Staff Automation Controls Engineer

Location: Berkeley, CA

Department: Engineering

At Aircapture we’re creating and scaling a circular carbon economy to solve what we believe to be our lifetime's most pressing challenge: the climate crisis. We supply commercial and industrial customers with clean CO2 captured from our atmosphere to radically improve the environment, our economy, and our lives. We value building a team of people who represent diverse backgrounds--be it thought, education, gender, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation--to reach our goals. Thank you for considering us.

We are looking for a hands-on and detail-oriented Staff Automation Controls Engineer to lead the development, implementation, and maintenance of control systems used in our novel Direct Air Capture (DAC) systems. You will work closely with cross-functional engineering teams to ensure safe, reliable, and efficient operation of our automated systems. This role is onsite at our development and production facility in Berkeley, California. If you are excited to have a major impact at a groundbreaking climate technology startup, this is the role for you!

This role includes approximately 10% travel per year.

Salary: $160,000 - $220,000 per year

What You’ll Do Here

• Architect scalable and modular PLC/HMI systems across multiple product platforms
• Develop and troubleshoot ladder logic programs for PLCs using the Allen-Bradley platform
• Design and configure HMI screens for operational control and process visibility
• Create, review, and implement electrical control schematics using CAD tools
• Integrate PLCs, HMIs, sensors, actuators, and field devices using industrial communication protocols (Modbus, Ethernet/IP, Profibus)
• Support data logging and visualization tools to improve operational insight and system diagnostics
• Lead FAT/SAT and onsite commissioning efforts for automation systems
• Support system troubleshooting and perform preventive and corrective maintenance
• Document electrical designs, programming logic, and system integration details

Your Skills and Abilities Include

• Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering, Automation, or related field (or equivalent experience)
• 10+ years experience with PLC programming, industrial controls, and HMI development
• Proven track record taking a conceptual controls package and designing, implementing, and testing a full control system on industrial equipment or at the plant scale
• Skilled in controls circuit design and understanding of industrial safety systems
• Experienced in developing HMI interfaces with Visual Basic and Rockwell FactoryTalk
• Proficiency in CAD tools and ladder logic programming
• Experience in designing and maintaining control networks, VPN, remote access, basic network security
• Strong collaboration skills and experience supporting multiple projects across engineering disciplines
• Familiarity with RSLogix, FactoryTalk, Visual Studio, SQL, EthernetIP, IOLink, Autocad - preferred

Ability to perform physical tasks related to equipment installation and testing (e.g., lifting 50 lbs, climbing ladders)

Aircapture strives to create a safe, inclusive, equitable and diverse workplace. Every teammate adds to who we are, diversifying our ideas, experiences and viewpoints and makes us stronger. We hope you feel welcome here.