Senior Principal Engineer - Automation Engineering – Process, Lab & Enterprise Systems Integration-Lilly Medicine Foundry
Eli Lilly and Company· startup· Pharmaceuticals· Aug 7, 2026 · 3mo agoPosted 81 days ago
US Lebanon IN
In office
Full-time
Principal
$66K–$172K
8+ years exp
Before you apply
Ghost Signal:
Open 81 days.
Job description
At Lilly, the work is demanding because patients are waiting. We unite caring with discovery to help make life better for people around the world, knowing that every decision, every detail, and every day matters. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, our over 50,000 employees around the globe take on complex challenges to discover and deliver life-changing medicines, strengthen how health is understood and managed, and support the communities we serve. This is hard, urgent, selfless work—but it’s work worth doing. If you’re driven by purpose and ready to bring your best to work that truly matters for patients, we invite you to join us.
At Lilly, we unite caring with discovery to make life better for people around the world. We are a global healthcare leader headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our employees around the world work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to our communities through philanthropy and volunteerism. We give our best effort to our work, and we put people first. We’re looking for people who are determined to make life better for people around the world.
Organization and Position Overview
Lilly recently announced a $4.5 billion investment to create the Lilly Medicine Foundry, a new center for advanced manufacturing and drug development. The first-ever facility of its kind, combining research and manufacturing in a single location, the Medicine Foundry will allow Lilly to further develop innovative solutions to optimize manufacturing processes and increase capacity for clinical trial medicines, while also reducing costs and environmental impact.
Responsibilities
The Senior Principal Engineer - Automation Engineering will work as a member of the Automation Engineering Department at Eli Lilly, Foundry. The engineer will provide automation support for one or more operating areas across site and/or for capital projects. Process Automation is core to delivering a right first time facility start up and continued support of ongoing manufacturing operations into the future.
The Engineer is also responsible for the productivity and mentorship of the employees with the purpose of ensuring that reliable and compliant control applications and systems are used in the manufacturing at Foundry. Additionally, the Engineer as a key technical expert with partners to influence and implement within the process control organization and across functional disciplines to support the process control technical agenda, business plan priorities, and compliance objectives.
In the project delivery phase and startup phase of the project (startup expected 2025 to 2029), automation engineering roles will be fluid and dynamic as we endeavor to support the project delivery, build a new organization, develop and implement the necessary systems and business processes required to support GMP operations, and build the site culture. This will require significant collaboration, creativity and resilience as the site grows to a full scale GMP manufacturing through start up.
The team s core focus it is split into the Foundry DeltaV- and Rockwell-controlled process PLC equipment serving the Lab and Admin building and the site s Laboratory analytical systems. The team provides administration and configuration support for the process PLC equipment serving the Lab/Admin building, the team manages the integration from analytical systems into them and handles recipe setup and maintenance.
Key Objectives/Deliverables:
Technical Leadership
Mentor process control team, including design, controls philosophy, implementation and commissioning
Process control work implementation and coordination
Develop and implement the Automation Engineering Project Plan.
Operational Excellence
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, attend equipment and software FATs
Own the site-wide administration strategy for Laboratory and Analytical equipment, including user access, data management and integration to PI and other repositories/DCS, and backup/restore; supervise third-party execution of analytical system implementation and set configuration standards
Partner with tech Lilly on Empower, LIMS (LabVantage), MES and ELN integration touchpoints and provide design input
Lead and mentor the Analytical Systems Support Engineers and Associate Engineer supporting this function
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.)
Automation Engineering including design, tuning and troubleshooting of control loops
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
Developing a network of corporate contacts and leveraging corporate expertise when needed
Organizational Capability
In coordination with automation and compliance consultants, set and reinforce standards for appropriate rigor in automation work products.
Demonstrated initiative, good planning and organizational skills, ability to prioritize tasks, commitment to task completion and timelines.
Possess a keen technical curiosity and has demonstrated strong problem-solving skills and a desire for continuous improvement
Demonstrated ability to influence peers and business partners
Good written and verbal communication skills for both technical and non-technical audiences
Knowledge of GMP, regulatory requirements, computer system validation
Basic Requirements:
Minimum B.S. in Engineering or Science and experience in Automation Engineering, preferably in major Pharmaceutical manufacturing handling Laboratory and Analytical systems and equipment, and Systems Integration and a minimum of 8 years working experience in Biopharma engineering, operations, or manufacturing.
Experience in commissioning, qualifying and supporting analytical and automation-controlled lab equipment such as cell counters, UHPLC/chromatography systems, mass spectrometers, single-use bioreactors, RX-10 lab reactor control systems, and Rockwell PLC-controlled autoclaves/parts washers.
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.
Additional Preferences:
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.
Other Information:
Current location Parkwood West-Indianapolis, IN.
Permanent location at the new Lilly Medicines Foundry in Lebanon, Indiana.
Lilly is an EEO/Affirmative Action Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, protected veteran status, disability or any other legally protected status.
#WeAreLilly
Lilly is dedicated to helping individuals with disabilities to actively engage in the workforce, ensuring equal opportunities when vying for positions. If you require accommodation to submit a resume for a position at Lilly, please complete the accommodation request form ( careers.lilly.com ) for further assistance. Please note this is for individuals to request an accommodation as part of the application process and any other correspondence will not receive a response.
Lilly is proud to be an EEO Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion, gender identity, sex, gender expression, sexual orientation, genetic information, ancestry, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or any other legally protected status.
Our employee resource groups (ERGs) offer strong support networks for their members and are open to all employees. Our current groups include: Africa, Middle East, Central Asia (AMECA), Black Employees at Lilly (BE Lilly), Chinese Culture Network (CCN), EnAble, Evolve, Lilly Indian Network (LIN), Organization of Latinx at Lilly (OLA), Pride (LGBTQ Allies), Veterans Leadership Network (VLN) and Women’s Initiative for Leading at Lilly (WILL).
Actual compensation will depend on a candidate’s education, experience, skills, and geographic location. The anticipated wage for this position is
$66,000 - $171,600
Full-time equivalent employees also will be eligible for a company bonus (depending, in part, on company and individual performance). In addition, Lilly offers a comprehensive benefit program to eligible employees, including 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; and well-being benefits (e.g., employee assistance program, fitness benefits, and employee clubs and activities).Lilly reserves the right to amend, modify, or terminate its compensation and benefit programs in its sole discretion and Lilly’s compensation practices and guidelines will apply regarding the details of any promotion or transfer of Lilly employees.
#WeAreLilly
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Benefits
Benefits detected in the listing.
Dental
Vision
401(K)