Head of Project Engineering

Scientific Protein Laboratories•Waunakee, WI

6d•Onsite

About The Position

The Head of Project Engineering manages the Engineering team at Scientific Protein Laboratories’ Waunakee site, providing technical guidance on projects and process scale-up activities. The role oversees project engineers and capital projects from initiation through start-up and closeout, ensuring company policies and procedures are followed. It also directly manages selected capital projects as a working leader and supports site capital planning and the long-range engineering roadmap in coordination with the Director and site leadership. The position leads the capital project portfolio, including intake, prioritization, scheduling, resource allocation, budgets, capital appropriation, and financial reporting. It directs commissioning, qualification, and validation for capital projects and coordinates with Quality and Validation to deliver qualified, GMP-compliant systems. The role oversees external engineering firms, vendors, and construction contractors, and establishes consistent project governance, engineering standards, documentation, and design-review practices. The Head of Project Engineering also owns engineering drafting and drawing management, ensuring drawings and technical documentation are accurate, controlled, and available in their latest approved revisions. The position collaborates with Manufacturing, Quality, EHS, Automation and Electrical Maintenance Engineering, Reliability and Compliance, CSV, and customer programs to align projects with operational and compliance needs. It leads improvement projects that strengthen reliability and throughput, lower operating costs, and improve manufacturing performance, and serves as the primary engineering interface for customer-driven capital and process projects.

Requirements

Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering or a related scientific discipline.
At least 10 years of engineering experience in a chemical or pharmaceutical production environment, or equivalent.
Experience working in a regulated environment, including ISO, cGMP, and OSHA 1910.119 (PSM), is preferred; at least 5 years is specified.
At least 3 years of experience managing capital projects is preferred.

Nice To Haves

A degree in Chemical or Mechanical Engineering.
An advanced degree in a scientific discipline or other technical area.
At least 5 years of experience in a regulated environment, including ISO, cGMP, and OSHA 1910.119 (PSM).
At least 3 years of experience managing capital projects.

Responsibilities

Lead, develop, and prioritize the Project Engineering team’s work, assigning projects according to workload, site priority, and project requirements.
Mentor engineers, develop technical capabilities and career paths, and lead succession planning.
Manage the capital project portfolio, including intake, prioritization, scheduling, and resource balancing.
Support site capital planning and develop the long-range engineering roadmap with the Director and site leadership.
Develop capital appropriation requests, forecast and control project costs, and report financial performance to site leadership.
Directly manage and execute selected capital projects.
Lead the commissioning, qualification, and validation lifecycle for capital projects, including URS, design qualification, FAT/SAT, and IQ/OQ/PQ, in coordination with Quality and Validation.
Manage the development, tracking, and delivery of system turnover packages for completed systems and equipment handed over to Manufacturing and Maintenance.
Manage external engineering firms, equipment vendors, and construction contractors, including scope definition, bid evaluation, and oversight of design, fabrication, installation, and construction.
Establish and enforce project governance, engineering standards, documentation practices, and stage-gate and design-review discipline.
Develop and maintain engineering design standards, equipment and instrumentation specifications, and design basis documentation.
Coordinate with Manufacturing, Quality, EHS, Automation and Electrical Maintenance Engineering, Reliability and Compliance, CSV, and key customer programs.
Partner with Manufacturing and Quality to align project scope, timing, and change control with production and compliance needs.
Coordinate automation, reliability, and validation integration with relevant engineering and compliance functions.
Own the site engineering drafting and drawing management function, including CAD standards, drawing numbering conventions, and revision-control practices.
Ensure engineering drawings, including P&IDs, facility and equipment layouts, and electrical and mechanical drawings, are accurate, current, organized, and accessible in their latest approved revisions.
Identify and lead continuous improvement and operational efficiency projects to increase reliability and throughput, reduce operating costs, and improve manufacturing performance.
Serve as the primary engineering interface for customer-driven capital and process projects.
Work with the Quality Systems group to manage the Change Control Program.
Implement metrics to monitor the effectiveness and continual improvement of assigned functions.
Support off-hours emergency situations involving incidents that compromise facility preparedness to support normal business functions.