Engineering Manager, Controls & Industrial Automation

Company Description Nordion, a Sotera Health company, is a global leader in Cobalt-60 and gamma technologies used for sterilization, irradiation, and cancer treatment across medical, pharmaceutical, food safety, and advanced materials industries. For 80 years, Nordion has supplied safe, high-quality products that support customers in over 40 countries. The company’s core purpose is to improve the health and well-being of people worldwide through reliable, innovative radiation technologies. Nordion is committed to safe and responsible operations that respect the environment and prioritize the health of employees, customers, and the communities where it operates.

Role Description

Nordion is seeking an Engineering Manager, Controls & Industrial Automation, who will provide strategic leadership and oversight for the electrical, control, and industrial automation systems that support production irradiator facilities. This role is accountable for ensuring that all control and automation systems operate safely, reliably, and in full compliance with regulatory and organizational standards. The Controls & Industrial Automation Engineering Manager is a working manager role and will guide a team of engineers and specialists, setting priorities, managing resources, and driving continuous improvement across system design, development, implementation, and lifecycle support.

Note: This is a hardware- and systems-focused controls and industrial automation engineering role (PLCs, SCADA, and automation platforms) - it is not a software development position, and candidates from a pure software engineering background will not be considered.

Key Responsibilities

This position is a leadership role working closely with the other Engineering and Design teams, responsible for building team capability, establishing processes, coordinating cross‑functional efforts, and ensuring that projects are executed effectively. The role requires strong understanding of safety, PLC control, SCADA systems, and system integration. Manager responsibilities include staffing, performance management, employee development and engagement, and succession planning.

Provide people leadership to both internal and external development teams

Manage external vendors, including contract management, external resources, and budgets

Build and develop the Controls, Electrical, and Industrial Automation Engineering team, by establishing structure, talent strategy, performance expectations, and long‑term capability growth within Nordion

Drive service revenue to meet business objectives, develop new growth opportunities, and provide plans to meet those growth opportunities

Engage with customers to define the long‑term Controls and Industrial Automation Systems Roadmap, ensuring alignment with business needs, operational goals, and our innovation direction with customers to define the long‑term Controls System Roadmap, ensuring alignment with business needs, operational goals, and our innovation direction.

Partner with the Product Manager and Engineering leadership to shape product business cases and guide the innovation roadmap to support Nordion’s strategic objectives.

Champion industrial automation initiatives that improve process efficiency, reliability, and safety across facilities

Ensure projects are delivered on time, on budget, and successfully

Qualifications

Engineering degree, with P.Eng designation

Management experience: minimum 3 years managing Technicians and Controls Engineers (people management)

Technical knowledge: at least 10 years combined experience post-graduation in controls engineering

Leadership: at least 8 years of experience (combination of people, project, and indirect supervision)

Skills and Competencies

• Experience with Allen Bradley/Rockwell PLCs (working/intermediate level)
• Experience with Aveva InTouch (working/intermediate level)
• Experience with industrial automation platforms and system integration
• Knowledge about virtual machines, networking, and cybersecurity
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Strong organizational and time management skills
• Project management & budgeting skills
• Presentation skills
• Coaching and development skills
• Experience working in a regulated environment (preferred)
• Problem-solving and decision-making abilities under pressure

Additional Requirements

This role includes occasional overtime to meet project requirements

Travel requirements (10-60 days international travel requiring valid Canadian passport)

Training Required

Must complete all required training and certification as a Nuclear Energy Worker.