Automate America is the United States marketplace for industrial controls engineering contracts, connecting thousands of verified automation professionals — PLC programmers, HMI developers, drives and motion specialists, instrumentation engineers, and panel designers — with manufacturing plants, system integrators, OEMs, and industrial construction companies. Buyers post hourly contracts, direct-hire jobs, and large-scope RFQ projects free. The controls scope spans PLC programming (Allen-Bradley, Siemens, Mitsubishi, Omron, B&R), HMI design (FactoryTalk View ME / SE, WinCC, Ignition Vision, Citect, iFIX), VFD programming (PowerFlex, Sinamics, Yaskawa, Lenze, ABB), servo programming (Kinetix, Sinamics S, Yaskawa Sigma, Beckhoff), instrumentation (Rosemount, Endress+Hauser, Yokogawa, Krohne), industrial networking (EtherNet/IP, PROFINET, Modbus TCP/RTU, EtherCAT, DeviceNet), and functional safety (SIL-rated PLC programming, TÜV Rheinland and TÜV SÜD certifications, ISA-84 process safety). Panel-side coverage includes UL 508A panel design and build, AutoCAD Electrical, EPLAN, SolidWorks Electrical, NFPA 79, and NEC compliance. Industries served include automotive, pharmaceutical, food and beverage, energy, oil and gas, water and wastewater, packaging, semiconductor, aerospace, defense, chemical processing, mining, and pulp and paper. Buyers staffing full commissioning teams post a single multi-professional contract that names PLC, HMI, panel, and instrumentation roles as separate seats inside one posting.
Full-stack controls, one platform.
PLC programmers, HMI developers, drives and motion specialists, instrumentation engineers, panel designers — five disciplines on one platform, one contract, one award flow.
Functional safety is searchable.
SIL-2 / SIL-3 PLC programming, TÜV Rheinland and TÜV SÜD certifications, ISA-84 process safety — tagged at the profile level. Hazardous-area, press, and pharmaceutical-fill buyers filter on what their plant actually requires.
Schematics and panels, beyond a PLC.
AutoCAD Electrical, EPLAN, SolidWorks Electrical, UL 508A build, NFPA 79 / NEC compliance, field commissioning. Panel design is a first-class skill path — not a footnote on a programmer profile.
Why companies post here
One contract, five disciplines. A complete commissioning team — PLC programmer, HMI developer, drives and motion specialist, instrumentation engineer, panel designer — fits inside one multi-professional contract. Each role is staffed independently as qualified responses come in. No five separate recruiting cycles. No five separate invoices.
Same-day visibility on the qualified pool. Post the contract this morning. The platform routes it to the matching engineers immediately. Qualified profiles surface inside the first hour on a competitive rate. Buyers see the published rate, completed projects, certifications, and peer reviews before any conversation starts.
Hardware and platform precision. Allen-Bradley, Siemens, Mitsubishi, Omron, B&R, and Bosch Rexroth each have their own skill path. So do PowerFlex, Sinamics, Kinetix, and Yaskawa Sigma. Buyers filter to the exact stack their plant standardizes on — not "industrial automation" as a generic resume bullet.
Hourly or direct-hire — your call. The same controls engineer is often open to both an hourly contract for the immediate commissioning work and a direct-hire conversation for the staff role on the line. Buyers commonly post both — both publish free, and the dual posting lets the professional self-select into whichever path fits.
Public peer reviews, on every profile. Profiles surface verified peer reviews from prior contracts, with star ratings and the reviewer's role visible — not a curated case-study deck. Buyers see the actual feedback, the actual integrators, and the actual project history before they reach out.
Ready to post?
Posting is free. You'll be on the existing Automate America platform — same database, thousands of verified professionals.
Can I post a complete commissioning team in one contract?
Yes. A multi-professional contract names PLC programmer, HMI developer, panel technician, and instrumentation engineer as separate roles inside one posting. Each professional applies to the role that matches them. The buyer awards each role independently as the qualified responses come in — usually inside the first day on a competitive rate.
Do you have functional-safety qualified controls engineers?
Yes. Functional safety is a tagged specialty. SIL-2 and SIL-3 PLC programming, TÜV Rheinland and TÜV SÜD certifications, ISA-84 process safety, and HAZOP review experience are all searchable. Common postings combine safety-rated PLC programming with hazard-and-operability review participation on the same contract.
What about VFD, servo, and motion programming?
PowerFlex, Sinamics, Yaskawa, Lenze, and ABB drives are tagged independently. Servo programming covers Kinetix, Sinamics S, Yaskawa Sigma, and Beckhoff. Buyers commonly post combined PLC-plus-drive scopes when the line standardizes on a vendor pair (Allen-Bradley PLC plus Kinetix servo, Siemens PLC plus Sinamics).
How do I post a panel-design contract?
Panel design is a first-class skill path covering schematic design (AutoCAD Electrical, EPLAN, SolidWorks Electrical), UL 508A panel build, NFPA 79 and NEC compliance, and field commissioning. Buyers can post a panel-only contract, bundle it with PLC programming, or wrap it into a complete commissioning team.
Do profiles include the integrators the engineer has worked with?
Yes. Most senior profiles list the system integrators the engineer has subcontracted with. Buyers who already run with a specific integrator can filter for contractors who know that integrator's standards — same drawings, same panel conventions, same commissioning checklists.
Will I get flooded with unqualified applicants?
No. Profiles surface rate, stack experience, and certifications up front. Most buyers see a small, well-targeted set of responses rather than a flood — the published rate filters the pool by itself, and the stack-specific skill paths route the posting to the engineers who actually run that platform.
How does this compare to a staffing agency?
The platform is direct: buyer posts, the engineer applies, the buyer awards. No recruiter intermediating the rate. No screening tax stacked on top of the engineer's pay. Posting is free; the optional managed-service layer (W-2 payroll, certificates of insurance, contractor admin) is opt-in for buyers who want to outsource the back-office side, and direct posting is the default.
Where is the strongest geographic coverage?
Michigan leads on automotive-base controls. Texas leads on energy and petrochemical. California leads on food, beverage, and aerospace. Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Illinois follow on heavy manufacturing. All 50 states have coverage; the volume just concentrates around where the plants are.