Louisiana, United States of America
Job Family Group:
Discipline Engineering
Worker Type:
Regular
Posting Start Date:
October 29, 2026
Business Unit:
Downstream and Renewables
Experience Level:
Experienced Professionals
Job Description:
What’s the role
The Senior Advanced Process Control (APC) Engineer serves as a site technical authority for APC applications, providing technical leadership for the development, implementation, sustainment, and lifecycle management of APC solutions. The role develops and implements the Norco site APC strategy to improve throughput and yield, energy efficiency, reliability, operational stability, and overall margin performance.
The Senior APC Engineer identifies, prioritizes, and documents APC improvement opportunities and leads execution from concept through realized and sustained business value. This is a working technical leadership position with strategic responsibilities and accountability for APC application performance, uptime, conformance, and continuous improvement. For clarity, the APC platform that Norco utilizes is Shell PACE, which is considered the same as Dynamic Matrix Control, or Model Predictive Control.
What you’ll be doing
The primary role of the Senior APC Engineer is to provide site-wide technical leadership and day-to-day assurance for APC applications supporting Norco Refining and Chemical Production. Main responsibilities include:
Serve as the site APC and PACE technical authority and focal point for APC strategy, performance, technical assurance, and lifecycle management
Develop, maintain, and implement the site APC strategy, aligning priorities with Production, Asset Operations, Asset Optimization, Process Engineering, and PACO objective
Develop and improve proactive technical monitoring for existing APC applications to maintain and improve controller uptime, utilization, and conformance
Be accountable and responsible for APC issue resolution, including troubleshooting application performance and coordinating internal, off-site, and external support resources
Develop a comprehensive support strategy for APC controllers that uses available site, enterprise, vendor, and specialist support resources effectively.
Identify, document, prioritize, and lead APC improvement opportunities across the site, including resource allocation
Lead development and implementation of APC solutions that increase throughput and yield, reduce product giveaway and energy consumption, improve reliability and operational stability, and maximize sustained margin capture
Monitor controller performance and conformance, identify performance gaps, and drive continuous improvement
Collaborate with Control Systems Engineers to improve base-layer and complex control performance where those controls are foundational to APC effectiveness
Engage Production Teams and Process Engineering to ensure APC actions align with operating objectives, unit constraints, optimization plans, and safe operating limits
Mentor APC Engineers and Control Systems Engineers in PACE controller development, improvement, troubleshooting, and maintenance
Provide APC technical assurance and support for management of change, projects, turnarounds, and other site work processes as applicable
Communicate APC performance, risks, priorities, and realized benefits to stakeholders
The Senior APC Engineer is expected to have effective use of company tools and work processes including:
ESP (Ensure Safe Production): Participate in alarm and process-control performance activities where APC performance interfaces with safe, stable unit operation
MOC (Management of Change): Apply the process to APC and associated control changes and provide technical evaluation for PACO-related changes.
EPD and applicable engineering work processes: Use approved processes to develop, assure, implement, document, and sustain APC applications and improvements
Performance monitoring and opportunity tracking: Maintain visibility of controller uptime, conformance,…