Automation & Controls Engineer

Manikanta J

Automation & Controls Engineer

GA, USA +1-470-***-**** ********@*****.*** LinkedIn PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

Automation & Controls Engineer with 5+ years of progressive experience across India and the USA designing, programming, and commissioning industrial control systems. Hands-on expertise in PLC/HMI programming, electrical panel design, SCADA integration, and cross-functional project delivery for manufacturing and process industries. Adept at translating complex engineering requirements into reliable, scalable automation solutions that reduce downtime and improve production throughput.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Automation & Controls Engineer Jan 2024 – Present

Eaton Corporation GA, USA

• Developed and deployed PLC logic using Allen-Bradley Studio 5000 for automated assembly line, reducing manual intervention by 38% across three production cells.

• Integrated Wonderware SCADA system with existing MES platform, improving real-time production visibility and cutting reporting lag from 4 hours to under 20 minutes.

• Collaborated with mechanical and electrical teams to redesign E-stop safety circuits, achieving full ISO 13849 PL-d compliance without halting production schedule.

• Troubleshot and resolved recurring HMI communication faults on ControlLogix systems, reducing unplanned downtime by 22% within the first six months on-site.

• Led panel design review for a new conveyor automation upgrade, cutting wiring errors by 30% through standardized CAD documentation in AutoCAD Electrical.

• Mentored two junior engineers on ladder logic best practices and Eaton-specific commissioning procedures, shortening their ramp-up period by approximately three weeks. Automation Engineer Feb 2020 – Aug 2022

Tata Motors Ltd. Pune, Maharashtra, India

• Programmed Siemens S7-1500 PLCs for a new body-in-white welding line, supporting commissioning of 18 robotic work cells across two production shifts.

• Designed and validated PROFINET network architecture for a 32-node automation island, achieving less than 2ms cycle time and zero network-related downtime in Year 1.

• Optimized existing ladder logic on legacy S7-300 systems, reducing cycle time per unit from 48 seconds to 41 seconds, adding roughly 9% additional throughput per shift.

• Prepared control system documentation including I/O lists, functional design specs, and FAT/SAT test protocols for six major production line upgrades.

• Coordinated with robotics vendors (FANUC, Kuka) to integrate vision system data into PLC-controlled part transfer sequences, cutting reject rate by 14%.

• Supported troubleshooting during three major planned maintenance shutdowns, consistently bringing lines back online within 80% of the planned restoration window.

Intern - Junior Controls Engineer Aug 2019 – Jan 2020 Larsen & Toubro Electrical & Automation Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

• Assisted in PLC programming and panel wiring for water treatment SCADA projects across three municipal utility clients in Western India.

• Built HMI screens in Wonderware InTouch for pump station monitoring, reducing operator navigation time by roughly 25% compared to the prior interface.

• Conducted on-site loop calibration and I/O checkout for pressure, flow, and level transmitters, completing commissioning 5 days ahead of scheduled milestones.

• Drafted electrical schematics in AutoCAD Electrical for MCC and PLC control panels, supporting the review cycle for four project tenders.

Key Projects

Conveyor Automation Upgrade Studio 5000 AutoCAD Electrical Stratix 5700 EtherNet/IP

• Redesigned legacy relay-based conveyor control into a fully PLC-driven architecture using Allen-Bradley Studio 5000, eliminating single points of failure across five conveyor zones.

• Developed structured ladder logic with modular AOI blocks to enable rapid fault isolation, reducing troubleshooting time by approximately 40%.

• Integrated Stratix 5700 EtherNet/IP switches for deterministic I/O communication, achieving sub-10ms scan cycle times across all nodes.

• Coordinated panel redesign and CAD documentation in AutoCAD Electrical, cutting wiring errors by 30%; delivered project 3 weeks ahead of schedule with 99.2% uptime in first 90 days. SCADA–MES Integration Wonderware InTouch SQL Server Kepware OPC-UA

• Architected a bidirectional OPC-UA data bridge connecting Wonderware SCADA to SAP MES, enabling live production KPIs to flow directly into enterprise dashboards without manual entry.

• Configured Kepware KEPServerEX as the OPC-UA server, mapping 200+ plant-floor tags from Allen-Bradley PLCs to structured data models consumed by SQL Server.

• Built automated shift-summary queries parsing tag historian data and pushing formatted reports to MES every 30 minutes, eliminating manual shift reporting and saving ~12 engineering hours per week across two plants.

• Validated data integrity through end-to-end testing comparing SCADA historian values against MES records, achieving 99.7% tag synchronization accuracy at steady state. Safety Circuit Compliance Retrofit Allen-Bradley GuardLogix Safety PLCs ISO 13849

• Conducted a comprehensive risk assessment across 14 machine safety circuits using ISO 13849 Performance Level methodology, identifying OSHA 1910.217 compliance gaps across press and conveyor equipment.

• Redesigned circuits using Allen-Bradley GuardLogix safety PLCs and safety-rated I/O modules, replacing obsolete relay-based e-stop loops with dual-channel monitored safety functions rated to PL-d.

• Developed and executed functional safety validation test plans including proof-test procedures, fault-injection scenarios, and MTTFd calculations for each upgraded circuit.

• Completed the full 6-week rollout with zero production interruptions and successfully passed third-party safety audit upon project closure.

TECHNICAL SKILLS

PLC Platforms:Allen-Bradley (Studio 5000, RSLogix 500/5000), Siemens (S7-1500/1200/300), Omron CJ/NJ HMI / SCADA: Wonderware InTouch/System Platform, FactoryTalk View, Ignition SCADA, WinCC Industrial Networks: EtherNet/IP, PROFINET, DeviceNet, Modbus TCP/RTU, OPC-UA, AS-i Bus Electrical / Design: AutoCAD Electrical, EPLAN P8, Panel Layout Design, MCC/VFD Wiring, NEC Compliance Safety Systems: Allen-Bradley GuardLogix, Safety PLC Programming, ISO 13849, OSHA 1910.217 Software / Tools: Kepware OPC Server, RSLinx, TIA Portal, SQL Server (basic), MS Office Suite Programming:Ladder Logic, Structured Text (IEC 61131-3), Function Block Diagram, Sequential FB Soft Skills: Cross-functional Collaboration, Root Cause Analysis, Technical Documentation, Project Coordination, Mentoring, Attention to Detail, Adaptability, Client Communication EDUCATION

Master of Science in Computer Science

University of Bridgeport September 2022 – May 2024 Bachelor of Technology in Electrical and Electronics Engineering Lakireddy Balireddy College of Engineering June 2017 – April 2021 CERTIFICATIONS & TRAINING

• Rockwell Automation – Studio 5000 Logix Designer Level 1 & 2

• Siemens TIA Portal – S7-1500 Programming (Certified)

• OSHA 10-Hour General Industry Safety Certification

• Kepware KEPServerEX OPC Connectivity (Coursera)

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