Engineer II, Adjuvant Development and Manufacturing

Vaxcyte, Inc. (Nasdaq: PCVX) is a vaccine innovation company engineering high-fidelity vaccines to protect humankind from the consequences of bacterial diseases. The Company is developing broad-spectrum conjugate and novel protein vaccines to prevent or treat bacterial infectious diseases. Vaxcyte's lead candidate, VAX-24, is a 24-valent, broad-spectrum, carrier-sparing pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) being developed for the prevention of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD). The Company is re-engineering the way highly complex immunizations are made through modern synthetic techniques, including advanced chemistry and our exclusively licensed XpressCFTM cell-free protein synthesis platform. Unlike conventional cell-based approaches, the Company's system for producing difficult-to-make proteins and antigens is intended to accelerate its ability to efficiently create and deliver high-fidelity vaccines with enhanced immunological benefits. Vaxcyte's pipeline also includes VAX-31, a 31-valent PCV candidate; VAX-A1, a prophylactic vaccine candidate designed to prevent Group A Strep infections; VAX-PG, a therapeutic vaccine candidate designed to slow or stop the progression of periodontal disease; and VAX-GI, a vaccine program designed to prevent Shigella. The Company is driven to eradicate or treat invasive bacterial infections, which have serious and costly health consequences when left unchecked. For more information, visit www.vaxcyte.com.

 

Vaxcyte, headquartered in San Carlos, CA, went public in June 2020 and currently has a team of approximately 180 employees and anticipates continued, significant growth. Following equity offerings in October 2022 and April 2023, which generated over $1.1 billion in net proceeds, the Company's balance sheet is further strengthened to advance its pipeline of novel vaccines, including VAX-24. These financings followed positive data readouts from Vaxcyte's Phase 1/2 proof-of-concept study evaluating VAX-24 in adults aged 18-64 and Phase 2 study in adults 65 and older. The Company believes these results support a best-in-class potential for VAX-24, which was designed to replace the current standard-of-care in adults and children. VAX-24 is being investigated for the prevention of IPD, which can be most serious for infants, young children, older adults and those with immune deficiencies or certain chronic health conditions. Given the global impact of pneumococcal disease remains significant, the public health community continues to advocate for vaccines that can offer broader protection to prevent IPD. Vaxcyte's PCV franchise, consisting of VAX-24 and VAX-31, is designed specifically to address this need and has the potential to deliver the broadest protection for this very serious disease. We believe that our PCVs could receive regulatory approval based on successful completion of clinical studies utilizing well-defined surrogate immune endpoints, consistent with how other PCVs have obtained regulatory approval in the past, rather than requiring clinical field efficacy studies.

 

Vaxcyte is looking for an energetic and talented individual to join the Drug Product Development (DP) team. The primary responsibilities for the incumbent will be the process Development and Manufacturing of Adjuvants in support of pre-clinical programs through to the phase 3 and commercial readiness. This position will require the candidate to develop scalable and scaled manufacturing process for Adjuvants.

 

The Adjuvant is an essential component of the Drug Product. The Adjuvant Development and Manufacturing Engineer plays a vital role in the pharmaceutical manufacturing process by developing and optimizing adjuvants used in drug product formulations. This position involves researching and developing suitable adjuvants, optimizing manufacturing processes, supporting formulation development, ensuring regulatory compliance, and troubleshooting Development and Manufacturing issues. This is an incredible opportunity for the right candidate to make a significant impact on the product, the company, and the industry. The candidate will need to relish the scope and size of this unique challenge.  

Essential Functions:

•          Develop early-stage manufacturing processes including aspects relating to scale-down model development, characterization, and scale-up of unit operations for adjuvants.
•          Support the selection and qualification of raw materials and equipment, ensuring their suitability for the manufacturing process and adherence to quality standards.
•          Enable the team in general process design, including optimization of reaction parameters such as pH and concentration of reactants, to achieve desired product quality and yield.
•          Conduct experiments and analyse data using Design of Experiments (DoE) methodology to identify key process parameters and their effects on product quality attributes.
•          Collaborate with analytical teams to develop analytical methods for in-process and final product testing characterization.
•          In concert with the CMC team and external guidance, aid in late-stage process characterization and process validation.
•          Collaborate with the DP Formulation Team to troubleshoot and optimize the DP as required for phase 1, 2, 3 and commercial needs.
•          Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives, driving operational excellence and cost optimization in the manufacturing process.
•          Participate in process development activities for commercial Adjuvant manufacturing, process characterization, tech transfer, process validation, and ongoing commercial manufacturing.
•          Apply statistical/data analytics techniques to draw conclusions and make informed decisions.
•          Candidates with experience in the Development and Manufacturing of aluminium-based adjuvants will be given preference.

Requirements:

•          Bachelor's degree and >6 years of scientific/process development experience OR Master's degree and >4 years of scientific/process development experience. BSc or MSc in Chemical Engineering, Pharmaceutical Sciences, the physical sciences, or a related field preferred.
•          Proficiency in Design of Experiments (DoE) methodology and statistical data analysis.
•          Knowledge of raw material selection, qualification, and supplier management processes.
•          Experience in performing root cause analysis and implementing corrective actions to resolve manufacturing process issues.
•          Apply knowledge of pharmaceutical science and engineering to overcome challenges around adjuvant characterization, manufacturing and scale up.
•          Strong interpersonal and leadership skills; ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in written formats.
•          Ability to work within in a fast-paced, cross functional environment, multitasking as needed.
•          Ability to independently design and implement Adjuvant process development, manufacturing and characterization experiments while adhering to scientifically-sound practices, including the design, execution, review, and interpretation of experiments.
•          All Vaxcyte employees require vaccination against COVID-19.

Reports to: Senior Engineer, Drug Product Engineering

 

Location: San Carlos, CA

 

The compensation package will be competitive and includes comprehensive benefits and an equity component.

 

Salary Range: $124,000 - $138,000

careers@vaxcyte.com

 

Vaxcyte, Inc.

825 Industrial Road, Suite 300

San Carlos, CA 94070

 

We are an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or veteran status.