Freelance Operational Technology Engineer Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Description

Position Summary

The Operational Technology (OT) Engineer is responsible for supporting, maintaining, and improving the technology and control systems that enable safe, reliable, and efficient operation of industrial facilities.

This role provides hands-on technical support for SCADA/HMI systems, PLCs and RTUs, OT networks and communications, industrial cybersecurity, and field automation systems. The OT Engineer serves as a key technical resource for Operations and works closely with Engineering, IT, Maintenance, Instrumentation & Controls (I&C), vendors, and system integrators to troubleshoot issues, maintain system reliability, and support facility projects and upgrades.

The position supports operations within the Oil & Gas, Water/Wastewater Utility, and Biogas/Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) industries and may require travel to operating facilities and participation in after-hours support.

Key Responsibilities

Support and maintain SCADA, HMI, PLC, RTU, and related industrial control systems.

Troubleshoot automation, communications, networking, and control system issues affecting facility operations.

Configure and support OT network infrastructure, including industrial switches, routers, firewalls, VPNs, communications gateways, and remote connectivity.

Support industrial communications using Ethernet, cellular, radio, fiber, serial, and other field communication technologies.

Assist with PLC programming, HMI configuration, alarm management, historian integration, system backups, and configuration management.

Support OT cybersecurity initiatives, including network segmentation, secure remote access, system hardening, patching, vulnerability remediation, asset management, and backup/recovery.

Provide technical support to Operations and field personnel for critical OT and SCADA issues.

Perform root-cause analysis for recurring system and communication failures and recommend corrective actions.

Support installation, testing, commissioning, startup, and integration of new facilities and equipment.

Participate in facility upgrades, control system modernization, and OT infrastructure improvement projects.

Develop and maintain OT documentation, including network diagrams, system architecture drawings, equipment inventories, configuration records, and troubleshooting procedures.

Support lifecycle management of OT hardware and software and identify aging or obsolete infrastructure requiring replacement.

Coordinate with Engineering, IT, Operations, vendors, and system integrators to ensure OT systems are implemented and maintained in accordance with company standards.

Participate in an on-call or after-hours support rotation for critical operational systems, as required.

Requirements

Required Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Controls Engineering, Computer Engineering, Automation, Information Technology, or a related technical field; equivalent relevant experience may be considered.

Experience supporting industrial automation, SCADA, PLC, controls, or Operational Technology environments.

Working knowledge of PLCs, RTUs, HMIs, SCADA systems, industrial networks, and field communications.

Understanding of networking fundamentals, including TCP/IP, VLANs, routing, switching, firewalls, and VPNs.

Familiarity with industrial communication protocols such as Modbus, EtherNet/IP, DNP3, OPC/OPC UA, or similar technologies.

Strong technical troubleshooting and problem-solving skills.

Ability to read and interpret technical documentation such as P&IDs, electrical drawings, network diagrams, and control system architecture drawings.

Strong communication and documentation skills with the ability to work across Operations, Engineering, IT, and Maintenance teams.

Ability and willingness to travel to operating facilities and provide field support as required.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience in Oil & Gas, Water/Wastewater, Biogas, Renewable Natural Gas (RNG), pipeline, midstream, or other industrial/process environments.

Experience with industrial automation platforms such as Rockwell Automation/Allen-Bradley, Schneider Electric, Siemens, Emerson ROC, ABB Total Flow or similar systems.

Experience developing and supporting SCADA platforms primarily Inductive Automation Ignition with Perspective and Vision.

Experience migrating from older legacy SCADA platforms such as FactoryTalk, Wonderware, and iFIX to Ignition. Knowledge of industrial historians, servers, databases such as MSSQL and MySQL , or virtualized OT environments.

Experience with industrial Ethernet, cellular, radio, fiber, and remote telemetry systems.

Familiarity with Microsoft Windows Server and workstation administration within industrial environments.

Understanding of OT cybersecurity principles and frameworks, including the Purdue Model.

Experience with OT asset management, system backup and recovery, patch management, vulnerability management, and secure remote-access solutions.

Experience with commissioning, startup, Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT), or Site Acceptance Testing (SAT).

Key Competencies

Strong troubleshooting and analytical skills.

Operations-focused and reliability-driven mindset.

Ability to manage multiple priorities in an operational environment.

Strong attention to detail and commitment to change-management practices.

Ability to work independently and collaboratively across technical disciplines.

Effective communication with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Commitment to safety, cybersecurity, and operational reliability.

Work Environment & Expectations

This position supports operational facilities and may require a combination of office, remote, and field-based work. The OT Engineer may occasionally work outside normal business hours to support system outages, facility startups, commissioning activities, or critical operational issues.

Travel to operating facilities is required as business needs dictate.