Iron Lab Manager (AMRG)

Ecology Auto Parts•Desert Center, CA

5d•Onsite

About The Position

Aggregate Mineral Resource Group, LLC (AMRG) is seeking an experienced, technically skilled, and highly organized manager to lead and coordinate laboratory operations supporting iron recovery, mineral processing, metallurgy, resource recovery, and analytical work. Depending on operational needs and the successful candidate’s technical background, the manager may oversee one specialized laboratory, multiple laboratory functions, or interconnected testing and process-control activities. These may include material characterization, mineral processing and separation, beneficiation, wet chemistry, acid-based testing, sample preparation, analytical testing, recovery testing, and flotation. The manager is accountable for personnel, workflow, testing schedules, sample control, equipment, calibration, quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC), safety, documentation, reporting, and coordination with AMRG operations. The role requires the technical foundation and laboratory-management experience to oversee qualified personnel, maintain analytical integrity, establish standardized procedures, and ensure work is completed safely, accurately, efficiently, and on schedule. This is an industrial mineral-processing laboratory role, not a biotech or pharmaceutical laboratory role. This is a full-time, non-exempt, onsite position in Desert Center, California. The schedule is assigned based on operational requirements. The anticipated pay range is $40.00–$55.00 per hour, depending on experience and qualifications. The company offers medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) plan with employer matching, paid time off, holiday pay, and life insurance, subject to applicable plan terms.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Metallurgy, Materials Science, Chemistry, Geology, Geological Engineering, Mining Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or a related scientific or engineering discipline; equivalent directly relevant experience may be considered.
Five or more years of progressive laboratory, metallurgical, mining, mineral-processing, chemical, analytical, materials, or related industrial experience.
Demonstrated experience supervising laboratory personnel, workflow, testing schedules, equipment, QA/QC, or technical operations.
Strong understanding of laboratory quality control, sample preparation, testing procedures, calibration, documentation, technical reporting, and data integrity.
Demonstrated ability to coordinate multiple testing disciplines and interpret technical laboratory data for operational use.
Competence in laboratory equipment management, preventive maintenance, calibration, troubleshooting, and vendor coordination.
Strong leadership, organization, communication, problem-solving, and decision-making capabilities.
Ability to safely handle laboratory samples and materials weighing up to 60 pounds with appropriate assistance or equipment when required.
Regular attendance and availability during established laboratory and operational hours.

Nice To Haves

Experience managing a mining, metallurgical, mineral-processing, resource-recovery, chemical, or heavy-industrial laboratory.
Experience with iron-bearing materials, mineral beneficiation, froth flotation, mineral separation, tailings analysis, or process-recovery testing.
Experience with ICP acid digestion, X-ray fluorescence (XRF), fire assay, or related laboratory and analytical equipment.
Experience establishing or expanding laboratory capabilities, developing SOPs, implementing QA/QC systems, or leading laboratory audits.
Experience coordinating external laboratories, technical consultants, equipment vendors, or specialized analytical services.
MSHA Part 48 certification or willingness to obtain it upon hire.

Responsibilities

Lead daily operations for assigned iron, metallurgical, mineral-processing, process-control, and analytical laboratory functions.
Coordinate laboratory priorities, staffing, workflow, testing schedules, turnaround times, equipment utilization, and resource requirements based on production and project demand.
Supervise laboratory technicians and coordinate work with metallurgists, mineralogists, engineers, consultants, vendors, and operations personnel.
Develop scalable laboratory systems, standard operating procedures (SOPs), training programs, quality controls, and reporting practices as AMRG expands its testing capabilities.
Oversee collection, receipt, identification, tracking, storage, preparation, and distribution of ore, feed, concentrate, tailings, intermediate, and finished-material samples.
Establish standardized sample-preparation procedures, including drying, crushing, splitting, grinding, pulverizing, and sieving, while controlling contamination and maintaining representative samples.
Oversee or coordinate metallurgical and mineral-processing testing involving beneficiation, concentration, separation, flotation, recovery, and process optimization.
Evaluate laboratory results related to iron-bearing material characteristics, feed quality, concentrates, tailings, recovery performance, and processing conditions.
Oversee or coordinate wet-chemistry and acid-based procedures used for mineral characterization, metals analysis, process control, and resource-recovery work.
Ensure acids, reagents, standards, and laboratory chemicals are properly prepared, labeled, stored, handled, documented, and disposed of in accordance with safety requirements.
Coordinate specialized instrumental or analytical testing and external laboratory services when work exceeds current in-house capabilities.
Review analytical results for accuracy, precision, consistency, reasonableness, and operational significance; investigate abnormal or inconsistent results and coordinate retesting or corrective action.
Establish and maintain laboratory QA/QC programs using appropriate standards, blanks, duplicates, control samples, reference materials, audits, and corrective-action procedures.
Oversee operation, calibration, preventive maintenance, verification, troubleshooting, and repair coordination for laboratory and sample-preparation equipment.
Maintain traceable records for samples, analytical data, calibration, maintenance, QA/QC, equipment performance, training, and laboratory activities.
Generate and oversee daily, weekly, monthly, and project-specific reports; identify trends, deviations, recovery changes, process concerns, or efficiency gaps and communicate findings to management.
Translate laboratory findings into actionable information supporting production, mineral recovery, process optimization, material quality, and operational decision-making.
Support controlled testing programs, pilot work, process investigations, and continuous-improvement initiatives involving beneficiation, separation, flotation, recovery, tailings, and process control.
Train laboratory personnel on testing procedures, sample handling, equipment operation, documentation, QA/QC, chemical handling, and safe work practices; verify competency before independent work.
Maintain a clean, organized, safe, and compliant laboratory environment and enforce applicable MSHA, OSHA, environmental, chemical-handling, hazardous-material, waste-disposal, and company requirements.