Southern Water
Instrumentation, Control and Automation Technician/Engineer
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Instrumentation, Control and Automation Technician – Waste Water
Closing Date
2026-07-13
Contract Type: Permanent Hours: 38 Salary: £38,564.10 to £55,703.70 per annum (depending on skills/experience), plus overtime and on-call payments Location: Kent – Geographically based within location area (negotiable) with travel to multiple sites
Benefits
- Company van (for business use only) with fuel card
- Health care cash plan (upgradeable for family coverage)
- Competitive pension contributions
Full details available on [our careers page].
About This Role
Join our Wastewater Treatment Team, responsible for maintaining and enhancing Instrumentation, Control, and Automation (ICA) systems across multiple sites.
You’ll ensure compliance, reliability, and efficiency of control systems while driving continuous improvement.
We offer a monitored career path and training to help you develop in your area of choice. Apply even if you don’t meet all skillset requirements—we’ll start your learning journey with Southern Water.
If you have advanced skills, you’ll be matched to the higher salary band.
Responsibilities
- Maintenance & Fault Finding
- Proactive, reactive, and planned maintenance on equipment, including:
- Telemetry systems
- Instrumentation (flowmeters, level transmitters, pressure transducers, temperature probes)
- Analysers (dissolved oxygen, MLSS, turbidity)
- MCC/LVA (Motor Control Centres & Low Voltage Assemblies with PLC control)
- Control networks, PID controllers, dosing equipment, automation/computer control via PLCs/HMIs/SCADA.
- Proactive, reactive, and planned maintenance on equipment, including:
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System Improvements & Diagnostics
- Implement complex process improvements and troubleshoot faults across:
- Rockwell, Mitsubishi, and other package PLC systems.
- Perform PLC software control (backups and verification) and document change requests.
- Backup and modify HMI/SCADA systems.
- Implement complex process improvements and troubleshoot faults across:
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Network & Calibration Management
- Set up and maintain site control networks (Ethernet, DH+, Profibus, Profinet, RS232).
- Conduct planned maintenance/calibration to Southern Water standards.
- Calibrate wastewater equipment to HACCP & MCert standards.
- Respond to faults/alarms under guidance from the Regional Control Centre.
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Problem-Solving & Root Cause Analysis
- Investigate process/issues at wastewater plants.
- Gather evidence for Root Cause Analysis (RCA) and implement solutions.
- Train/develop team members.
Requirements
Essential
- NVQ 3 in Electrical or Electronic Engineering or a time-served apprenticeship.
- ONC/HNC in Instrumentation, Electronics, Control, or equivalent qualification.
- Excellent problem-solving & fault-finding skills.
- Experience in Instrumentation, Control, or Automation.
- Strong documentation skills for compliance reporting.
- Full, current UK driving licence.
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Desirable
- Experience in a process-based industry (e.g., water, petrochemical, electricity, manufacturing).
Progression Opportunities
Southern Water offers: ✔ Monitored career paths ✔ Training & development programmes
About Southern Water
Locally owned and reserved out of profits, Southern Water is transforming waste water services with £7.8bn investment (2025–2030).
We’re committed to diverse talent, to deliver exceptional water services sustainably.
At Southern Water, people aren’t just part of the team—they help define our future.
Equality & Adjustments
We welcome applicants of all backgrounds. If you require reasonable adjustments during recruitment, please let us know.
Pre-Employment Checks
Successful candidates must provide:
- UK eligibility to work and identity verification
- DBS check
- History verification (educational/work records for past 3 years)
- Security vetting for assigned clearance.
Failure to meet security standards may void an offer. Some roles require enhanced vetting.
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