Manufacturing Linux Network Engineer

About The Role

We are seeking an experienced Manufacturing Linux / Network Engineer to design, implement, and maintain robust IT and network infrastructure across our manufacturing facilities. The ideal candidate brings deep expertise in Linux systems administration (Red Hat / Rocky Linux), network security (Palo Alto firewalls), storage infrastructure, CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins), and infrastructure automation (Ansible). This role sits at the intersection of enterprise IT and plant-floor operations, and is critical to delivering the high availability, security, and performance that modern manufacturing environments demand.

Responsibilities

• Design, deploy, and maintain LAN/WAN network infrastructure spanning manufacturing plants, warehouses, cloud providers, and corporate sites.
• Implement and manage high-speed core switching at 10G and 100G using Arista, Juniper, and other enterprise switching platforms; ensure scalable, resilient fabric design.
• Configure, troubleshoot, and optimize Layer 2/3 networking (LACP, VLANs, BGP) and security controls (Palo Alto firewalls, VPNs, NAC, IDS/IPS); manage ISP link failover and path redundancy.
• Deploy, configure, and maintain Linux servers (Red Hat / Rocky Linux) using automation tools including Ansible, MAAS, Foreman, and custom scripting to ensure consistent, repeatable provisioning.
• Monitor network and system performance — uptime, latency, bandwidth utilization, and capacity — across all sites; proactively detect and resolve issues before they impact
• Design and maintain redundancy, failover, QoS, and traffic engineering strategies to support 24/7 manufacturing operations and minimize unplanned downtime.
• Manage structured cabling, Wi-Fi 6/6E wireless infrastructure, and ruggedized networking hardware suited for plant-floor environments.
• Partner with engineering, automation, OT, and IT security teams to ensure secure and reliable connectivity for production and operational systems.
• Lead and contribute to greenfield and brownfield IT/OT modernization projects, including network redesigns for new equipment rollouts and facility expansions.
• Own network documentation including topology diagrams, IP address management (IPAM), and standard operating procedures; keep them current as infrastructure evolves.
• Provide Tier 2/3 support for network and Linux system incidents at manufacturing sites; participate in on-call rotation for production-critical issues.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Electrical Engineering, or a related field.
• 4+ years of experience in network and Linux infrastructure engineering, preferably in a manufacturing or industrial environment.
• Deep Linux expertise with Rocky Linux / RHEL, including administration of core infrastructure services: DNS, DHCP, and network storage (NFS).
• Hands-on experience with Palo Alto Networks firewalls, including policy management, threat prevention, and configuration of active/standby ISP failover links.
• Demonstrated ability to automate infrastructure at scale; proven track record applying Infrastructure as Code (IaC) best practices using Ansible, Terraform, or equivalent tooling.
• Strong knowledge of networking fundamentals: TCP/IP, VLANs, routing protocols (OSPF, BGP), switching, and network security.
• Experience with enterprise network vendors including Cisco, Arista, and Juniper; familiarity with ruggedized industrial switches (Hirschmann, Cisco IE series, or similar).
• Knowledge of cybersecurity best practices aligned with NIST frameworks.
• Experience with wireless networking (Wi-Fi 6, cellular/private LTE) in industrial or plant-floor settings.
• Experience with network monitoring and observability platforms (Grafana, Zabbix, or similar) and on-call alerting integrations such as PagerDuty.
• Ability to review data center and plant-floor physical designs; experience collaborating with cabling vendors and server rack build teams to implement structured cabling best practices.
• Comfortable working on the plant floor alongside cross-functional teams including maintenance, engineering, and operations.
• Strong troubleshooting, documentation, and communication skills.
• Able to participate in on-call rotation and respond to after-hours production-critical incidents.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Python scripting for network automation, configuration management, and compliance reporting.
• Experience with cloud connectivity and hybrid network architectures (AWS, Azure, or GCP) in manufacturing contexts.
• Familiarity with MES platforms and their integration with enterprise IT systems.
• Knowledge of structured cabling standards (TIA-568, IEC 11801) and data center operations within manufacturing environments.
• Experience with SD-WAN solutions for multi-site manufacturing connectivity.