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Hawthorne, California, United States
Onsite
Company Description:
Critical Energy is an innovative, early-stage, venture-backed cleantech company on a mission to accelerate the global energy transition through abundant, low-cost clean energy. Founded by an ex-SpaceX engineer, Critical Energy designs and manufactures factory-built, modular power plants. These rapidly deployable systems convert heat into electricity using a closed-loop thermodynamic cycle and can be installed in just weeks.
Critical Energy’s technology delivers high-efficiency, 24/7 power for geothermal applications and waste heat recovery (including from data center gas turbines), making clean energy practical and cost-effective for demanding sectors like AI hyperscalers and data centers. Backed by top climate and technology investors, Critical Energy is scaling rapidly.
Our Mission:
To build an abundant, low-cost, 100% clean energy future through groundbreaking geothermal innovation.
We are a team of passionate engineers, designers, and visionaries building cutting-edge solutions to meet the world’s energy needs with 100% clean energy. We are in the initial stages of development and building our team. This is your chance to join on the ground floor of something big! If you are ready to work at a fun, fast-paced, groundbreaking organization that is positioned to revolutionize geothermal energy, apply today!
About the Role:
We are seeking Senior Controls Engineer to own the design, development, and deployment of the instrumentation and controls of our heat-to-electricity ORC products. You will collaborate closely with the systems and turbomachinery teams to translate CONOPS, safety, and system performance requirements into instrumentation hardware procurement decisions and software control schemes. This role will also be part of the commissioning team, including factory acceptance testing and onsite deployments at customer sites. This is a full-time, on-site position located in our Hawthorne, CA facility.
Responsibilities:
Architect, develop, and commission PLC-based control systems for ORC power plant processes including working fluid pumps, air-cooled condensers, heat exchangers, and auxiliary systems
Design and implement HMI and SCADA applications providing operators with clear process visibility, alarm management, and control functionality
Develop control strategies for key process loops including pressure control, working fluid flow regulation, heat source management, and startup/shutdown sequencing
Specify, select, and integrate field instrumentation including pressure transmitters, flow meters, temperature transmitters, and level devices
Design and lay out industrial electrical control panels compliant with NEC, NFPA 79, and UL 508A, manage panel builds, field wiring, and loop checkout
Implement and maintain safety instrumented functions per IEC 61511 principles including SIL verification, cause and effect matrix development, and SIS logic implementation
Integrate plant devices across industrial communication protocols including EtherCAT, Modbus TCP, DNP3, and OPC-UA
Develop and maintain controls documentation including I/O lists, network architecture diagrams, functional descriptions, cause and effect matrices, and FAT/SAT procedures
Support factory acceptance testing and field commissioning of control systems for future plant deployments
Collaborate with electrical, mechanical, and systems engineering teams to ensure controls architecture supports plant performance, safety, and reliability requirements
Contribute to development of controls standards, templates, and reusable code libraries to drive consistency across future plant designs
Required Qualifications:
Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, or related field
5+ years of hands-on experience designing, programming, and commissioning industrial control systems
Demonstrated PLC programming experience: Beckhoff, Allen-Bradley or Siemens acceptable
Experience with Structured Text (ST) or similar IEC 61131-3 standard language
Experience developing HMI and SCADA applications from scratch with emphasis on operator usability and alarm rationalization
Proficiency reading and producing electrical schematics, wiring diagrams, and P&IDs
Experience with industrial fieldbus and communication protocols (EtherCAT, Modbus TCP, OPC-UA, or equivalent)
Familiarity with NEC, NFPA 79, and UL 508A for industrial control panel design
Strong first-principles analytical and troubleshooting skills, able to debug complex system interactions across mechanical, electrical, and software domains
Highly self-motivated with demonstrated ability to drive tasks to completion with minimal supervision in a fast-paced startup environment
Preferred Qualifications:
Experience with ORC, geothermal, Rankine-cycle, or other power generation systems
Experience with VFD-driven motor systems including tuning, commissioning, and integration with PLC control loops
Familiarity with IEC 61511 safety instrumented systems and SIL classification
Experience with data historian platforms and process data infrastructure
Python experience for data acquisition, analysis, or PLC/SCADA integration
Experience with AutoCAD Electrical or EPLAN for controls documentation
Exposure to API 670 machinery protection systems
Experience supporting hardware bring-up, FAT, SAT, and commissioning in field environments
NFPA 70E electrical safety certification
Compensation:
Base salary ranges from $140-200k per annum
Equity options
100% company-covered Platinum or HD/HSA (with company contribution) medical
100% company-covered dental and vision
Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
401k retirement options
Daily catered lunch
Free EV charging
Several annual social and team building outings
Actual base salary offered will be determined by: experience, skills, and work location. This range is for base salary, our total compensation includes equity and benefits. We welcome you to apply even if your expectations are outside our listed range.
Equal Opportunity
Critical Energy is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.
Critical Energy is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities in our job application procedures and throughout employment. If you need assistance or any accommodation, please let us know.
Recruiting Agenices
Critical Energy does not accept unsolicited resumes from recruiters or employment agencies without a fully executed recruitment agreement in place. In the absence of such agreement, Critical Energy reserves the right to pursue and hire any candidates without an obligation to pay fees. Agencies are requested not to contact Critical Energy hiring managers or employees regarding recruiting services.