Controls and Automation Engineer (EN-CV-CL-2026-171-GRAE)

Overview

Join the Cooling and Ventilation developers team within CERN's Engineering Department (EN).

Contribute to the development, commissioning, and maintenance of Industrial Control Systems (ICS) and automation solutions essential to the operation of CERN's accelerators, detectors, and infrastructure.

You will be involved in the specification, design, commissioning, and maintenance of a wide range of ICS dedicated to cooling and ventilation plants for accelerator facilities, experimental areas, and technical infrastructure.

This position offers the opportunity to work on large-scale industrial installations in a highly technical and collaborative environment.

Responsibilities

• Gather control system requirements and compile all relevant technical documentation.
• Design automation solutions and control systems for industrial ventilation and cooling plants.
• Develop and implement PLC applications for ICS.
• Define and execute tests of ICS on simulators.
• Perform on-site commissioning of ICS.
• Design, implement, and deploy improvements and corrective actions for operational control systems.

Your profile / Qualifications

• Proven experience in Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) programming.
• Good knowledge of PLC development based on the IEC 61131 standard.
• Initial experience in Python programming or other high-level programming languages.
• Ability to read and work with electrical schematics.
• Initial experience in the configuration, programming, and operation of SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems.
• Understanding of industrial automation principles and control systems.
• Experience with SCADA systems in an industrial environment is considered an advantage.
• Knowledge of automation theory and industrial process control is considered an advantage.

Skills

• PLC programming using SIEMENS Step7, TIA Portal and/or Schneider Control Expert.
• High-level programming languages (e. g. Python).
• Version control software systems (e. g. Git).
• Spoken and written English, with a commitment to learn French.
• Eligibility criteria
• You are a national of a CERN Member or Associate Member State.
• By the application deadline, you have a maximum of two years of professional experience since graduation in Automation and Controls (or a related field) and your highest educational qualification is either a Bachelor's or Master's degree.
• You have never had a CERN fellow or graduate contract before.
• Applicants without University degree are not eligible.
• Applicants with a Ph D are not eligible.
• Additional Information

• Job closing date

• Contract duration: 24 months, with a possible extension up to 36 months maximum.
• Working hours: 40 hours per week
• Job flexibility: Hybrid
• Target start date: 01-October-2026
• This position involves: Work in Radiation Areas; Interventions in underground installations; A valid driving licence.
• Job reference: EN-CV-CL- -GRAE
• Global Benefits
• A monthly stipend between

Swiss Francs per month (tax free) depending on your degree.

• 30 days of paid leave per year plus 2 weeks annual closure.
• Coverage by CERN's comprehensive health insurance scheme (for yourself, your spouse and children), and membership of the CERN Pension Fund.
• Family, child and infant monthly allowances depending on your individual circumstances.
• A relocation package (installation grant and travel expenses) depending on your individual circumstances.
• Possibility to extend your contract up to 36 months.
• On-the-job and formal training including language classes.
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