Automation and Controls Engineer

Why Castelion, Why Now 

Castelion is moving incredibly fast to develop and deliver advanced defense systems at a time when execution matters more than ever. We believe focus, ownership, and excellence are decisive advantages - and we're building a world-class team to turn bold ideas into real capability. 

This is a rare opportunity to join at an early stage, where you'll have significant ownership, collaborate with exceptional teammates, and make a direct, measurable impact on our mission and the future of the company - regardless of your function.  

Materials Engineering – Equipment Engineer (Automation & Controls)

Castelion is seeking a highly motivated Equipment Engineer specializing in automation and controls to support development and scale-up of wet chemistry manufacturing processes. This role is ideal for an individual interested in equipment design, industrial automation, process controls, and translating laboratory-scale chemical manufacturing operations into robust, production-ready systems. 

The role combines hands-on equipment development with controls engineering responsibilities. The engineer will design, integrate, commission, and optimize automated manufacturing equipment, develop control architectures and standardized operating procedures, and support the transition of the process from laboratory-scale production to increasingly larger manufacturing systems.

Outcomes for 2026

• Develop standardized equipment architectures and control strategies to automate data collection and operating procedures, improve chemical process consistency and safety, and improve manufacturing reliability.
• Support a 10X scale-up of the manufacturing process by designing and deploying reactor control equipment.

Key Responsibilities for 2026

• Design, build, integrate, and commission automated manufacturing equipment to support development and production activities.
• Develop PLC, HMI, motion control, sensor integration, and industrial automation solutions to improve process capability and equipment reliability.
• Design and execute structured equipment qualification and process validation activities to optimize throughput, repeatability, and manufacturability.
• Collect, organize, and analyze equipment performance and process data to support optimization and manufacturing readiness.
• Develop and maintain equipment documentation, electrical schematics, control logic, operating procedures, and preventive maintenance documentation.
• Troubleshoot equipment, controls, instrumentation, and automation issues in a fast-paced development environment.
• Support scale-up activities by evaluating equipment performance across increasing production volumes and implementing improvements to enable future production capacity.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechatronics, Controls Engineering, or a related field.
• Experience designing, integrating, and troubleshooting automated manufacturing equipment.
• Familiarity with PLC programming, industrial controls, instrumentation, sensors, motion systems, and industrial communication protocols.
• Strong data analysis, root-cause investigation, and technical documentation skills.
• Ability to work independently in a hands-on engineering and manufacturing environment.

Castelion offers a generous benefits package. Please refer to the bottom of our Careers page for more details.  

Other Duties 

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice. 

Additional Eligibility Requirements 

This position may require access to classified information or restricted U.S. Government sites, systems, or information, as determined by the Company and/or applicable U.S. Government requirements. If the position is so designated, your employment in the role may be contingent upon your ability to obtain and maintain the required U.S. Government security clearance or other government authorization, and to satisfy any citizenship or other eligibility requirements imposed by applicable law, regulation, executive order, or government contract requirements. You will be notified if and when such requirements apply. 

Affirmative Action/EEO Statement 

Castelion is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. 

Castelion is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities throughout the application and hiring process. If you require a reasonable accommodation to complete an application, participate in the interview process, or otherwise participate in the hiring process, please contact [email protected]. Requests for accommodation will be considered on an individual basis and handled in accordance with applicable law. 

Castelion is committed to fostering a workplace where employment decisions are based on qualifications, business needs, and the ability to perform the essential functions of the role, with or without reasonable accommodation. 

EAR/ITAR Requirements 

This position requires access to export-controlled information, and as such, employment (or hiring of a contractor) is contingent upon the candidate’s ability to access all applicable export-controlled information without additional export licensing being required by the Bureau of Industry and Security and/or the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls.