ABB Posted October 22, 2026

Associate Project Engineer - Automation

Cary, North Carolina, United States of America FULL_TIME
Controls Engineering Associate

ABB is the source of truth for this posting and owns the application process. We surface normalized context and market comparison you won't find on the original listing.

About this opportunity

At ABB, we help industries run leaner and cleaner, and every person here makes that happen. You’ll be empowered to lead, supported to grow, and proud of the impact we create together. Join us and help run what runs the world.

This position reports to:

Engineering Manager

__

In this role, you will create or modify pre-engineered designs for equipment, systems, or installations by applying standard design concepts.

Part of the Engineering team in Automation Energy Industries in the USA, the Associate Project Engineer assists in designing engineering solutions, including preparing drawings, calculations, bills of materials, engineering instructions and processes.

The work model for the role is: Hybrid {#LI-Hybrid} (Must live in Houston, TX or Cleveland, OH)

This role is contributing to the Automation Energy Industries division in the US.

You will be mainly accountable for:

Work as part of an integrated design team to meet project requirements and deliverables

Design automation enclosures and establish system cabinet assembly requirements

Certify equipment outline drawings, power consumption and cooling requirements for ABB provided equipment

Generate the necessary system orders for ABB equipment and/or purchase orders for third-party equipment, and periodically monitor their delivery status.

Our team dynamics

You will join a talented and high performing team, where you will be able to thrive.

Qualifications for the role

Up to 2 years of experience in design and execution, working as an Engineer with Distribution Control Systems is preferred

Sound knowledge of engineering techniques, processes, and tools

Knowledge of Microsoft

Initiative, creativity, and great attention to detail

A collaborative, solution-focused approach, and strong written and spoken communication skills

Bachelor’s degree in Chemical, Mechanical, Electrical or Computer Engineering

Candidates must be able to read, write and speak English fluently

Must be legally able to work in USA

Position will be based in Cary, NC (Will live in Houston or Cleveland during training, and will relocate to Cary)

Ability and willingness to travel approximately up to 80% of the time

More about us

ABB is an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action employer for protected Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities at ABB.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to their- sex (gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation), marital status, citizenship, age,  race and ethnicity, inclusive of traits historically associated with race or ethnicity, including but not limited to hair texture and protective hairstyles, color, religious creed, national origin, pregnancy, physical or mental disability, genetic information, protected Veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal and state law.

For more information regarding your (EEO) rights as an applicant, please visit the following websites: https://www.eeoc.gov/sites/default/files/2023-06/22-088_EEOC_KnowYourRights6.12ScreenRdr.pdf

As an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer for Protected Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities, applicants may request to review the plan of a particular ABB facility between the hours of 9:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. EST Monday through Friday by contacting an ABB HR Representative at 1-888-694-7762.

Protected Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities may request a reasonable accommodation if you are unable or limited in your ability to use or access ABB's career site as a result of your disability. You may request reasonable accommodations by calling an ABB HR Representative at 1-888-694-7762 or by sending an email to [email protected] . Resumes and applications will not be accepted in this manner.

ABB Benefit Summary for eligible US employees

[excludes ABB E-mobility, Athens union, Puerto Rico]

Go to www.myBenefitsABB.com  and click on “Candidate/Guest” to learn more

Health, Life & Disability

Choice between two medical plan options: A PPO plan called the Copay Plan OR a High Deductible Health Plan (with a Health Savings Account) called the High Deductible Plan.

Choice between two dental plan options: Core and Core Plus

Vision benefit

Company paid life insurance (2X base pay)

Company paid AD&D (1X base pay)

Voluntary life and AD&D – 100% employee paid up to maximums

Short Term Disability – up to 26 weeks – Company paid

Long Term Disability – 60% of pay – Company paid.  Ability to “buy-up” to 66 2/3% of pay.

Supplemental benefits – 100% employee paid (Accident insurance, hospital indemnity, critical illness, pet insurance

Parental Leave – up to 6 weeks

Employee Assistance Program

Health Advocate support resources for mental/behavioral health, general health navigation and virtual health, and infertility/adoption

Employee discount program

Retirement

401k Savings Plan with Company Contributions

Employee Stock Acquisition Plan (ESAP)

Time off

ABB provides 11 paid holidays. Salaried exempt positions are provided vacation under a permissive time away policy.

While base salary is determined by things such as the successful applicant’s qualifications and experience, this position is expected to pay between $64,300 and $102,880 annually.

Building a cleaner, smarter future takes all kinds of minds: the curious, the courageous, and the creative. That's why we welcome people from all backgrounds and experiences.

Ready to make an impact?

Apply today or visit https://www.abb.com to learn more about the impact of our solutions across the globe.

Job details

Seniority
Associate
Role
Controls Engineering
Industry
Not listed
Location
Cary, North Carolina, United States of America
Employment type
FULL_TIME
Travel
Up to 80%

How this role compares

Computed from every other active Controls Engineering role in our database, not just this employer's listings.

We currently track 37 comparable Associate Controls Engineering roles across 7 employers.

37Comparable roles tracked
33Currently active
7Companies hiring similar roles
7Countries represented

Salary context

6 of 37 peers report a salary range (USD, annualized)

Peers share this role's job function and a matching or adjacent seniority level -- not necessarily the same therapeutic area or country.

This roleSubject Not listed on this posting
Lowest disclosed · Associate Mechatronics Field Engineer · FANUC America $5,300/yr – $85,000/yr
Highest disclosed · Controls Engineering Manager - Amazon Modernizations · Dematic $121,600/yr – $182,400/yr
Peer group range $45,150 – $152,000 (median $69,763)

Where these roles are based

Top locations among the 37 comparable roles

India19
United States12
Sweden1
Czech Republic1
Canada1
China1

+ 1 more countries

Seniority mix

37 of 37 peers have a known seniority level

Associate27
Manager8
Intern/Fellow/Postdoc2

Similar opportunities

The closest matches from our peer group, ranked by how similar they are, not how well you'd qualify for them -- treat this as market context, not a guaranteed shortlist; a weak match is labeled as one below.

60%similar
Smart Infrastructure Grand Prairie, Texas, United States of America; Peachtree Corners, Georgia, United States of America Associate
Same role Same seniority Same country
60%similar
FANUC America Associate
Same role Same seniority Same country

Open in 2 locations

Holliston, United StatesPine Brook, United States
60%similar
Emerson Pittsburgh, PA, United States Associate
Same role Same seniority Same country
50%similar
Smart Infrastructure Miami, Florida, United States of America Manager
Same role Adjacent seniority Same country
50%similar
Dematic Wauwatosa, United States Manager
Same role Adjacent seniority Same country

Notify me about similar jobs

Get an email when we spot other openings like this one – same job function, comparable seniority, roles you'd actually want to see.

Or follow every new Controls Engineering job, narrowed by PLC/SCADA platform, location and employer: set up a job alert.

How we calculate "similar"

No black box, no LLM guesswork: a deterministic score built from four normalized attributes. Here's this role's own peer group at different match levels, so you can see the mechanism, not just the result.

Every comparison starts from the same 100-point budget: 25 for working in the same function, 40 for the same therapeutic area, 20 for the same or adjacent seniority, 15 for the same country. A dimension we can't confirm on both sides contributes nothing, never a guess, never a free pass.

60%
Associate Application Engineer, Power Distribution
Smart Infrastructure · Grand Prairie, Texas, United States of America; Peachtree Corners, Georgia, United States of America · Associate
Role Therapeutic area Seniority Country
60%
Associate Mechatronics Field Engineer
FANUC America · Pine Brook, NJ, United States · Associate
Role Therapeutic area Seniority Country
60%
Associate Application Engineer, Power Distribution
Smart Infrastructure · Grand Prairie, Texas, United States of America; Peachtree Corners, Georgia, United States of America · Associate
Role Therapeutic area Seniority Country
50%
Controls Engineering Manager
Dematic · Wauwatosa, United States · Manager
Role Therapeutic area Adjacent seniority Country
Unmatched or unknown dimensions score exactly the same: 0 points, never a partial guess. A role we know almost nothing about beyond its function bottoms out at 25%; it never inflates to 100% just because there's little to compare against. Seniority uses a defined ladder (Associate → Manager → Associate Director → Senior → Principal → Director → Senior Director → Executive/VP) so "Director" and "Senior Director" count as adjacent, but "Director" and "Executive/VP" do not.