Automation Engineer - PLC / Plant Control (m/f/d)

ABOUT US METYCLE - where innovation meets sustainability We are building the B2B online platform to accelerate the global circular flow of secondary metals. By connecting buyers and sellers of scrap metal globally, we enable efficient trade of secondary metals and drive the seamless flow of recycling material, essential for reducing CO2 emissions by up to 95% compared to primary metal production. And we take it further! We are pioneering an innovative Smart Sorting Facility that leverages AI, machine learning, and robotics to transform how scrap metal is processed, enhance material quality, improve traceability, and drive the recycling industry into the digital era. Join us at the early stage in bringing the $610 billion scrap metal trading industry into the 21st century and in shaping the future of metal recycling and green energy solutions. READY TO MAKE AN IMPACT? If you are passionate about industrial automation, solving complex technical challenges, and building something from the ground up, join our team as an Industrial Automation Engineer. The machinery is the easy part to buy. The control system that turns it into a plant - and the standards, documentation, and data that keep it running - is what we are hiring you to own. We are looking for an experienced Industrial Automation Engineer to take ownership of our plant’s control systems from design through commissioning and into stable production. You bring deep hands-on experience in programming and commissioning industrial control systems and are comfortable taking responsibility for the PLC, safety systems, HMI, industrial networking, and interfaces between multiple machine suppliers. Beyond programming, you understand what it takes to make a plant genuinely reliable in production and have the technical confidence to hold suppliers to high professional standards. Join our international team, help build innovative solutions for scrap metal processing, and contribute to a more sustainable future. YOUR MISSION • PLC & Plant Control: Design, write, and own the PLC program using Siemens TIA Portal / S7-1200 & S7-1500, including control logic, sequencing, fault handling, and HMI • Commissioning & Production: Take the plant from design through commissioning to a stable, running line, owning the full journey through FAT/SAT and the hands-on work required to make the plant genuinely reliable • Plant Availability: Design stop and interlock behaviour to minimise unnecessary downtime — allowing unaffected parts of the plant to keep running when it is safe to do so. Plant availability is a direct business outcome here, and you will directly influence it • Machine Safety: Implement the machine-safety control concept on a fail-safe F-CPU with F-I/O, including the hardwired e-stop loop, PLC-enforced zone isolation that cannot be overridden, guard interlocks, and controlled, sequenced shutdown • Safety & Compliance: Be our in-house technical counterpart on EN ISO 13849 performance-level determination and the CE file, working with external assessors while retaining ownership of the technical approach and decisions • Machine Integration: Integrate control systems from several different machine suppliers into one coherent line, so that a single stop is genuinely a single stop across the whole plant • Supplier Management: Hold machine builders and panel builders to specification, including unlocked code, complete documentation, and standards compliance • OT / IT & Industrial IoT: Get plant data out over OPC UA / MQTT / Modbus TCP into our own systems, so stoppage reasons, energy use, and throughput become actionable data. Work closely with our Industrial IoT team, who own the edge and data side of that boundary YOUR PROFILE • 5+ years of hands-on experience programming and commissioning industrial control systems, with a track record of bringing production equipment or complete lines into stable operation • Deep Siemens TIA Portal / S7-1200 & S7-1500 experience, with strong skills in SCL, LAD/FBD, HMI/SCADA, industrial networking (PROFINET, PROFIBUS, Modbus TCP), drives/VFDs, and fault-finding • Strong machine safety competence, including F-CPU / Safety Integrated and EN ISO 13849, with the ability to explain and defend performance-level determinations • Comfortable reading electrical schematics and troubleshooting cabinets, hardware, signals, wiring, and control behaviour directly on the shop floor. You have brought at least one production line from commissioning into stable production; maintenance-only experience is not sufficient • Experience working with machine and panel builders, with the confidence to hold suppliers accountable for code quality, documentation, standards compliance, and professional delivery • Experience with brownfield projects and legacy migration (STEP 7 Classic → TIA); experience in bulk material handling, recycling, sorting, or minerals processing is a plus • Experience with PLC version control, simulation / digital twins, or structured automation approaches is desirable. Additional IT/OT skills such as Python, C#/TIA Openness, SQL, Linux, Docker, MES/IIoT, OT network segmentation, or IEC 62443 are a plus • Independent, structured, and hands-on, with a strong sense of ownership. You challenge assumptions, hold suppliers to a high standard, and document what you build • Fluent in English; German and/or Dutch is a plus. Ideally based in or near Cologne or the Benelux/border region, with valid EU work authorisation and the willingness to travel to our Smart Sorting Facility in Belgium, Maasmechelen WHY JOIN US? • You will have the opportunity to challenge the status quo and work on an innovative venture with a significant impact • You will be able to take ownership and shape the future of metal recycling and green energy solutions at an early stage • We offer a competitive salary including virtual company shares • We offer an environment with flat hierarchies and a steep learning curve with exciting growth opportunities • You will benefit from flexible working hours and the opportunity to work remotely or from a shared office location • We promote an inclusive, diverse and supportive work environment CONTACT Discover more about METYCLE: About us | LinkedIn We look forward to receiving your application. Irene Prinz is happy to answer any questions you may have: +49 152 34 62 72 85.