Chemical Production Engineer - Gpac

Hi,

If interested in this position please email your resume to john.blundell@gogpac.com and call 605-937-5015 with any questions.

Thanks,

John

------------------------------------------------------------------

About the Company

This company is a premier provider of organometallic compounds and other specialty chemicals used in a wide range of applications. We are a pioneer and leading manufacturer of metallocene catalysts and co-catalysts that are primarily used to produce metallocene polyethylene, polypropylene and elastomers, but also supplies products into Electronics, Pharmaceutical and Defense applications. They operate two sites in Illinois, which include: a main production facility  and a secondary facility. They have continuously grown the sales of their products to existing and new customers and expects to continue on a high growth trajectory. 

The primary responsibility of the Chemical Production Engineer is supporting technical and manufacturing aspects of Stage 5 operations undertaken in Production. The Engineer monitors daily Production batch processes and reports and/or corrects non-conformances during the Run-phase. A considerable amount of the Production Engineer’s time will be spent troubleshooting and optimizing Production processes during Production upsets. Collaborates and communicates with Production and Pilot Plant Management, Group Leaders, Scientists, and Analytical Management regarding technical issues and problem resolution.

Qualifications

•Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering or similar, required

•Minimum of 5 - 8 years’ experience, preferably in a chemical or petrochemical plant

•Experience with highly hazardous chemical and processes

•Experience with Process Safety Management (PSM) programs and work streams

•Process Safety Information, Process Hazard Analyses, Management of Change, continuous improvement through incident investigations and root cause determination, auditing, and on-time completion of PSM recommendations

•Knowledge and experience of chemical manufacturing unit operations, including batch reactors, distillation columns, solvent recovery, pumps, filtration, crystallization, PLC Programming, etc

•Understanding of basic economic information (IRR, NPV, PB, etc.)

•Strong computer skills in MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other analytical software (Minitab, etc.)

•Must pass a Physical and Job Function Evaluation

• Six Sigma Green Belt certification or higher is considered a plus Must pass a Physical and Job Function Evaluation. Working Conditions While performing the duties of this job, the employee is exposed to Midwest weather conditions and manufacturing plant environment. Will be in manufacturing and lab environments that require the appropriate use of PPE. Employee may be required to work hours other than their usual schedule; may be required to be on-call or available at odd hours and weekends to support manufacturing startups and continuously-running processes

Responsibilities Chemical Production Engineer

•The Engineer monitors daily Production batch processes and reports and/or corrects non-conformances during the Run-phase

•A considerable amount of the Production Engineer’s time will be spent troubleshooting and optimizing Production processes during Production upsets

•Collaborates and communicates with Production and Pilot Plant Management, Group Leaders, Scientists, and Analytical Management regarding technical issues and problem resolution

•Equipment Quality & Compliance

•Timely execution of Maintenance tasks maximizing OEE

•Assures company and engineering standards are met

•Leadership Behaviors

•Leads by giving and earning trust

•Demonstrates ethical behavior; strives to meet and exceed our Environmental and Safety requirements

•Acts respectfully, demonstrates the ability to Listen, Think, Speak (in that order)

•Is Accountable: holds self and others accountable

•As a leader, demonstrates his/her most important values visibly everyday while at work

•Lead in the promotion of a strong safety and environmental stewardship culture, ensure good engineering practices and standards are followed, contribute with technical expertise to events that impact the safety, health, and environmental performance of the site

•Lead and participate on site teams tasked to address the Process Safety Management (PSM) requirements including Management of Change (MOC), Process Hazard Analysis (PHA), Incident Investigations and basic technical data

•Create, maintain, and manage process PSM information-like operating procedures, block flow diagrams, process and instrumentation diagrams, and mass/energy balances

•Serve as technical lead for a specific area of the process, provide technical assistance, calculations, and troubleshooting for the daily operational, maintenance, and product quality needs

•Identify and lead Continuous Improvement Projects with emphasis on manufacturing cost reduction, capacity improvements/cycle time reductions, energy and waste reduction, and process reliability

•Participate in plant shut down, startup, and turnaround activities, as well as project commissioning and plant trials

•Actively engage in the Run-phase of Production Campaigns

•Responsible for observing batches in-process to identify possible means of improvement and/or preempt upset conditions

•Use metrics and communication with plant staff to immediately identify and investigate variances during Production run

•Drive ideation to execution related to Productivity projects based on Chemistry, MBR adherence consistency, and engineering practices that are sound and current

•Utilize Production Visual Management Board to evaluate and elevate potential issues

•Troubleshoot Production Processes and provide support to Plant Supervisors and Chemical Operators in collaboration with Group Leaders and Scientists

•Brief Chemical Operators on new processes and in evaluating and debriefing these processes after they have been completed

•Participate in operating training

•Request front-run and bench top experiments if necessary to determine path forwards

•Participate in the Ready-phase of Production Campaigns

•Provide feedback related to scale and equipment deviations

•Provide feedback related to alternate processing parameters

•Validate raw materials as required by purchasing department

•Work with QA to provide feedback and instruction on raw material qualifications

•Lead Review-phase of Production Campaigns

•Identify causes of variances and opportunities to improve throughput

•Suggest and record incremental changes in an upcoming Production Campaign

•Target improvements in process metrics such as yield, cycle time, productivity, and throughput

•Capture, analyze, and publish metrics data

•Technical Transfer

•Actively participate in Tech Transfer from the Pilot Plant to the Production Units

•Responsible for actions related to MBR review

•Join Pilot Plant team during final commercial batch to gain experience related to a new processes, chemistries, and gain an understanding of the Pilot Plant MBR contents

•Introduce new MBRs into the Production Unit, validate MBR is accurate as written; work in tandem with Technical Writers to modify MBRs as needed

•While performing the duties of this job, the employee is exposed to Colorado weather conditions and manufacturing plant environment

•Will be in manufacturing and lab environments that require the appropriate use of PPEBenefits

All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, age, color, sex (including pregnancy), religion, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, military status, genetic information, or any other status protected by applicable laws or regulations.

GPAC (Growing People and Companies) is an award-winning search firm specializing in placing quality professionals within multiple industries across the United States since 1990. We are extremely competitive, client-focused and realize that our value is in our ability to deliver the right solutions at the right time.