What are the responsibilities and job description for the Platform Engineer - Manufacturing position at Costco?
Costco IT is responsible for the technical future of Costco Wholesale, the third largest retailer in the world with wholesale operations in fourteen countries. Despite our size and explosive international expansion, we continue to provide a family, employee centric atmosphere in which our employees thrive and succeed.
This is an environment unlike anything in the high-tech world and the secret of Costco’s success is its culture. The value Costco puts on its employees is well documented in articles from a variety of publishers including Bloomberg and Forbes. Our employees and our members come FIRST. Costco is well known for its generosity and community service and has won many awards for its philanthropy. The company joins with its employees to take an active role in volunteering by sponsoring many opportunities to help others.
Come join the Costco Wholesale IT family. Costco IT is a dynamic, fast-paced environment, working through exciting transformation efforts. We are building the next generation retail environment where you will be surrounded by dedicated and highly professional employees.
Platform Engineers translate high level platform design into low level technical design and are responsible for implementing, administering, supporting and patching their corresponding platforms. Platform Engineers work closely with Solution Architects to enable the capabilities defined on roadmaps and blueprints supporting platform programs and initiatives. Platform Engineers are well versed in modern data, infrastructure and integration platforms, industry/technology best practices and actively work on improving the reliability and scalability of infrastructure.
If you want to be a part of one of the worldwide BEST companies “to work for”, simply apply and let your career be reimagined.
ROLE
● Oversees control and monitoring of industrial machinery in a manufacturing environment.
● Manages maintenance and operation of various HMI and PLC systems; robotics, conveyor and manufacturing elements.
● Performs networking and firewalling of various components, systems, and segments to optimize and protect critical operations.
● Oversees enforcement of NEC, OSHA, and ISO safety standards.
● Manages proactive scanning, and vulnerability mitigation of OT system components working in collaboration with IT operators (infosec, networking, compliance, etc.).
● Debugs PLC code, emphasizing generating organized, structured, documented, maintainable, and reusable code for manufacturing applications.
● Updates, modifies, and continuously improves existing controls systems including ladder logic programs, relay logic, electrical distribution, motor controls and operator interface. Leads the development and programming of the automation controller settings and HMI screens.
● Understands and able to work with relays, contacts, transformers, motor starters, sensors, switches, etc.
● Deploys automated processes and equipment into production.
● Works closely with Operations, Maintenance, and Technical Service team members by providing control system optimization, troubleshooting, and technical support.
● Understands common OT communications protocols such as Ethernet, ControlNet, and MODBUS.
● Stays up to date on the latest in control system technologies, applying new tools and techniques to keep our operations running efficiently.
● Reduces repeat downtime issues on systems and assist operators with troubleshooting equipment issues.
● Assesses technical components, translates high level design into low level technical design and executes updates based on SLAs.
● Manages the platform on an ongoing basis while performing typical run functions like monitoring, patching and support.
● Leads and conducts code reviews, design reviews, testing, and debugging activities at the application level.
● Develops and instruments monitoring dashboards depicting platform health and performance.
● Performs analysis on existing platform components to identify improvements to software development processes.
● Remediates platform issues and bottlenecks impacting software development activities.
● Participates in the creation of documentation and artifacts used to describe the mechanisms used for deployment, monitoring and maintenance.
● Performs coding tests to validate hardware design correctness, and creates software regression tests to ensure its reliability.
● Plans and implements arrangements for Disaster Recovery and conducts related testing of recovery procedures.
● Delivers against business objectives by effectively managing and partnering with technology vendors.
● Conducts research and makes recommendations on standards, products, and services.
● Authors and executes test cases related to supporting the implementation of platform development work.
● Ensures application and infrastructure architectural solutions are stable, secure, and compliant with company standards and practices as well as regulatory requirements.
● Implements and maintains system configurations and baselines to support secure application development software control best practices and standards.
● Implements service monitoring across all platforms to ensure continuous availability and operational continuity of critical systems.
● Evaluates and documents all operating systems according to required standards.
REQUIRED
● 5 years of experience in the electrical controls/automation field or Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering.
● Knowledge of electrical safety procedures.
● Basic understanding of manufacturing plant mechanical systems and operations. (steam, pneumatics, refrigeration, hydraulics, production processes, etc.).
● Proficient in interpreting electrical, network, pneumatic, and hydraulic diagrams.
● Experience designing electrical controls systems, following NEC, ISO, and OSHA codes and standards.
● Proficient in developing electrical schematics and control panel layouts using AutoCAD.
● Robotics programming, debugging, and troubleshooting.
● HMI application development, DVI or other LMS systems.
● Knowledge of industrial networks, virtual machines, thin clients, cybersecurity.
● Hands-on experience in designing, developing, implementing, and supporting PLC-based control systems.
● Understanding of control systems and software development life-cycle, including coding standards, code reviews, source control management, build processes, testing, and operations experience.
● Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including excellent customer service skills. Ability to present complex ideas and designs to a variety of technical or non-technical stakeholders and all levels of management.
● Demonstrates strong organizational qualities; meticulous and detail oriented.
● Positive attitude with good interpersonal skills, a team player; able to work cooperatively with others, sharing ideas and collaborating to obtain team goals.
● Ability to adjust positively to change in direction or assignments; ability to work in a fast paced and dynamic team environment.
● Optical experience and DVI or other LMS systems.
● Able to work well under stress and handle crisis situations professionally while engaging all levels of the Costco organization.
● Good problem solving, analytical, and troubleshooting skills.
● Extremely responsive with a strong sense of urgency.
● Responsible, conscientious, self-motivated, and able to work with limited supervision.
● Scheduling flexibility to meet the needs of the business, including evenings, weekends, and 24x7 on-call responsibilities as needed.
Recommended
● Experience programming Allen Bradley PLCs.
● Experience programming Allen Bradley PowerFlex.
● Experience programming Allen Bradley PanelView HMIs.
● Experience with industrial data and control interfaces, preferably OPC and OPC-UA.
● Experience programming with C#, Python and SQL.
● Experience with DVI LMS system
● Proficient in Google Workspace applications, including Sheets, Docs, Slides, and Gmail.
Required Documents
● Cover Letter
● Resume
California applicants, please click here to review the Costco Applicant Privacy Notice.
Pay Ranges:
Level 1 - $85,000 - $110,000
Level 2 - $105,000 - $135,000
Level 3 - $130,000 - $160,000
We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off, health benefits - medical/dental/vision/hearing aid/pharmacy/behavioral health/employee assistance, health care reimbursement account, dependent care assistance plan, short-term disability and long-term disability insurance, AD&D insurance, life insurance, 401(k), stock purchase plan to eligible employees.
Costco is committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace. Costco is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard of race, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, protected veteran status, disability, age, or any other legally protected status. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or the recruiting process, please send a request to IT-Recruiting@costco.com
If hired, you will be required to provide proof of authorization to work in the United States. Applicants and employees for this position will not be sponsored for work authorization, including, but not limited to H1-B visas.
Salary : $110,000 - $160,000
