Controls & Electronics Engineer

Company Description Byohm (a trading name of Wastewater Fuels Ltd) is a UK climate technology company developing next-generation bio-electrochemical systems that turn wastewater treatment into a net energy-positive process while boosting biomethane production from anaerobic digestion.

Its proprietary platform converts organic waste into clean energy in the form of hydrogen and biomethane, while treating water to help meet environmental discharge standards. The company is backed by government, academia, industry, and future customers, including investors TSP Ventures and Green Angel Ventures and public bodies such as the UK Ministry of Defence, Ofwat, and Innovate UK. Byohm collaborates with industrial and academic partners including Severn Trent Water, United Utilities, Anglian Water, and Warwick Manufacturing Group to deploy pilot systems and accelerate commercial rollout.

With over 600 prototypes tested and rapid design-to-install capabilities, the team is turning bioelectrochemical science into scalable infrastructure to address global challenges in water, energy, and sustainability.

Role Description We are looking for a hands-on Controls & Electronics Engineer to join our engineering team. Your two primary focuses are PLC / control-panel work and PCB / electronic hardware design. These are the systems that let us monitor, control and optimise our bio-electrochemical processes, from lab-scale rigs through to full-scale deployed equipment.

You will design, prototype, build and commission control and electronic systems, working alongside process, software and mechanical colleagues. It is a practical, delivery-focused role: we value engineers who can take a requirement and run with it, get hardware working on the bench, and see it through to a reliable system in the field.

You will work day-to-day along with the electrical and electronics team, within an engineering team reporting to the Lead Product Manager. This is an ideal role for a graduate-to-mid-level engineer looking to take real ownership and grow across the full controls-and-hardware stack.

Key Responsibilities

– PLC & control systems : program, configure and test PLCs and build control panels for lab rigs and deployed treatment systems.

– PCB & hardware design : design, lay out, assemble and bench-test PCBs and electronic circuits (sensors, actuators, signal conditioning, power).

– Instrumentation & comms: integrate sensors and actuators over industrial buses (RS-485 / Modbus, CAN) and validate them end-to-end.

You will also support :

– firmware and microcontroller work (ESP32 / Arduino / Raspberry Pi) for custom automation and IoT-enabled devices.

– installation, commissioning and ongoing performance improvement of deployed systems on client sites.

– power distribution, energy management and scalability as systems grow from bench to container scale.

– thorough technical documentation such as schematics, wiring diagrams, test reports and handover packs.

– working to relevant safety standards and contributing to design-compliance documentation.

Skills & Qualifications

Applicants must have:

– Either a degree in Electrical, Electronic, Mechatronics or Control Engineering or no degree with equivalent hands-on experience.

– Strong in either PLC / controls (programming, configuring, panel wiring) or PCB / hardware design (using an EDA tool, we use KiCad; Altium / Eagle transfers), with solid working knowledge of the other. We will support you in deepening both.

– Confident with lab tools: oscilloscope, multimeter, bench PSU, and circuit simulation (e.g. LTspice).

– Programming in at least one of Python or C / C++ for automation and control.

– Demonstrable end-to-end delivery, a project, product or rig you designed and built yourself.

Desirable:

– Siemens TIA Portal / S7-1500, or SCADA / HMI development.

– Industrial comms in practice (RS-485 / Modbus / CAN), and IoT / system integration.

– Control theory, power / energy management, or embedded RTOS experience.

– Awareness of DSEAR / ATEX and hazardous-area concepts (our systems can involve biogas).

You'll fit well if you:

– are practical and experimental, enjoy building things and making them work, and finish what you start.

– are happy owning a task with light direction and asking the right questions when you need to.

– care about sustainability, innovation and clean technology.

Particulars:

Location: On-site, Coventry, West Midlands

Annual salary: Competitive salary (up to £36k pa, subject to experience)

Holiday: 25 days + bank holidays + Christmas shutdown

Hours: 37.5 per week

Contract: 1-year fixed-term, with potential to become permanent subject to performance

Benefits: Company Pension, Free On-site Parking, Health & Wellbeing Programme, Sick Pay

Eligibility: Right to live and work in the UK; basic security checks may be required

Start date: August 2026