Electrical Controls Engineers design and program the systems that automate industrial processes and machinery — PLCs, HMIs, motor controls, drives, safety systems. The work tends to mix electrical schematic design, ladder logic or structured text programming, and the steady reality of commissioning on the floor.
Most days mix schematic design, PLC programming, and on-site commissioning — drawing control panels in AutoCAD Electrical, writing PLC logic in tools like Studio 5000 or TIA Portal, integrating drives and motion control, and the long stretches of commissioning where designs meet messy reality. You're often working in machine builders, system integrators, manufacturing plants, or building automation, and the platform (Allen-Bradley, Siemens, Schneider) often sets the project.
What tends to be harder than people expect is the commissioning and startup load. Designs work in simulation; commissioning on a real line involves wiring errors, sensor faults, and operational pressure to hit production targets. Travel for startups can be heavy at integrators, and safety functions (Cat 3/PLd, SIL) add real engineering weight.
People who tend to thrive here are fluent in electrical schematics and ladder logic both, comfortable on the plant floor, calm during startups, and steady through long commissioning weeks. If you want pure office work, this lives partly in the field. If you like the satisfaction of automated systems that run reliably for years, the role offers strong demand and good pay across manufacturing and infrastructure.
Where this role sits in the broader career landscape — and where it can take you.
Roles like this one sit within a broader occupational category. The numbers below reflect that full landscape — helpful for context, but your specific experience will depend on level, specialty, and where you work.
Roles with similar work and overlapping career paths
View all Engineering roles →Electrical Controls Engineers design and program the systems that automate industrial processes and machinery — PLCs, HMIs, motor controls, drives, safety systems. The work tends to mix electrical schematic design, ladder logic or structured text programming, and the steady reality of commissioning on the floor.
Median pay for an Electrical Controls Engineer is about $112K nationally, with the field ranging roughly from $75K to $175K depending on experience, employer, and metro (BLS).
Core skills for this role include Writing, Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension, Speaking, and Active Learning.
Most people in this role hold a bachelor's degree.
Employment in this field is projected to grow about 7.2% through 2034, with roughly 188,790 people working in it today (BLS).
Closely related roles include Electrical Engineering Director, Project Engineer, and Senior Project Engineer.
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