Senior Process Engineer Job

Our Specialty Polyamides manufacturing facility in Birdsboro, PA has an open position for a Senior Process Engineer. The Senior Process Engineer understands and optimizes site processes and systems to maintain and improve health, safety and environmental compliance, minimize operating cost, improve quality, and maximize yields at the Birdsboro plant.  Provides leadership, expertise and advice to assure loss prevention within the plant, involving personnel, equipment and materials. Works closely with all department personnel, providing leadership and expertise, to assure safe, reliable, and efficient operations.  Responsible for the coordination and performance of all assigned process areas. Participates as key contributor to plant safety programs to drive safety improvement, both personnel and process safety.

This position is eligible to work a 9/80 work schedule, for example, may be scheduled off every other Friday or similar. 

KEY ACTIVITIES

Process:

• Monitor all stages of production to ensure operation is adhering to established standards, and guidelines.  Optimize the degree of control over variables, including process temperature, pressure/vacuum, viscosity, visible impurities, yellowness index, extractables, gels, etc. to ensure continual improvement in quality.
• Develops safety procedures to be employed by workers operating equipment or working in close proximity to on-going process equipment and materials.
• Determines most effective arrangement of operations, such as process conditions, material handling, material transfer, drying and packaging.
• Works with central process technology to schedule and coordinate studies and process evaluations to develop new and improved manufacturing processes and products.
• Provides Technical/Operational support for troubleshooting problems and implementing improvement projects with regard to all assigned production areas.
• Collect and analyze OAU/AU data and take appropriate actions to support reaching the site OAU goal.

Production:

• Prepares estimate of production costs, reliability, material usage and volume vs. capacity reports for management.  Monitor performance relative to established goals.  Orally present results to management daily.  Provide weekly and monthly production performance reports to management.
• Assists in the directing of activities of workers who operate or who are engaged in improving the operations of production processes.
• Identifies improvement opportunities in operating equipment and assist in implementation from the production standpoint.
• Coordinates department initiatives to continuously improve the overall performance in the areas of HES, Quality, Productivity and Cost effectiveness.
• Active participation in reliability efforts to improve asset utilization and operational sustainability.

Projects:

• Supports all changes in production areas including completion/participation of MOC’s, PSSR’s, PHA’s, PTR’s and all other process change implementation requirements.
• Manages all aspects of area projects related to process improvements for “small – mid capex investments, including, but not limited to, scope development, costing, planning, capital request, implementation and project management.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Four year degree in Chemical engineering required OR other engineering degree types will be considered along with prior process engineer role in chemical manufacturing setting.
• 5+ years engineering experience in chemical manufacturing environment, less experienced candidates may be considered for a Process Engineer role without the "Senior" designation. 
• Polymerization experience strongly preferred. 
• Working knowledge of process control logic, (PLC, DCS, etc.) is a plus.

NECESSARY COMPETENCIES

• Strong safety awareness, with the ability to hold self and others accountable
• Strong technical knowledge
• Good communication, both written and verbal
• Sound problem-solving and decision-making
• Adaptable and flexible
• Demonstrates initiative, personal drive, and accountability.
• Communicates effectively with all levels of organization in writing, verbally and through presentations.