Innovation Intern

ProAmpac • Hanover Park, IL

10d • Onsite

About The Position

At ProAmpac, we focus heavily on the development and advancement of innovative, sustainable packaging solutions. We are seeking an Innovation Intern for our Hanover Park facility to support our Packaging Science Lab. This role offers significant hands-on experience. You will work directly alongside our Lead Innovation Engineer, essentially serving as their second-in-command. Because our engineer frequently travels for trials and customer consultations, you will be trusted to maintain lab operations, run ongoing experiments, and keep projects moving forward in their absence. This is an excellent opportunity to see how R&D directly connects to an active, on-site manufacturing environment.

Requirements

• Currently pursuing a Bachelor’s or Master's degree in Packaging Science, Materials Science, Chemistry, Engineering, Food Science, or a related technical field.
• Strong troubleshooting abilities with a natural curiosity for diagnosing why an experiment or material behaves a certain way.
• Ability to manage multiple testing projects simultaneously while following documented policies and safety procedures.
• Excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills for sharing technical data with different teams.
• Proficient with Microsoft Office products (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams).

Responsibilities

• Keep the lab running smoothly. You will oversee active testing, manage daily lab work, and troubleshoot challenges—particularly when the Lead Engineer is traveling.
• Conduct hands-on experiments to develop and evaluate active, intelligent, and sustainable packaging solutions.
• Document experimental procedures, results, and observations accurately. Analyze the data to prepare clear summaries, reports, and case studies.
• Partner with engineering, production, and other internal teams to brainstorm ideas and solve technical manufacturing challenges.
• Help prepare prototypes and present project updates or technical findings to internal stakeholders in a clear, professional manner.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Intern