MES Deployment Lead
Engagement Details
Location: Houston, TX — On-site
Start Date: TBD — anticipated within the next 1-3 months, potentially sooner for the right candidate
Engagement Type: Contract
Pay Rate: 1099: $130-$160/hr | W2: $110-$125/hr
The Opportunity
Planet Pharma is proactively identifying a Senior Syncade MES Deployment Lead to support a large-scale greenfield pharmaceutical manufacturing program in Houston, TX. This is an early-stage, high-impact engagement, where the right candidate will be embedded directly within the client’s Houston IT team, serving as the senior technical authority and strategic right hand to the IT Lead as the MES program is built from the ground up. This is not a hands-on configuration role. The right candidate operates at program level – owning the deployment roadmap, driving validation strategy, and providing technical leadership to a contractor team that will scale to 10+ engineers. If you’ve led a Syncade deployment on a major capital program and can think and execute at both the strategy and system level, this role was built for you.
What You’ll Own
Lead end-to-end Syncade MES deployment strategy — including recipe creation planning, system architecture input, and phase sequencing across a multi-building greenfield manufacturing campus
Serve as the primary technical resource and day-to-day right hand to the IT Lead while the internal team scales
Develop and own the MES validation outlook — IQ/OQ/PQ planning, CSV documentation strategy, and UAT coordination
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Interface cross-functionally with engineering, automation, manufacturing, and quality teams to align MES configuration with operational and GMP requirements
Provide technical direction and onboarding support for additional Syncade engineers as the contractor team expands
Drive test planning and execution for MES system validation under GMP and 21 CFR Part 11 requirements
What We’re Looking For
Hands-on Syncade MES experience — recipe creation, batch record configuration, and GMP deployment in a pharmaceutical or biotech manufacturing environment is required
Prior experience leading or co-leading a full MES deployment on a capital project or greenfield/brownfield site
Strong working knowledge of CSV and computer system validation requirements — 21 CFR Part 11 and GAMP 5
Ability to operate independently with minimal oversight in a fast-moving, pre-commercial program environment
Proven ability to collaborate cross-functionally across automation, IT, quality, and manufacturing teams — and to lead technical teams without direct authority
Nice to Have
Familiarity with Emerson DeltaV — DCS/MES integration experience is highly relevant given the program’s automation landscape
Prior experience at large multi-building greenfield pharmaceutical capital programs
Experience standing up an MES validation program from scratch, not just executing an existing one
