Automation engineer Jobs in Lancaster, CA

Senior Manager Automation Sustenance

Are you ready to take the next step in your career? Join us for an exciting opportunity at Albertsons Companies, where innovation and customer service go hand-in-hand!

At Albertsons Companies, we are looking for someone who's not just seeking a job, but someone who wants to make an impact. In this role, you'll have the opportunity to lead, innovate, and contribute to the growth of a company that values great service and lasting customer relationships. This position offers the chance to work in a fast-paced, dynamic environment that's constantly evolving.

The Senior Manager will be responsible for facilitating and overseeing the priorities associated with sustained, reliable operation of existing automation systems within the Albertsons Supply Chain network.

This role is strategic in naturefocused on network-level performance monitoring, governance, and disciplined reinvestment to extend the useful life of existing systems. The Senior Manager will drive continuity by defining sustainment standards (reliability routines, troubleshooting playbooks, escalation paths, and governance cadences), coordinating with suppliers and distribution center operations, and using KPI/OEE reporting to identify systemic losses and risk drivers. The Senior Manager will own a multi-million-dollar annual automation sustainment CapEx budget, ensuring spend is aligned to uptime, utilization, safety, and continuity outcomes.

The Senior Manager will also develop and maintain a 35-year sustainment roadmap focused on lifecycle replacements and obsolescence mitigation, with emphasis on high-cost mechanical components and controls hardware; inputs such as spare-part obsolescence risk (owned by Maintenance) will inform where upgrades and replacements are prioritized to ensure longevity.

Main responsibilities include:

• Partner with the Director of Automation to define and execute an automation sustainment strategy that maximizes utilization, uptime, and continuity across the network.
• Drive an OEE culture by defining a consistent OEE methodology for automation systems, establishing a standard reporting cadence using existing data, and enabling sites to interpret losses and prioritize actions.
• Lead performance governance using KPIs (availability, throughput, utilization, OEE loss categories, MTBF/MTTR, and maintenance/automation backlog) to identify chronic losses, diagnose root causes, and drive corrective actions with site teams and suppliers.
• Coordinate incident and problem management for automation systems, ensuring rapid restoration, disciplined follow-up (RCA/Corrective Action), and prevention of recurring failures.
• Own lifecycle sustainment programs, including systemic replacement and standardization of high-cost mechanical components and controls hardware, obsolescence risk mitigation, and coordinated deployment planning to minimize operational disruption; partner with Maintenance to incorporate spare-part obsolescence signals into upgrade prioritization.
• Own the multi-million-dollar annual automation sustainment CapEx budget, including forecasting, prioritization, spend governance, and tracking outcomes against availability, utilization, and risk metrics.

We are looking for candidates who possess the following:

• Bachelor's degree in industrial engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, or a related field. Master's degree is a plus.
• 5 plus years of experience sustaining/operating warehouse automation systems (e.g., conveyor/sortation, AS/RS, shuttle, robotics; common platforms/integrators include Dematic, Witron, Symbotic, and KNAPP), with demonstrated impact on uptime and utilization.
• Strong knowledge of reliability and maintenance practices (PM/PdM, root cause analysis, MTBF/MTTR), and experience building standard work and governance routines.
• Proven ability to lead cross-functional problem solving with operations, maintenance, engineering/automation, and vendors to restore service and prevent recurrence.
• Experience managing vendor performance and support models, including service levels, support response, and contract/commercial discussions.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to translate technical system health and risks into clear operational actions for non-technical audiences.
• Strong analytical skills and comfort using data to prioritize work, quantify losses, and track sustainment outcomes.
• Demonstrated ability to drive standardization and disciplined execution in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• Travel will be required for the role ~ 40% (variable)

We also provide a variety of benefits including:

• Competitive wages paid weekly
• Access to up to 50% of your earned wages before payday, via our partnership with Stream
• Associate discounts
• Health and financial well-being benefits for eligible associates (Medical, Dental, 401k and more!)
• Time off (vacation, holidays, sick pay). For eligibility requirements please visit myACI Benefits
• Leaders invested in your training, career growth and development
• An inclusive work environment with talented colleagues who reflect the communities we serve