Process Automation Drive Specialist

Automation Drive Specialist / Account Manager

Company: ACI Controls, Inc.

Territory: New York, Pennsylvania, and surrounding markets as assigned

Position Type: Full-Time

Department: Sales / Process Automation

ACI Controls is seeking an experienced, technically capable, and highly motivated Automation Drive Specialist / Account Manager to grow our industrial automation and Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) business.

This position combines technical product and application expertise with account management, business development, and field sales responsibilities
. The successful candidate will develop a strong understanding of Variable Frequency Drives, motors, automation products, and related industrial applications and use that knowledge to identify opportunities, solve customer problems, develop new accounts, and grow existing customer relationships.

The Automation Drive Specialist / Account Manager will establish themselves as a trusted product and application resource for customers, prospects, ACI Controls sales personnel, and manufacturing partners.

The ideal candidate is comfortable working independently in the field while also collaborating closely with ACI Controls' inside sales, outside sales, engineering, management, and supplier teams.

Develop and maintain a strong working knowledge of Variable Frequency Drives and related industrial automation products, including:

• Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs)
• AC and industrial motors
• Drive and motor packages
• Drive enclosures and control panels
• Motor starters and motor control products
• PLCs, HMIs, and industrial controls
• Industrial communication and networking
• Sensors, switches, and related automation components
• Electrical protection and power-management products
• Related process automation and control technologies

Understand how VFDs and automation products are applied to equipment and processes including:

• Pumps
• Fans and blowers
• Compressors
• Mixers and agitators
• Crushers and mills
• Extruders
• Cooling towers
• HVAC equipment
• Production machinery
• Packaging equipment
• Process equipment

Develop the ability to evaluate an application and recommend appropriate drive, motor, control, and automation solutions based upon operating requirements, environmental conditions, performance expectations, communications requirements, and customer objectives.

Develop a strong understanding of the industries and end‑user markets that utilize VFDs, motors, and automation technologies.

Key target markets may include:

• Manufacturing
• Food & beverage
• Chemical and petrochemical
• Oil & gas
• Water and wastewater
• Aggregate, mining, and cement
• Metals and steel
• Pulp and paper
• Plastics
• Pharmaceutical and life sciences
• HVAC and building systems
• OEM machine builders
• System integrators

Understand the production processes, equipment, operational challenges, maintenance concerns, and business objectives within these industries.

Identify where automation and drive technologies can help customers improve productivity, energy efficiency, process control, equipment reliability, safety, uptime, and total cost of ownership.

Manage and grow assigned existing accounts while actively developing new customers and applications.

Develop relationships at multiple levels within customer organizations rather than relying on a single contact.

Establish yourself and ACI Controls as a technical resource and trusted advisor
, not simply a source for products and quotations.

Regularly visit customer facilities to understand their processes, equipment, applications, problems, projects, and future automation requirements.

Maintain consistent prospecting activity to identify and…