Plant Engineer

Plant Engineer (Open)

Location:

Kent, WA - S. 222nd St.

- ASU

At Airgas, we are committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace that embraces the diversity of our employees, customers, patients, community stakeholders, and cultures across the world.

• Pay: $95,000-$110,000 + Bonus
• Work Schedule: Primarily Monday–Friday, 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM, with a requirement to be on-call as business needs dictate.
• Travel: 10% to 20% travel required to support regional facilities and attend technical training.
• Benefits: Comprehensive family benefits, including medical, dental, vision, life, AD&D, disability insurance; 14‑week paid childbirth benefit; 401(k) with company match; tuition assistance; paid holidays; vacation; sick time; early access after 30 days.

Recruiter:
Tina Kratochwill / t

The Plant Engineer provides hands‑on technical expertise, mechanical engineering support, and operational oversight for the Kent Air Separation Unit (ASU) and regional nitrogen production plant. This role is responsible for maximizing plant reliability, optimizing energy efficiency, executing capital expenditure projects, and maintaining strict regulatory compliance. The ideal candidate will blend analytical deep‑dives with physical troubleshooting to keep critical cryogenic processing systems operating safely and efficiently.

• Act as the primary onsite technical expert for all processing equipment, including multi‑stage compressors, cryogenic pumps, expansion turbines, storage vessels, and the distillation (coldbox).
• Lead the plant's root cause analysis (RCA) and failure investigations to eliminate critical asset downtime and establish long‑term preventative fixes.
• Monitor and interpret plant performance data, key performance indicators (KPIs), and diagnostic readouts to identify efficiency degradation or mechanical strain before failures occur.
• Understand process control variables (purity, flow, thermal gradients) to maintain equilibrium inside the cryogenic coldbox.
• Ensure full plant compliance with OSHA, EPA, FDA, cGMP, and internal EHS guidelines, relating to pressure relief devices, hazardous fluid handling (liquid oxygen/nitrogen), gas detection systems, etc.
• Oversee and execute engineering plans for complex operational windows, such as plant maintenance outages, equipment overhauls, or plant restarts/thaws.
• Serve as a core technical contributor to PHA studies (including HAZOP reviews); identify potential process safety hazards, evaluate risk mitigation safeguards, and track the timely resolution of action items.
• Design and execute minor‑to‑mid‑size capital projects targeting efficiency and modernizing plant infrastructure, including design, design approval, quotation process, and execution.
• Manage contractors, third‑party consultants, and vendor technicians during installation, checkout, and final commissioning phases.
• Lead and manage the site's MOC process; ensure all technical, equipment, and procedural modifications undergo rigorous engineering review, safety assessment, documentation updates, and pre‑startup safety reviews (PSSR) prior to implementation.
• Interpret, review, and update plant documentation, including Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams (P&IDs), process logic sheets, interlock matrices, and equipment specifications.
• Proven ability to manage multiple concurrent tasks, shifting priorities effectively between long‑term engineering projects and immediate daily plant operational needs.

• B.S. in Engineering (Chemical or Mechanical) preferred.
• 3‑5+ years of operational or project engineering experience required.
• Ability to provide on‑call technical assistance to plant personnel.
• Technical knowledge:
  Proven familiarity with high‑pressure fluid systems, rotating equipment, thermodynamics, and PLC‑controlled automation frameworks.
• Physical capabilities:
  Ability to move around an active industrial site, stand or walk for long periods, scale vertical structures, and lift up to 25 lbs.

• Specific expertise operating or maintaining cryogenic air separation units (ASUs) and dealing with bulk liquid…