How To Become A Controls Designer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a controls designer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Fred Garber Ph.D.

A controls designer fabricates control systems for machines and equipment such as robots, conveyors, and the likes. He/she designs how conductors, relays, and other components of devices are arranged and linked. Also, they determine how the cables of robots, robot controllers, and other machines are connected. The controls designer drafts a logic system for sequence and timing control.

As the controls designer, you show the team and other departments how installation and maintenance should be carried out, from the type of lubrication to use to the parts to be lubricated. You review schematics with sales representatives to aid their sales strategies and increase revenue. You also observe how the equipment operates during a trial run and ensure that it works according to specifications.

The average salary of a controls designer is $55,012. However, it depends on their location, experience, skill, employer, etc. Critical thinking, analytical, and creativity skills are essential skills for controls designer.

What general advice would you give to a controls designer?

Fred Garber Ph.D.

Professor, Electrical Engineering, Wright State University

I think the primary question, in the minds of those who are yet to graduate or are still searching, is in regard to the strength of the technical job market, especially the local job market. But you are in a position to definitively answer that question.

In you article, I would ask that you address the following:
Number of employers looking to fill and number of job offerings in the region (by engineering and computer science major) compared to last year and to the previous five years.

Any noticeable differences in job descriptions Zippia is receiving relative to work environment, benefits, starting salaries, etc.

Many of our soon-to-graduate students would be very interested in these quantitative and qualitative comparisons. Additionally, vast numbers of potential students would benefit from such information to guide their career choices.

ScoreControls DesignerUS Average

Salary

7.2

Avg. Salary $91,944

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.7

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.18%

Asian 17.66%

Black or African American 4.77%

Hispanic or Latino 11.03%

Unknown 4.69%

White 61.66%

Gender

female 13.51%

male 86.49%

Age - 44

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 44

Stress level

5.7

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.2

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a controls designer

Explore controls designer education requirements

Most common controls designer degrees

Bachelor's

53.0 %

Associate

28.1 %

Master's

9.7 %

Start to develop specific controls designer skills

Skills	Percentages
PLC	12.15%
Control Panels	5.99%
IDS	5.69%
Auto CAD	5.53%
I/O	5.20%

Complete relevant controls designer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New controls designers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a controls designer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real controls designer resumes.

Research controls designer duties and responsibilities

Establish communication links and prepare machines for bench-testing to attain UL certification.
Engineer, draft, modify PLC programs and HMI programs, create schematics, test software with customer to their satisfaction.
Create the simulation with SolidWorks.
Create and deploy disk images for latest SolidWorks releases as needed.

Prepare your controls designer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your controls designer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a controls designer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable controls designer resume templates

Build a professional controls designer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your controls designer resume.