R&D Chemical Process Engineer

The R&D team in Wilmington, DE is part of the Agilent Chemistries and Supplies Division and develops Liquid Chromatography Columns for applications in pharmaceuticals, biopharmaceuticals, environmental, and chemical markets. Agilent’s product quality and technological innovation lead the market. As leaders, we are entering new phases of product transformation with an increased emphasis on new products and process innovation. 

Job Summary: As an R&D Chemical Process Engineer, you will play a crucial role in driving the design for manufacturability within the R&D team. You will coordinate with the local manufacturing team to expedite the transfer of new products and processes to manufacturing. Your work will ensure that new processes are efficient, robust, scalable, and safe, aligning with anticipated manufacturing capabilities. 

Type of Chemistry Involved: We produce silica-based material for high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) columns in batch processes.  

Manufacturing Equipment Design: The position may include recommendations on new/alternative equipment that have been tested at bench scale, but not the design at manufacturing scale. 

Technology Transfer: This engineer will ensure that the manufacturing team has all the data necessary to scale-up new products and be available during the initial runs. Most of the time, the goal is to produce the new products in current assets at the designated manufacturing site; however, new equipment is added as necessary. 

Key Responsibilities: 

• Drive the design for manufacturability capability within the R&D team. 

• Coordinate with the local manufacturing team to expedite the transfer of R&D designs and processes to manufacturing. 

• Work with R&D teams during the investigation of new processes to ensure efficient, robust, scalable, and safe processes are developed. 

• Transfer technology from the R&D lab to manufacturing, from production of lab prototypes to a reproducible and economical large-scale production process. 

• Analyze and troubleshoot existing production methods with production teams to ensure product quality. 

• Provide training and support to manufacturing personnel on new processes and technologies. 

• Stay connected with industrial trends and new technologies to integrate them into existing processes for competitive advantage. 

• Conduct lab work in a safe working environment, following all EHS regulations, including the use of appropriate personal protective equipment. 

• Properly document experimental work, prepare technical presentations, reports, and summaries, and present work to teams and management. 

• Represent the local team as part of global, cross-disciplinary project teams on new product introductions. 

• Ph.D. or MS in Chemical Engineering, Materials Engineering or equivalent. 

• 3+ years of experience. 

• Hands-on experience in process optimization, scale-up, and technology deployment. 

• Proficiency in data analysis, statistical tools, and software. 

• Experience working in the Chemical Process industry and/or direct manufacturing experience would an advantage  

• Experience with silica particle synthesis, surface modification, characterization, wet processing, and/or HPLC column loading would be beneficial. 

• Excellent communication skills and ability to work both within a team and autonomously.