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Controls engineer job description template (UK)

This is the industrial controls engineer: someone who designs, programs and commissions the control systems of machines and plants (PLC, SCADA, drives, instruments). It is not a project controls role, which is planning and cost. Copy the template, name the platforms you use, and add the pay and where the work is done.

Post this job freeSee live controls engineer jobs

Checked 28 October 2026. Posting on EDWartens UK is free for employers at present, with no placement fee. We cannot promise applicants or hires.

Copy and edit

The template

Replace everything in square brackets, delete the options that do not apply, and keep the lines you can stand behind.

Controls Engineer (PLC and SCADA), [site and town]

Pay: [£ range] a year. Hours: [37.5 hours, Monday to Friday], with [occasional site visits and out-of-hours support].

The role: design, program, test and commission the control systems for [our machines and lines], including PLC logic, HMI and SCADA screens, drives and instrument loops. This is industrial controls, not project controls.

You will have: [an HNC, degree or equivalent experience in electrical, electronic or mechatronic engineering]; PLC programming on [Siemens TIA Portal / Allen-Bradley Studio 5000]; commissioning and fault finding; and the ability to read electrical drawings.

It would help if you have: [SCADA, structured text, safety PLC experience, IEC 61131-3 and machinery safety standards, a clean driving licence].

We [may sponsor a Skilled Worker visa, subject to eligibility] / [are unable to sponsor visas for this role].

To apply: [link].

The detail

Duties, essential and desirable

Keep the essential list short: every extra line puts off people who could do the job.

Duties

  • Write, test and document PLC programs, HMI screens and SCADA graphics.
  • Configure drives, networks and instruments, and run loop checks and I/O checkout.
  • Commission machines and systems on the factory floor and on the customer's site.
  • Fault find on live plant and fix the cause, not only the symptom.
  • Keep program backups, drawings and change records up to date.
  • Work with electrical, mechanical and process colleagues, and train operators and maintenance staff.

Essential

  • PLC programming experience on the platform you use, named in the advert.
  • Commissioning and fault finding experience on industrial equipment.
  • A qualification or equivalent experience in electrical, electronic, automation or mechatronic engineering.
  • Able to read electrical schematics and I/O lists.

Desirable

  • SCADA or HMI experience (WinCC, Ignition, FactoryTalk).
  • Structured text and the IEC 61131-3 languages.
  • Safety PLC experience and machinery safety standards.
  • Industry experience in your sector.
Standards and law

What to name in the advert

Naming the standards tells a candidate you know the job and tells a competent person they will be working to a known benchmark. Link to the publisher, not a summary.

  1. 01
    IEC 61131-3The standard for PLC programming languages (ladder, function block, structured text).
  2. 02
    BS EN 60204-1Electrical equipment of machines.
  3. 03
    BS EN ISO 13849-1Safety-related parts of machinery control systems, where the role touches safety functions.
  4. 04
    PUWER 1998Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations. Read it (PUWER 1998, opens in a new tab).
Shifts

The shift pattern line

Say the pattern in the advert: for example "4 on 4 off, days and nights, 12-hour shifts", "Monday to Friday, days" or "on call one week in four". A maintenance or controls job that runs round the clock often uses shifts, and candidates screen on them first. Two legal limits to know: most workers cannot be made to work more than 48 hours a week on average unless they opt out (GOV.UK, maximum weekly working hours (opens in a new tab)), and night workers have their own limit on hours (GOV.UK, night working hours (opens in a new tab)). Checked 28 October 2026.

Before anyone starts, you must check they can work in the UK: GOV.UK, check a job applicant's right to work (opens in a new tab).

Pay guidance

What to pay, from published figures

ONS places control and instrumentation engineers in the same group as production and process engineers (SOC 2125), so the figure covers a wider group than controls alone. Advertised pay for PLC and controls work, where we have a sample, is on the PLC engineer page. We never estimate pay. More: controls engineer salary in the UK.

Interview

Five questions, and what a good answer covers

A starting point for the first interview. Adapt them to your site and equipment.

  1. Question 1

    Walk me through the last control system you commissioned.

    A good answer: Scope, platform, how I/O and loops were checked, what went wrong on site and how it was fixed.

  2. Question 2

    A machine stops with no alarm. How do you find the cause?

    A good answer: Check inputs and interlocks, the PLC state, the sequence step and the field device, in a stated order.

  3. Question 3

    How do you keep program changes under control?

    A good answer: Backups before and after, a change record, testing offline first and a clear handover.

  4. Question 4

    What is the difference between a controls engineer and a project controls role?

    A good answer: Controls here means machine and plant control systems; project controls is planning and cost.

  5. Question 5

    How would you make a machine safe to work on while testing logic?

    A good answer: Isolation, safe test mode, a second person, and respect for the safety circuit.

Looking for work, not hiring?

What employers ask for in a controls engineer

Read the essential and desirable lists above, then see live controls engineer jobs and what the adverts actually ask for. A free course and a job simulation (practice, not employment) can give you evidence to show. Nothing here promises a job.

Questions

Controls engineer job description FAQ

What should a controls engineer advert include?
The job title as people search for it, the site and town, the pay or pay range, the hours and shift pattern, the main duties, what is essential and what is only desirable, the standards the person will work to, how to apply and what checks come before a start date. Leave out anything that could discriminate under the Equality Act 2010, such as an age or gender preference or phrases like "young and energetic", and do not ask for more than the job needs.
Should I state the salary?
Yes, if you can. A pay figure or range tells people whether to apply, and Google's job posting guidance lists the employer's own pay figure as recommended for a job to be shown with its pay (checked 28 October 2026). Use your real range, not a guess at the market, and say whether shift allowances and overtime are on top.
How do I word a sponsorship line truthfully?
Only say you can sponsor a Skilled Worker visa if you hold a sponsor licence and the job could meet the occupation code and pay rules, and write it as "may sponsor, subject to eligibility". Otherwise write "We are unable to sponsor visas for this role". Never write "visa sponsorship available" to attract applicants for a job that cannot qualify, and never charge a candidate for a certificate of sponsorship. The rules are on GOV.UK (checked 28 October 2026).
Is this the same as a PLC engineer or an automation engineer?
The titles overlap. A controls engineer usually owns the control system of a machine or plant, a PLC engineer the PLC logic, and an automation engineer the automation of a line or process, which can include robots. Describe the duties and the platform, and use the title your candidates search for.

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