Global OT Application Engineer in Köln

The Global OT Application Engineer implements, integrates, tests, deploys and supports industrial applications across manufacturing sites. The role configures and implements global use cases and applications.

The Application Engineer is the technical bridge between plants, application owners, developers, infrastructure and cybersecurity teams, software vendors and system integrators. The role covers both purchased or configured applications and internally built solutions; it is neither limited to software development nor to coordination.

Assigned scope:

• Global OT applications across manufacturing sites, including MES/MOM, SCADA, IIoT and CMMS domains.
• Purchased, configured and internally developed applications and their interfaces to plant and business systems.

Primary emphasis:

• Applications are deployed safely, consistently and with clear acceptance evidence.
• Plant systems exchange accurate and reliable data through governed interfaces.
• Sites receive effective onboarding, technical support and operational handover.
• Incidents and recurring technical problems are resolved at the appropriate support level.
• Global templates and standards are applied without losing control of necessary local adaptations.

Main tasks / Standard of performance

Implementation and Integration:

• Configure and implement applications, templates and technical components in accordance with the approved solution design.
• Gather requirements to integrate applications with PLC, SCADA, DCS, MES/MOM, IIoT, historians and business systems such as ERP, LIMS or QMS.
• Configure and troubleshoot industrial data exchange using technologies such as OPC UA, MQTT, REST APIs and SQL.
• Ensure that global libraries, naming conventions, templates, interfaces and deployment standards are followed.
• Document any approved local deviation from the global template, including its justification and approval, in the application documentation.
• Review technical and functional deliveries from developers, vendors and system integrators and challenge gaps in quality, maintainability or operability.

Testing and Validation:

• Translate approved requirements and designs into a complete and traceable technical test scope.
• Prepare and execute functional, integration and regression tests and support FAT, SAT and user acceptance testing.
• Diagnose bugs, coordinate correction and test cycles, and maintain clear test evidence and release documentation.
• Verify connectivity, data integrity, performance, resilience, security controls and operational readiness.
• Confirm that acceptance criteria are met before recommending release or production deployment.

Deployment and Site Onboarding:

• Lead the technical work required to take an application from a controlled release into stable plant operation.
• Assess site readiness, infrastructure, signals, interfaces, data availability and local dependencies.
• Coordinate technical activities with plant stakeholders, local OT teams, vendors and system integrators.
• Execute or supervise installation, configuration, commissioning and cut-over activities.
• Provide hypercare, technical training, documentation and a clear handover to support and site teams.

Operations and Support:

• Provide ITIL-based L2/L3 application support: advanced troubleshooting, functional bug-fixing and technical incident escalation across sites (ITIL support levels, not Purdue Model network layers).
• Perform problem management: conduct root-cause analysis (RCA) and implement corrective and preventive actions (CAPA) for recurring application errors.
• Manage technical change requests: oversee software modifications from assessment through testing, release and production deployment.
• Monitor application health: track application performance, data interfaces (APIs) and support trends to recommend continuous improvements.
• Maintain knowledge databases: manage technical documentation, application runbooks, release notes and Known-Error Databases (KEDB).

Plant and Technical Team Interface:

• Act as the practical interface between plant operations and the teams that design, build and supply the applications.
• Translate plant constraints and operational issues into actionable technical requirements and bugs.
• Explain technical options, dependencies, risks and decisions to plant and business stakeholders.
• Coordinate effectively with the Application Owner on priorities, scope, standards and acceptance.
• Work with developers on build activities and with delivery leads or Scrum Masters on planning and execution.
• Challenge vendors and system integrators on technical quality, delivery evidence and issue resolution, escalating commercial or roadmap matters to the Application Owner.

Skills and competencies

Functional & Technical Competencies:

• Strong knowledge of at least one relevant application domain: MES/MOM, SCADA, IIoT or CMMS, and of interfaces to PLC, SCADA and DCS systems.
• Practical integration knowledge using OPC UA, MQTT, REST APIs and SQL.
• Ability to read, adapt or create components using Python, C#, Java or JavaScript when needed.
• Working knowledge of versioning, release, incident, problem and change-management practices.
• Working knowledge of ISA-95 principles, OT cybersecurity and regulated validation requirements where applicable.

Behavioral Competencies:

• Plant-oriented, pragmatic and structured, with strong ownership of technical issues.
• Constructive challenge of delivery evidence from developers, vendors and system integrators.
• Clear cross-functional communication across plant, specialist and external audiences.

Experience

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's or master's degree in automation, electrical, software or industrial engineering, or comparable practical experience.
• Experience with industrial applications, automation, MES/MOM, SCADA, IIoT or comparable manufacturing systems; senior appointments normally require demonstrated responsibility across multiple sites or complex industrial programs.
• Professional English; additional languages relevant to the assigned region are an advantage.

Working Conditions and Location:

• Primary European hiring locations Barcelona and southern or western Germany, plus a senior regional position in the north-eastern United States.
• Home-based or hybrid working with regular domestic and international travel to manufacturing sites.

Responsibility / Power of authority

The Application Engineer:

• Together with the Project Managers, defines implementation and configuration approaches within approved standards.
• Stops or rejects a technical deployment when readiness or acceptance criteria are not met.
• Recommends fixes, improvements and standard changes based on operational evidence.
• Escalates architecture, security, scope and vendor‑performance risks.
• The role does not own application strategy, roadmap, backlog or commercial vendor decisions, does not act only as a software developer without integration, testing, support and site responsibilities, does not replace the plant's operational ownership or bypass agreed OT governance, and does not approve material deviations from global standards without the relevant owner or authority.

Team work / Team membership

Communicates to:

• Application Owner: priorities, scope, standards, acceptance and escalation of commercial or roadmap matters.
• Plant operations and local OT teams: site readiness, deployment activities, onboarding, training, support and operational handover.
• Developers, delivery leads and Scrum Masters: build activities, defect resolution, planning and release execution.
• Infrastructure and cybersecurity teams: interfaces, security controls, architecture dependencies and technical risk.
• Software vendors and system integrators: technical quality, delivery evidence, testing and issue resolution.
• Business and functional stakeholders (production, quality, maintenance, supply chain): technical options, dependencies, risks and decisions affecting plant operations.
• Project managers: rollout planning and execution; sequencing, dependencies and escalation of deviations.

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