Senior Principal Engineer – Automation Engineering, Laboratory and Analytical Equipment

Eli Lilly and Company

Senior Principal Engineer providing automation support for operating areas and capital projects in Pharmaceutical manufacturing. Mentoring teams and ensuring compliance with Lilly quality standards.

Posted 4/26/2026full-timeIndianapolis • 🇺🇸 United StatesSenior💰 $114,000 - $167,200 per yearWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Provide automation support for one or more operating areas across site and/or for capital projects.
Mentor process control team, including design, controls philosophy, implementation and commissioning.
Develop and implement the Automation Engineering Project Plan.
Technically lead and oversee the work of Site Area leads and System Integrator including Functional Requirements, Design Specifications, DCS Application Software, Test Specifications.
Lead/ Participate in design reviews and DeltaV application software reviews.
Lead a team of automation engineers supporting commissioning.
Provide periodic status updates to Project Management.
Devising functional requirements and process control strategies for control systems in collaboration with Process Engineering.
DCS software design, coding/ configuration and testing (sequence logic, graphics, batch software etc.).
Implementing and supporting electronic systems (such as plant historians) used to capture process automation related production data.
Maintain the validated state of the site control systems in line with Lilly quality standards including the development and execution of validation strategies and associated documentation.
Automation support for capital projects including new product introductions.
Promoting the use of automation to improve productivity, operational efficiency and compliance.

Requirements

What you’ll need

Minimum B.S. in Engineering and experience in Automation Engineering, preferably in major Pharmaceutical manufacturing handling Laboratory and Analytical systems and equipment, and Systems Integration and 8+ years working experience in Biopharma engineering, operations, or manufacturing.
Experience in commissioning, qualifying and supporting Analytical equipment such as cell counters, environmental testing, filter testing, etc.
Qualified applicants must be authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis. Lilly will not provide support for or sponsor work authorization or visas for this role, including but not limited to F-1 CPT, F-1 OPT, F-1 STEM OPT, J-1, H-1B, TN, O-1, E-3, H-1B1, or L-1.
Experience in design, development, commissioning and qualification of highly automated greenfield manufacturing sites utilizing SCADA, DCS, MES, LIMS and Site Historian systems (DeltaV, Rockwell, Syncade, LabVantage, OSI PI).
Experience in facilitating and driving decision-making at an organizational level.

Benefits

Comp & perks

eligibility to participate in a company-sponsored 401(k)
pension
vacation benefits
eligibility for medical, dental, vision and prescription drug benefits
flexible benefits (e.g., healthcare and/or dependent day care flexible spending accounts)
life insurance and death benefits
certain time off and leave of absence benefits
well-being benefits (e.g., employee assistance program, fitness benefits, and employee clubs and activities)

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

automation engineeringDCS application softwaredesign specificationsfunctional requirementscodingconfigurationtestingcommissioningqualificationprocess control strategies

Soft Skills

mentoringleadershipcommunicationcollaborationorganizational decision-making

Certifications

B.S. in Engineering