Polymer & Material Scientist

DEPARTMENT

SABIC`s Technology and Innovation (T&I) network consists of more than 1700 employees across six research- and ten application centers around the world. SABIC’s innovation journey is a key enabler for achieving the company’s vision to become the world leader in the chemical industry.

The technology organization supports SABIC’s global businesses in realizing its objectives by providing Best-In-Class Technology solutions. Within the T&I technology organization, SABIC is developing new products, applications, processes and products. Our Polymer PP Technology department in the technical center Geleen has an opening for a Sr. Scientist/ process development engineer in the Horizontal gas phase technology team.

SABIC is looking for a Polymer and Material Scientist to join our Multi-Cultural and Diverse Team in STC-Geleen, The Netherlands

JOB PURPOSE:

The purpose of this Polymer and Material Scientist role in the Corporate Technology and Innovation organization at SABIC, is to initiate, lead, execute and contribute to research and development projects resulting in new products and material solutions for customers and industries that SABIC serves.                      

Main Responsibilities:

Safety

• Devotes a high priority on assessing and addressing safety risks for themselves and their teams, applies higher level thinking about safety to provide paths to risk mitigation; strictly follows SABIC safety, health, and environment guidelines.

Industrial Research Innovation and Project Management & Execution

• Contributes to T&I research goals through generating and fostering novel and diverse ideas with major business impact
• Focuses on and contributes to projects to develop and deliver advanced new polymer materials solutions from the ideation stage, through proof of concept, to robust prototype stage, using good scientific practices and statistically-based tools to establish reliability and robustness of the developed material technology
• Has the willingness and is also capable of executing lab work plans including hands-on tasks in the lab and has no apprehension of stepping in to get things done
• Has the ability to develop new product/process strategies and plans for the necessary means to execute and accomplish them by using his/her skills in the field
• Able to critically analyze data and draw conclusions and recommendations on projects and advises go/no-go decisions to senior leadership; Is capable of carefully converting data & information into knowledge particularly in complex systems
• Acts as champion & spokesperson for thermoplastic material science, covering polymeric material science fields, which are related to relevant SABIC products in Polyolefin and/or Engineering Thermoplastics

Market & Application Familiarity and Business Acumen

• Able to identify and translate industry trends and customer needs into research deliverables and future strategic business needs for SABIC.  Understand the competition, market dynamics, and application spaces (such as automotive, electrical and electronics, packaging etc.), keep up on the latest trends in the relevant research fields
• Effectively interacts with the program team and further, global R&D, business and academia to seize innovative ideas and business opportunities for SABIC
• Anticipates future threats to SABIC businesses and technologies and plans long-term research accordingly
• Influences the technical direction of the T&I organization by focusing on key opportunities in line with business strategy

Technical Documentation, Technical Communication and Knowledge Management

• Protects the company’s IP position by filing, and helps develop the IP strategy together with project team for their projects
• Communicates and influences management team to drive initiatives that are aligned with SABIC’s long-term aspiration to gain competitive advantages
• Promotes awareness and the need for open technical communication including knowledge management
• Establishes and coordinates specialized internal and external technical networks

Additional Responsibilities:

• Ability to influence SABIC Europe and Global Partner(s)
• Ability to balance supportive/steering activities at Site and European level including go to for Advice by local manager(s)
• Ability to work and influence in multi-cultural, diverse Global Community whilst aligning with local and global policy and legal directives
• Ability to promote local and global corporate values
• Strong Entrepreneurial and Business Acumen working cross business and function(s)

MINIMUM EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS

• You have Advanced degree(s) in Materials/Polymer Science, Polymer Engineering or a related discipline (Master’s Degree with minimum 6 years relevant working experience or Ph.D. with a minimum experience of 3 years is required).
• Relevant industrial experience is a prerequisite.
• Exemplifies SABIC core values to inspire, engage, create and deliver
• You have proven industrial material research and product development expertise related to thermoplastics. In-depth knowledge and expertise on Polyolefins (PP, LDPE, LLDPE, HDPE, and specialties PO) and/or Engineering Thermoplastics (PC, PBT, Styrenic polymers etc.) as well as their formulated/compounded products is required.
• You should also have general knowledge on polymer resin chemistry, catalysis, manufacturing process, secondary operations, and application spaces.
• Experience in connecting with market space and translating application requirements is highly preferred.
• Expertise in filler dispersion in polymer matrix, material surface & interface functionalization, fire science, polymer long-term stability is a nice-to-have.
• Broad knowledge of polymer characterization techniques and skilled in statistical experimentation and data analysis methods.
• You are a critical observer as well as a conceptual and analytical thinker with a demonstrated track record of research excellence
• Self-driven, highly motivated and proactive with the ability to independently identify and lead innovative projects and programs.
• You are able to communicate complex technical concepts and results in a convincing manner in both technical and commercial environments.
• You are a team player able to work effectively in multidisciplinary and multicultural teams with excellent interpersonal skills. 
• Demonstrates good practice of the Scientific Methodology and documents work via Technical Reports, Intellectual property, Conference presentations and as deemed fit, peer reviewed Journal papers
• Experience in linking scientific principles, chemistry and polymer structure and formulation to real world applications preferred. Ability to work with customers and translate their needs to implementable solutions from polymer systems, blends, additives etc.
• Excellent interpersonal skills; demonstrated ability to effectively work with individuals at all levels of the organization and across functional disciplines (e.g. business leaders, technicians, chemists, chemical engineers, and manufacturing teams).
• Proven ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects and deliver on their objectives.
• You are fluent in oral and written English with excellent technical communication skills. Dutch and/or any additional other European language(s) would also be an asset

Location: STC-Geleen, The Netherlands

Travel: up to 15% (regionally and globally)

FURTHER INFORMATION

Interested in this position?

Please apply online by sending us your CV and motivation letter in English. Due to data privacy reasons we do not handle any applications sent by email. For additional questions you can contact: Karl Davies, Corporate Recruiter via email – karl.davies@sabic.com

The application closing-date is 30th April 2024.

Please be informed that a reference check, an employment verification and E-assessment are part of our recruitment process. A Certificate of Good Conduct can be requested depending on the level of the role in our organization and/or function, allowing us to request depending on local regulations.

Responses from employment agencies will not be considered.

ABOUT SABIC

SABIC is a global diversified chemicals company, headquartered in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. We manufacture on a global scale in the Americas, Europe, Middle East and Asia Pacific, making distinctly different kinds of products: chemicals, commodity and high performance plastics, agri-nutrients and metals. We support our customers by identifying and developing opportunities in key end-use applications such as construction, medical devices, packaging, agri-nutrients, electrical and electronics, transportation and clean energy. Our production in 2020 was 60.8 million metric tons.

We have more than 33,000 employees worldwide and operates in around 50 countries. Fostering innovation and a spirit of ingenuity, we have 9,000+ global patent filings, and significant research resources with innovation hubs in five key geographies – USA, Europe, Middle East, South Asia and North Asia.

In Europe, we have over 6,000 professionals running multiple world-scale production sites and 4 technology and innovation centers. We are present in almost every European country. Major locations within our broad network of innovation, production and marketing are: Teesside (UK), Cartagena (Spain), Gelsenkirchen (Germany), Geleen (the Netherlands), Bergen op Zoom (the Netherlands) and Genk (Belgium).

SABIC is committed to creating a diverse work environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and as such will not discriminate in its employment practices, including recruiting and hiring practices, based on a person’s race, color, religion, national origin, citizenship, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation and pregnancy), age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or other characteristics protected by law.