Executive Decisions is seeking a Principal Architect and SCADA/OT subject-matter expert to serve as design authority on an active municipal water-treatment modernization program for the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (NYC DEP), Bureau of Water Treatment. This is a senior, hands-on architecture role: the successful candidate will own the migration of legacy ABB distributed control system (DCS) logic to modern PLC/SCADA architecture, lead the AVEVA System Platform and historian design baseline, and carry design decisions through to client acceptance across two active treatment plants.
This is a named Key Personnel position under an active client work order. The architect is expected to hold design authority, interface directly with the government customer, and remain committed through the full program period of performance. Candidates should recognize that this role is filling a critical incumbent seat and requires demonstrated depth — not adjacent or transferable experience alone.
POSITION DETAILS
• Title: SME Principal Architect — SCADA / OT Modernization
• Practice / Business Unit: Industrial Control Systems (ICS)
• Employment Type: Full-time, direct hire (W-2)
• Reports To: VP, Industrial Control Systems
• Primary Client Sites: BWT North River (145 West 137th St, New York, NY) and BWT Alley Creek (132-01 28th Ave, Queens, NY), with remote engineering as program phases permit
• Period of Performance: Active program; commitment expected through the full base and any exercised option period
• Clearance / Screening: Must pass client-required background screening for municipal critical-infrastructure site access
THE DEFINING REQUIREMENT — ABB DCS-TO-PLC MIGRATION
This role exists to move legacy ABB DCS control logic onto a modern PLC and SCADA platform. This is the single non-negotiable qualification. Candidates must be able to independently export, decode, and interpret legacy ABB DCS code and translate it into equivalent PLC logic — without relying on a second engineer to carry the ABB decode. Resumes that do not demonstrate hands-on ABB DCS migration experience will not advance.
• Direct, hands-on experience exporting and decoding legacy ABB DCS logic (e.g., ABB control system families used in municipal / heavy-process environments)
• Proven track record converting DCS control strategies into PLC logic, including control-narrative reconstruction where source documentation is incomplete
• Ability to author a DCS-to-PLC migration strategy and risk analysis that a government customer will review and approve
CORE RESPONSIBILITIES
Architecture & Design Authority
• Own the technical design baseline across both treatment plants and secure approval from AITHERAS and NYC DEP
• Establish system hierarchy, tag/naming conventions, and standardization across sites
• Serve as the accountable design authority for all PLC, HMI, and historian architecture decisions
Legacy Migration & Implementation
• Lead the ABB DCS-to-PLC migration end to end: assessment, strategy, and PLC logic conversion for all distributed control units (DCUs)
• Direct PLC logic conversion, HMI development, system integration, and historian configuration / data-flow setup
• Identify and document legacy-system risk during assessment; distinguish pre-existing deficiencies from in-scope work
AVEVA System Platform & Historian
• Design and align AVEVA System Platform and PI/historian architecture across both sites
• Configure historian data flows and validate operational data integrity through cutover
Testing, Cutover & Client Acceptance
• Lead functional testing and User Acceptance Testing (UAT); drive resolution of all Severity 1 defects prior to milestone acceptance
• Execute pilot deployment, cutover, and go-live across production DCU systems
• Deliver as-built documentation and lead knowledge transfer to NYC DEP operations staff
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
• ABB DCS migration (mandatory): hands-on experience decoding legacy ABB DCS logic and migrating it to PLC — owned independently
• AVEVA System Platform + PI / historian: architecture-level design and configuration experience
• PLC programming: demonstrated proficiency converting and developing PLC logic for industrial process control
• HMI development: design and build of operator interfaces for process-control environments
• System integration: integrating PLC, HMI, and historian layers into a coherent, validated SCADA system
• OT security standards: working fluency with NIST SP 800-82 and accepted municipal SCADA/OT modernization practice
• Architect-level ownership: history of holding design authority and interfacing directly with demanding institutional or government customers
• Experience level: senior/principal — typically 10+ years in industrial control systems with a substantial share in DCS/PLC migration and SCADA modernization
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
• Prior experience on municipal water / wastewater treatment (or comparable heavy-process) SCADA programs
• Experience delivering into NYC DEP or a large municipal utility environment
• Familiarity with milestone-based, firm-fixed-price delivery and formal client acceptance regimes
• Relevant OT/controls certifications (AVEVA, ISA/IEC 62443, PLC vendor certifications)
• Bachelor's degree in electrical, controls, chemical, or a related engineering discipline
WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE
Within the first 60 days, the architect has completed the legacy ABB DCS assessment, produced a migration risk analysis and strategy the customer accepts, and established the design baseline. Through the program, they carry that architecture into validated PLC/HMI/historian systems, drive clean cutovers with no open Severity 1 defects, and hand NYC DEP operations staff a fully documented, supportable system.
