Electrical and Automation Engineer at Dreyer's Grand Ice Cream in Laurel, MD

Job description

• Are you looking to catapult your career by driving high-impact transformation with household brands? Do you crave an entrepreneurial, fast paced, and engaging growth assignment working with incredible people from across the globe?
• At Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream, we are excited to start a new chapter of accelerated growth as part of Froneri – a global pure-play ice cream leader. Come help us transform DGIC into the #1 ice cream brand! With nearly 100 years of winning experience in the U.S, a robust portfolio of powerhouse brands that consumers know and love such as Häagen-Dazs, Drumstick, Dreyer’s & Edy’s, Skinny Cow and Outshine, and the backing and coaching of European-based ice cream experts, we know we have the winning recipe.
• Headquartered in Walnut Creek, the Bay Area’s hub for up-and-coming food trends, our teams across our offices and factories are raising the bar on all things ice cream. We are investing in significant capital expansions to grow our Operations and Supply Chain and are transforming how we work at every level to become agile, accelerate growth and elevate our quality. With a renewed focus on frozen treats, our tight-knit team of ambitious innovators are fully immersed in the business and encouraged to flex and make decisions quickly. We are committed to pursuing every great idea and delivering the best ice cream experience for our consumers, when and where they want it.
• Unleash your potential at Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream and discover what a sweet career we have in store for you.
• The Electrical and Automation Engineer is responsible for ensuring reliable, efficient, and safe operation of all electrical and control systems across the factory facility. This role leads automation initiatives, troubleshooting, preventive maintenance, and continuous improvement projects to optimize production performance, product quality, and energy efficiency.

Responsibilities

• Electrical Systems & Maintenance
• Perform preventive and corrective maintenance on electrical systems, motors, drives, and control panels.
• Diagnose and repair electrical faults, power distribution, PLCs, and instrumentation systems.
• Maintain and update electrical drawings, schematics, and documentation.
• Ensure compliance with electrical codes, safety standards, and food manufacturing regulations.
• Automation & Controls
• Program, modify, and troubleshoot PLCs (Allen-Bradley, Siemens, or similar), HMIs, and SCADA systems.
• Support automation of production lines such as mix plant, freezer, filler, and packaging systems.
• Develop and implement control logic to improve efficiency, reduce waste, and ensure consistent product quality.
• Collaborate with process engineers and operators to resolve automation issues and implement process improvements.
• Project Management & Continuous Improvement
• Lead or support electrical and automation projects, including upgrades, new line installations, and equipment integration.
• Work with vendors and contractors to specify, design, and commission automation solutions.
• Participate in continuous improvement and reliability programs (TPM, Kaizen, Lean, Six Sigma).
• Optimize energy usage and sustainability performance through automation and system upgrades.
• Compliance & Safety
• Ensure adherence to food safety (HACCP, GMP) and occupational safety regulations (OSHA, NFPA).
• Conduct risk assessments, lockout/tagout (LOTO) audits, and equipment safety validations.
• Maintenance Tasks
• Ensure the maintenance plan has purpose, that it evolves to allow the maximum time available for production, no strip and rebuild for the sake of it! Only replace worn/ broken parts – condition based rather than planned based maintenance
• Drive the tasks through required work from observations and data, not just theoretical plans
• Full evaluation of, cost, availability and requirement to decide if run to failure or replace
• Maintenance always follows production, not the other way around.
• Ensure that maintenance tasks adhere to company’s food safety polices at all times.
• Ensure all working practices comply with company rules and procedures in order that you and any other persons using the area of work can do so safely.
• Always keep full and up to date records of all equipment to ensure traceability
• Budget
• Treat all spends as if they are your own
• To manage, monitor and control costs to ensure that site costs are within budgeted requirements
• Represent The Froneri Way of working through the behaviors and characteristics in our Operating Model and Core Values
• Down time
• Balance between planned & reactive
• Zero rejections for product food safety and quality issues due machinery
• Waste driven by poor equipment performance
• Daily, weekly, monthly production targets are fully met
• Costs are maintained at/below budgeted levels
• Direct Team to receive a performance review
• Training and development plans in place for all team, producing measurable business benefits
• Quality and improvement initiatives being implemented
• Reduction in accidents and incidents on a YOY basis
• An improving trend on the submitted weekly KPI’s
• Projects delivered on time within budget
• Drive actions from quality benchmarking
• All site process and equipment.
• Break down interventions, maintenance and improvements
• Production Targets
• Maintenance budget
• Health & Safety
• Team management
• Training and development of the team
• Impeccable hygiene standards always

Requirements

• Experience in electrical and automation engineering, including PLCs, HMIs, SCADA systems, and control systems.
• Experience with preventive and corrective maintenance on electrical systems, motors, drives, and control panels.
• Experience in diagnosing and repairing electrical faults, power distribution, PLCs, and instrumentation systems.
• Experience in programming, modifying, and troubleshooting PLCs (Allen-Bradley, Siemens, or similar), HMIs, and SCADA systems.
• Experience in leading or supporting electrical and automation projects, including upgrades, new line installations, and equipment integration.
• Experience in working with vendors and contractors to specify, design, and commission automation solutions.
• Experience in participating in continuous improvement and reliability programs (TPM, Kaizen, Lean, Six Sigma).
• Experience in ensuring compliance with electrical codes, safety standards, and food manufacturing regulations.
• Experience in conducting risk assessments, lockout/tagout (LOTO) audits, and equipment safety validations.
• Experience in maintaining and updating electrical drawings, schematics, and documentation.

Skills

Required

• HMI and SCADA systems
• Preventive and corrective maintenance
• Control systems
• Power distribution
• Instrumentation
• Electrical drawings and schematics
• Food safety regulations (HACCP, GMP)
• Project management
• Cost management and budgeting
• Team management and training
• Use of cold-protective PPE

Benefits

• We offer a comprehensive group benefits package including medical, dental, vision, life, paid time off, paid holidays, paid parental leave, 401K plan with employer match and annual contribution available.
• The pay scale for this role considers the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs. The pay scale disclosed below has not been adjusted for the applicable geographic differential associated with the location at which the position may be filled. At Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their role, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. The pay range for prospective employees in this role is between $98,000 and $117,000 per year.