer - Mechanical
Location: Kwinana
Branche: Mining
Expertise: Production & Manufacturing
Experience: 3 years
Lead the planning, coordination, and delivery of brownfield sustaining projects in accordance with internal project governance. Apply a hybrid Agile/Scrum project methodology including sprint planning, daily stand-ups, and retrospectives. Collaborate with internal engineering, construction, and operations teams to ensure seamless project execution. Manage contractor interfaces and ensure alignment with project scope and standards. Oversee procurement of materials and services, and track cost and schedule performance. Ensure completed works are handed over smoothly to operational teams. Foster a high-performing, safety-focused project environment that aligns with company policies and procedures
Senior Project Engineer
Location: Gold Coast
Branche: Infrastructure
Expertise: Controlling
Experience: 0 years
We are seeking an experienced Senior Project Engineer to play a key role in delivering this landmark development. You'll be responsible for driving engineering functions, coordinating key stakeholders, and ensuring technical excellence across all project stages, from design through to delivery.
What does an automation engineer do?
In this profession, automation engineers are responsible for understanding manual processes currently used in a business and assess the areas where automation can improve efficiency. Based on the analysis, automation engineers design and develop automated systems that can perform tasks such as data collection, monitoring, and decision-making, which would otherwise be performed manually.
Before deployment, automation engineers test and validate the automated systems to ensure that they are functioning correctly and meet the business requirements. Automation engineers work closely with software developers, quality assurance professionals, project managers, and other stakeholders to ensure that the automation system meets the business requirements and integrates well with other systems. After deployment, automation engineers monitor and maintain the automated systems to ensure that they continue to work as expected.
In addition, automation engineers need to stay up-to-date with the latest technologies to improve and optimize their automated systems continually. They must document their work and report on the status of the automated systems to stakeholders and management.
Overall, automation engineers play a critical role in modernizing and optimizing businesses by automating their processes, improving efficiency, and reducing manual labor. Automation engineers have been used in the manufacturing industry for decades, but it’s relatively new to the business, healthcare, and finance industries. Today, automation engineers can work in a variety of sectors, including pharmaceutical and medical devices, (bio)chemical, oil and gas, food processing, mining, waste and water treatment, software engineering and eCommerce warehousing, among others.
Common automation engineer responsibilities
An automation engineer is responsible for automating systems and processes, and more specific responsibilities may include:
- Designing and developing automation solutions to streamline manual processes and improve efficiency;
- Ensuring that the automation system works as expected by testing and troubleshooting any issues that may arise;
- Collaborating with cross-functional teams, such as software developers, quality assurance teams, and project managers to ensure that the automation system meets business requirements;
- Implementing and maintaining automation systems to run smoothly;
- Conducting feasibility studies and developing recommendations based on their findings;
- Performing system upgrades to keep up to date with technology advancements;
- Documenting and reporting on automation work to stakeholders and management;
- Training end-users on the new automated system to ensure proper use of the technology;
- Improving processes and automate new areas to streamline operations;
- Gathering customer or user requirements to develop suitable automation solutions.
Qualifications for automation engineers
Automation engineers should have at least a Bachelor's degree in Automation Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field. In some cases, a Master's degree or higher may be required for more advanced positions. In addition to a degree, automation engineers may need to be licensed in order to practice. Licensing requirements vary by country.
Additional supporting skills and experience include:
- 2-5+ years of automation engineering experience;
- Excellent technical skills, including experience in software development, automation tools, and programming languages;
- Strong problem-solving skills and able to troubleshoot and resolve issues quickly;
- Ability to work well in teams and collaborate with cross-functional teams;
- Excellent communication skills to convey complex technical information to non-technical stakeholders;
- Being detail-oriented and able to identify potential issues and areas for improvement;
Thinking creatively and developing innovative solutions to automate processes.