I recruit in industrial automation for a living and got tired of watching good contractors stay invisible unless the right person happened to know them so I've started building something, and I'd rather this community poke holes in it now than after I've built more.
Quick note up front since it's the first thing people compare it to: this isn't Upwork. No bidding, no applying to postings. Companies search and contact contractors directly.
The idea: a profile built around what hiring managers actually search for. Platforms with real years against each, not "SCADA experience" but 6 years Ignition Perspective, 4 years MQTT/Sparkplug work. Rate band. Travel willingness. Remote, site, or mixed. And a live availability status that expires unless you reconfirm it, so it actually means something when it says available.
Companies pay a flat monthly fee to search and contact. Free for contractors, always, no cut of your rate.
I know Ignition and data centre/SCADA integration work has real contract demand right now, which is part of why I'm here rather than only on the PLC side. Three things I'd value from people who actually do this:
- What would make you bother keeping an availability status current?
- What's missing from that profile, anything Ignition-specific I haven't thought of (module experience, Perspective vs Vision, cloud/edge work)?
- What would stop you signing up?
Early access is here if you want it: commissionedhq.com. But I'm mainly here for the comments.