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Form of workAbout ZymoChem
ZymoChem is re-imagining how to make some of our favorite everyday products without polluting the planet. Motivated by the enormous carbon footprint and vast amount of trash from the fossil-based materials produced by century-old technologies of the 'traditional' chemicals industry, ZymoChem's mission is to create plant-based, hero materials that enable a sustainable future. We are realizing this vision by pioneering low-cost fermentation-based production of chemicals coupled with advanced Materials Development technologies.
ZymoChem has raised >$20 million to-date that includes funding from premier domestic & international venture capital firms, multiple government awards - most recently two ARPA-E awards - and partnerships with world-leading chemicals companies. Tripling in team size since mid-2021, we are still growing and filling multiple roles (www.zymochem.com/careers). We seek candidates who are motivated by science & innovation and have a passion to push the boundaries of materials performance. We are collaborative, multidisciplinary, and relentlessly committed to creating a chemicals & materials industry in tune with the 21st century. If this sounds exciting, we want to hear from you.
The Opportunity
We're seeking a Temporary Full-time or Part-time hands-on Materials Development Technician to join our growing team. The ideal candidate could be a student finishing up the Bachelor degree and wants to work part-time or someone just starting their career post high school or Associate degree with 1-2 years of previous lab experience. Must be willing to work weekends plus some weekday hours. This assignment is expected to last 6 weeks and has the potential for future opportunity with a growing biotech company.
In this role, you'll have the unique opportunity to help develop our process for producing a first-of-its-kind bioproduct that will replace materials currently produced from petroleum. You will gain diverse experience from assembling, testing, and scaling commercially-relevant workflows, and will explore a combination of established and cutting-edge technologies. This opportunity offers consistent multi-disciplinary collaborations with internal R&D groups as well as the company's external partners to accelerate the scale-up of our Materials Development process, from the benchtop to the pilot and demonstration levels.
Responsibilities
- Hands-on set up, execution, and clean up of bench- & pilot-scale process equipment for proof-of-concept experiments and benchmarking studies designed to meet project milestones and product specifications.
- Testing and data collection for commercially-scalable R&D pilot processes for the production of our first-of-its-kind bioproduct.
- Sampling and sample processing, in addition to establishing new approaches for evaluating process streams.
- May interface with the Downstream Processing and Analytical Groups, and also collaborate with vendors and CMO partners.
- Contribute to the expansion of the Materials Development group's capabilities by exploring new technologies and strategies to improve production and accelerate scale-up efforts.
- Support the maintenance of the company's processing technologies via hands-on equipment troubleshooting and repair.
Qualifications
- 1+ years of industrial/startup experience working directly with bench and pilot-scale process development lab
- Associates Degree in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Process Engineering, Material Science, or a related discipline preferred
- Hands-on expertise on testing, cutting, data collection, etc. for Materials Development.
- Experience with analytical devices for polymers is a plus
- Strong aptitude for hands-on work with equipment along with a rigorous attention to details with experimental design, execution, and recordkeeping
- Excellent time management skills, effective with multitasking, and an adept ability to improvise work plans while maintaining efficiency
- Capability and willingness to work extended days, off-peak hours, and weekends
- Must be willing to work weekends plus some weekday hours.
Nice to Have (but not required)
- Experience with the process of extrusion
- Fundamental knowledge of biochemical & process engineering principles including mass balance & transport, reactor design, fluid dynamics, and process control
- Prior industrial work with modeling software (ASPEN, SuperPro) and/or building computational models; familiarity with scripting tools such as Python and R
Full-time opportunities at ZymoChem come with:
- Competitive pay range for entry-level is $25-28/hour
- Additional benefits available if/ when converted to full-time regular employee status.
ZymoChem seeks candidates who are motivated by our mission and are equally passionate toward pushing the boundaries to build a sustainable future. This position will be based in the Gate 510 technology hub in San Leandro, CA. Located in the vibrant East Bay area of San Francisco, Gate 510 is a state-of-the-facility with many in-house and nearby amenities.
If this opportunity sounds exciting and aligns with your career aspirations, we want to hear from you!
Legal authorization to work in the United States is required. ZymoChem may agree to sponsor an individual for an employment visa immediately or in the future if there is a shortage of individuals with particular skills for this job. In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States, and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire.
