Principal Controls Engineer Jobs
Principal Controls Engineer jobs are open across industrial automation, oil and gas, power generation, and advanced manufacturing, from mid-level to principal and staff engineer, with specializations in PLC programming, distributed control systems, and SCADA. See the openings below and apply to the ones that match your experience.
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Showing 5 of 83+ Principal Controls Engineer jobs
About the Role
Own the controls and estimation architecture for a precision laser beam director within a defense technology team. You will take algorithms from modeling and simulation through embedded hardware and field testing, helping deliver accurate tracking against dynamic targets.
What You'll Do
Design the control architecture for coarse gimbals and fine steering mirrors, including bandwidth allocation, multi-rate design, and stage handoffs.
Develop estimators that fuse radar, EO/IR, and inertial data into predicted aimpoints, with latency compensation.
Implement line-of-sight stabilization and jitter rejection using inertial stabilization, accelerometer feedforward, and adaptive filtering.
Build and manage pointing error budgets across jitter, bias, latency, and atmospheric effects, then validate precision against moving targets in the field.
Model plants and identify system dynamics in time and frequency domains, validating models through hardware-in-the-loop testing.
Analyze robustness, stability margins, sensitivity, and performance under disturbances and parameter variation.
Integrate fire-control handoffs, engagement sequencing, dwell maintenance, and safety interlocks with partner engineering teams.
Move algorithms from simulation to embedded hardware, supporting kHz-rate control loops and reviewing controls and sensor integration.
Serve as a technical anchor and mentor through hands-on engineering contributions.
What We're Looking For
10 or more years closing loops on precision pointing, tracking, or stabilization systems, including fielded systems with measured performance.
PhD-level depth in control theory and estimation, or a master's degree with a research-grade record of applying control theory to fielded hardware.
Strong background in robust control, including H-infinity, mu-synthesis, and LQG, and estimation methods such as Kalman variants, IMM, and nonlinear observers.
Hands-on experience with microradian-class pointing systems, such as beam directors, fine steering mirrors, gimbaled sensors, laser communication terminals, telescopes, spacecraft, or comparable precision mechatronics.
Experience with C or C++ control loops on embedded or RTOS platforms, multi-rate and sampled-data design, and real-time hardware-in-the-loop validation.
Proven system identification and plant modeling experience with real structural dynamics.
MATLAB/Simulink, C/C++, Python, RTOS, Kalman filtering, or adaptive control experience is relevant.
Defense or high-energy laser experience, adaptive optics, atmospheric propagation modeling, publications or patents, and ability to obtain a security clearance are additional assets.
Compensation & Benefits
Base salary: $250,000 to $315,000 USD annually. Equity and visa sponsorship details were not provided.
Location
On-site in Los Lunas, New Mexico, United States.
Compensation Range: $250K - $315K
Principal Controls Engineer Jobs by Experience Level
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Find JobsPrincipal Controls Engineer Job Market
Who's Hiring
- Raytheon10
- Northrop Grumman5
- McDermott3
- Valar Atomics3
- Oshkosh Corporation3
Top Industries Hiring
- Consulting & Professional Services
- Manufacturing
- Consumer Goods
- Food & Beverage
- Construction & Real Estate
What Employers Look For
The qualifications that appear most often in principal controls engineer jobs.
- Bachelor's degree in electrical, chemical, or mechanical engineering required
- Extensive experience programming Allen-Bradley, Siemens, or Honeywell control systems
- Proficiency in SCADA platforms such as iFIX, Wonderware, or Ignition
- Familiarity with ISA-5.1, IEC 61511, and NFPA 72 standards
- Professional Engineer license or ISA Certified Automation Professional certification preferred
- Demonstrated ability to lead multidisciplinary engineering teams on capital projects
Tips for Your Principal Controls Engineer Job Search
Tailor your resume to control system platforms
Hiring managers scan for the exact platforms you've programmed, so name every DCS, PLC, and SCADA environment you've configured in a dedicated skills section. Vague entries like 'industrial controls' get filtered out before a human reads your resume.
Lead with safety instrumented systems experience
Many principal controls engineer postings require SIS design or functional safety knowledge, yet candidates bury it. If you've worked to IEC 61511 or hold a TÜV FSEng certification, put it near the top of your resume where it can't be missed.
Apply early to roles that fit
Migrate Mate lists principal controls engineer openings from across the United States in one place, so you can find roles that match and apply directly to each listing.
Filter openings by commissioning scope
Job descriptions that mention FAT, SAT, or site commissioning signal hands-on field roles with travel expectations. If you prefer office-based engineering work, look for postings centered on design, standards development, or project engineering instead.
Prepare a portfolio of control system architectures
Bring one or two sanitized P&IDs, loop diagrams, or cause-and-effect matrices to interviews. Demonstrating that you can read and author instrument engineering deliverables is what separates principal-level candidates from senior engineers during technical screens.
Negotiate scope, not just compensation
At the principal level, employers often negotiate project ownership, lab budget, or technology selection authority alongside pay. If the role involves leading a controls standard or owning a migration project, ask explicitly which decisions are yours versus shared with the systems integrator.
Principal Controls Engineer Jobs: Frequently Asked Questions
Which companies are hiring the most principal controls engineers?
Raytheon, Northrop Grumman, and McDermott are hiring the most principal controls engineers right now, with openings concentrated in Texas, California, and Ohio, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. Demand is especially strong in energy, chemical processing, and advanced manufacturing sectors.
How many principal controls engineer jobs are remote?
About 57% of principal controls engineer openings are fully remote or hybrid as of November 2026, though fully remote roles are less common than in software-focused fields. Controls engineering work that is primarily standards development, documentation, or systems architecture tends to offer the most remote flexibility, while commissioning and site-support roles almost always require on-site presence.
How do you become a principal controls engineer?
Start with a bachelor's degree in electrical, chemical, or mechanical engineering, then build hands-on experience with PLCs, DCS platforms, and SCADA systems across progressively complex projects. Earning credentials such as a Professional Engineer license or the ISA Certified Automation Professional certification signals readiness for a principal role. Demonstrated leadership on capital projects and ownership of engineering standards typically round out the path to principal-level titles.
Can you get hired as a principal controls engineer with limited experience?
Moving directly into a principal controls engineer role with limited experience is rare because the title signals both deep technical expertise and leadership responsibility. A realistic path is to enter as a controls engineer, specialize in a high-demand platform like DCS or safety instrumented systems, and take ownership of increasingly complex projects. Some employers use principal as a technical track rather than a management track, which can accelerate the timeline for engineers with strong platform expertise.
What does the principal controls engineer interview process look like?
Expect a recruiter screen followed by a technical phone interview covering control system architecture, instrumentation standards, and safety system design. On-site or final-round interviews typically include a whiteboard session where you walk through a control loop or cause-and-effect matrix, plus conversations with project engineers and hiring managers about how you've led multidisciplinary teams. Some employers ask for a portfolio review or a take-home design exercise focused on a specific process area.
Where can I find and apply to principal controls engineer jobs?
You can find and apply to principal controls engineer jobs on Migrate Mate, which lists current openings from companies across the United States. Search for roles that match your platform experience and project background, then apply directly to each listing that fits your skills and location preferences.
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