Automation Engineer

Automation Engineer

Do you love building software that makes real systems move, measure, react, and perform with purpose?

Are you searching for important work in software engineering, automation, and hardware-integrated systems?

Are you passionate about developing reliable tools, frameworks, interfaces, and workflows that help engineers and scientists move faster?

If so, we're looking for someone like you to join our team at APL.

We are seeking an Automation Engineer to help us develop automation, control, data acquisition, analysis, and user-facing software for advanced electromechanical systems, instrumentation, and test environments. As a member of our team, you'll contribute to software that connects hardware, sensors, actuators, devices, databases, user interfaces, and engineering workflows into reliable mission-focused systems. You will be joining a hardworking team of engineers and scientists who design, prototype, integrate, and test practical solutions for complex technical challenges. We are passionate about building software that is reusable, maintainable, and effective in real laboratory, manufacturing, and field-like environments. Our team values technical curiosity, clear communication, rapid iteration, thoughtful software architecture, and the ability to turn ambiguous needs into working tools.

As an Automation Engineer...

• Your primary responsibility will be to design, develop, integrate, and maintain software for automated systems, test stands, instrumentation platforms, engineering tools, and hardware-connected workflows.
• You will develop software that interfaces with electromechanical systems, sensors, actuators, microcontrollers, instruments, databases, and networked devices.
• You will design reusable software frameworks, libraries, and tools that support automation, test execution, data collection, reporting, and system integration.
• You will build user interfaces, dashboards, control panels, and engineering applications that help technical teams operate systems, visualize data, and make decisions.
• You will write clean, maintainable, well-documented code and contribute to software design practices that improve reliability, reuse, testability, and long-term support.
• You will integrate hardware and software across diverse communication protocols, including TCP/UDP, serial, USB, Ethernet, and other laboratory, industrial, or embedded interfaces.
• You will support hands-on integration and troubleshooting in laboratory, shop, and test environments, working directly with mechanical, electrical, embedded, and systems engineers.
• You will help automate repetitive workflows, improve engineering productivity, and explore the use of AI-enabled development tools to accelerate coding, testing, documentation, and analysis.
• You will collaborate with engineers, scientists, technicians, vendors, sponsors, and project leads to understand requirements, identify risks, communicate blockers, and deliver practical software solutions.

You meet our minimum qualifications for the job if you...

• Possess a BS in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Robotics, Mechatronics, Mechanical Engineering, or a related technical field.
• Have 3+ years of experience developing software for automation, robotics, instrumentation, test systems, data acquisition, engineering tools, web applications, user interfaces, or hardware-integrated systems.
• Are skilled in software development using languages such as Python, C++, C#, JavaScript, TypeScript, or similar programming languages.
• Have experience designing, implementing, testing, and maintaining software applications, libraries, scripts, services, or automation tools.
• Have experience working with Linux, Windows, Git, software configuration management, debugging tools, and modern development workflows.
• Have experience integrating software with hardware, instruments, sensors, embedded devices, databases, APIs, or network-connected systems.
• Are familiar with communication protocols such as TCP/UDP, serial, USB, Ethernet, REST APIs, or similar device and system interfaces.
• Are able to work with multidisciplinary teams and translate engineering needs into practical software requirements and working implementations.
• Are willing and able to work in laboratory, shop, and test environments, including standing or walking for extended periods and moving between buildings or work areas across campus as needed.
• Are a U.S. citizen.
• Are able to obtain an Interim level security clearance by your start date and can ultimately obtain a Secret level clearance. If selected, you will be subject to a government security clearance investigation and must meet the requirements for access to classified information. Eligibility requirements include U.S. citizenship.

You'll go above and beyond our minimum requirements if you...

• Possess an MS in computer science, software engineering, computer engineering, robotics, mechatronics, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, or a related technical field.
• Have experience developing automation frameworks, reusable test assets, continuous execution tools, reporting pipelines, or software platforms that help non-software specialists run complex workflows.
• Have experience with front-end, back-end, or full-stack development, including modern user interface frameworks, data visualization tools, APIs, databases, or web-based engineering applications.
• Have experience with software architecture, design patterns, code reviews, automated testing, CI/CD pipelines, DevOps practices, containerization, or deployment of maintainable software systems.
• Have experience developing software for robotic systems, motion-control systems, automated test stands, advanced manufacturing equipment, laboratory instrumentation, or hardware-in-the-loop environments.
• Have experience with data acquisition, signal processing, data analysis, automated reporting, or visualization of engineering test data.
• Have experience with embedded systems, microcontrollers, firmware-adjacent development, real-time systems, or edge computing.
• Have experience using AI-enabled development tools such as Codex, Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, or similar tools to improve software development, documentation, testing, or workflow automation.
• Are comfortable breaking down complex projects into organized deliverables, identifying technical risks early, and communicating blockers clearly to project leadership.
• Have experience mentoring other developers, establishing best practices, improving software quality, or helping multidisciplinary teams adopt better software workflows.
• Bring creativity, initiative, and sound engineering judgment to ambiguous technical problems.

Minimum Rate: $100,000 Annually

Maximum Rate: $245,000 Annually