Industrial automation
PLC programmers and industrial automation
Updated July 2026
Industrial automation is where finding the right person is hardest: the skills are specialised, the work often requires being on the factory floor, and general marketplaces are full of web developers who have never touched a PLC. Araknet exists partly for this: a company describes the line, the machine or the retrofit it is dealing with, and receives offers from people who program PLCs and SCADA for a living.
The kind of projects posted here
Not just business software: automation has its own needs, and its own category on Araknet.
Machine retrofit and revamping
Machines still mechanically sound but with obsolete electronics, unobtainable spares or unsupported software. A typical project covers replacing the PLC, a new operator panel and recovering the existing logic, often from partial documentation.
PLC and version migration
Moving from Step7 to TIA Portal, from discontinued PLCs to current platforms, or version upgrades with block rework. Delicate work: behaviour must stay identical and production downtime kept to a minimum.
SCADA, HMI and supervision
Operator panels, plant mimics, supervisory systems that collect alarms and machine states, historise data and give operators an interface they can actually read.
Connectivity and Industry 4.0
Connecting machines to the ERP or MES for automatic production data: parts produced, cycle times, stoppages and their causes. Often required for the connectivity criteria attached to industrial incentives.
New lines and commissioning
Programming new lines, integrating machines from different suppliers, sequence handling and on-site commissioning.
Machine vision and quality control
In-line quality control: cameras checking presence, measurements or defects, with automatic rejection and integration into the machine logic.
Platforms and protocols
In automation the expertise is specific, and buyers search accordingly. On Araknet a project is tagged with the technologies involved, so it reaches people who genuinely know them.
For companies: how to describe the project
In automation a generic listing brings no useful replies. These details are the difference between three random offers and proposals from people who have done exactly this job.
- Make and model of the PLC and panel, with the software version if you know it: it is the first thing a specialist looks for.
- Whether documentation exists: wiring diagrams, source program, manuals. Even partial, it changes the estimate considerably.
- Where the plant is and whether on-site presence is needed: on Araknet you can state remote, nearby or on-site, with the city.
- The windows available to intervene: planned stoppage, weekends, shutdown period.
- What the machine must do at the end, in production terms rather than code.
- Safety and acceptance constraints: who signs off, which standards apply, whether a risk assessment is needed.
For automation developers
If you program PLCs, SCADA or industrial systems, you are rarer than the online market suggests.
- Genuine industrial projects, not web development listings with automation dropped in as a keyword.
- Private offers: no public race to the bottom, no exposed profile. You see the project, you send your proposal.
- Filter by technology: reach the projects on the platforms you know, without scrolling through listings that are not yours.
- Work mode stated in the listing: remote, nearby or on-site — with the city, which matters when the job is on the factory floor.
- No commission on your fee: once the company accepts your offer, you agree directly with them.
What an automation project costs
Supervisory interfaces, line data collection and ERP integration generally sit between €5,000 and €30,000. In automation the software is often the smaller part of the quote: on-site commissioning, the constraints of existing machinery and production downtime weigh more.
Frequently asked questions
How do I find a freelance PLC programmer?
Post the project on Araknet stating the PLC make and model, where the plant is and whether on-site presence is needed: specialised developers see the listing and send an offer with price and timeline. Your company stays anonymous until you accept a proposal.
How much does PLC programming cost?
It depends mostly on machine complexity and the documentation available. Contained work on a single machine starts at a few thousand euros; a full retrofit with new PLC, panel and commissioning typically sits between €5,000 and €30,000. Travel and production downtime are always counted separately.
Can industrial automation be done remotely?
Partly: analysis, writing the program, building mimics and simulation are done remotely. Commissioning, acceptance testing and tuning nearly always require being on site. That is why every Araknet project states whether the work is remote, nearby or on-site.
What does machine connectivity involve?
Usually taking production data off the machines and delivering it to the ERP or MES over protocols such as OPC UA, Modbus or Profinet, with historisation and traceability. The demanding part is almost always integration with the management systems already in use.
The original program is lost — is that a problem?
It is common in retrofits and does not stop the job, but say so up front: rebuilding the logic from a running machine takes longer, and anyone who quotes without knowing will revise the price upwards mid-project.
An automation project to get moving?
Post it on Araknet and get offers from developers who program PLCs and SCADA for a living. Or, if you are the specialist, sign up and look at the open projects.