Sr. Controls Engineer, Facilities Engineering

What to Expect

Tesla is seeking a highly motivated Sr. Controls Engineer for Gigafactory NV in the Reno/Sparks area. The Gigafactory Facilities Controls team drives to optimize the factory by developing, standardizing, and deploying the control systems behind large-scale utility and facilities infrastructure including chilled water plants, dry air systems, chemical refineries and manufacturing tool cooling water systems — in support of highly innovating manufacturing processes.

What You’ll Do

• Own day-to-day sustaining support of deployed facilities control systems — respond to downtime events, diagnose root cause across PLC, I/O, instrumentation, and network layers, and drive permanent corrective actions
• Learn and maintain fluency in the standardized Facilities Controls Library (function blocks, AOIs and device templates) across Siemens and Rockwell platforms
• Read and interpret existing sequencer architecture, mode logic, and interlock schemes for utility systems such as chilled water, dry air systems, and chemical refineries; update logic to reflect changing process requirements
• Perform PID loop tuning and control optimization on operating equipment to improve system stability, energy efficiency, and equipment life
• Execute controlled changes end to end: scope, offline simulation/validation, MOC approval, field implementation, verification, and as-built documentation and redlines
• Own and evolve the deployed facilities control network architecture — maintain ring topology and redundancy schemes, manage device profiles and address plans, execute switch and node replacements without process interruption. Support safety system validation and periodic proof testing on existing safety logic
• Partner with operations to keep tag data exchange, alarming, and screens aligned as process system changes and perform alarm rationalization and nuisance-alarm reduction on in-service facilities systems to improve operator response
• Support start-up and commissioning of retrofits and small capital additions, including point-to-point checkout, functional testing, and tuning through system handoff
• Provide expert on-call support for system outages and failover incidents
• Mentor junior controls engineers and technicians on troubleshooting methodology, library architecture, and network fundamentals; drive continuous improvement activities with key stakeholders and system engineering groups

What You’ll Bring

• Degree in Electrical, Mechanical Engineering, Control Systems, Computer Science, Automation Engineering or equivalent experience
• 5–8 years of hands-on Controls Engineer experience supporting, troubleshooting, and modifying PLC-based automation systems in a live production environment
• Demonstrated ability to read, trace, and reverse-engineer existing PLC code written by others following state machines, sequencers, and mode transitions. Proficiency in Siemens TIA Portal (SCL and Ladder) and/or Rockwell Studio 5000 (Ladder, AOI development); strong candidates will have depth in one platform and working fluency in the other
• Experience working within an established, standardized control code library (function blocks, AOIs, device templates), extending and instantiating standard objects rather than writing one-off logic
• Strong understanding of closed-loop control, including hands-on PID loop tuning and optimization on real process equipment
• Experience with facilities or process utility systems (chilled water, compressed air, dry air systems, chemical refineries strongly preferred)
• Comfortable performing online troubleshooting on running equipment: online edits, trend capture, forcing discipline, and change control on production controllers
• Strong industrial networking expertise: ring/redundant topologies (PROFINET MRP, Ether Net/IP DLR, RSTP), managed switch configuration and diagnosing comms faults, I/O dropouts, and ring-break events on live networks
• Hands-on with PROFINET (GSDML device profiles, IRT/RT, topology and neighbor detection), PROFIBUS DP/PA (segment design, couplers/links, termination, addressing), Modbus TCP (register mapping, gateways, third-party skid integration), and Ether Net/IP. Familiarity with SCADA/HMI platforms (Ignition preferred), including tag architecture and client/gateway troubleshooting
• Working knowledge of machine and process safety concepts (safety PLCs, safety-rated I/O, functional safety standards) preferred