Principal Energetics Process Engineer

Ohr•Lafayette, CO

3d•$160,000 - $220,000•Onsite

About The Position

Ohr is scaling domestic production of energetic materials and the precursors they depend on. The Principal Energetics Process Engineer owns the process engineering required to design, scale, and qualify energetics manufacturing processes, with process safety integrated into the design itself. The role involves taking energetic formulations from laboratory and pilot operations into qualified production, ensuring that processes can be operated safely at production rates, and supporting the growth of Ohr’s manufacturing footprint. The engineer leads process safety analyses and regulatory compliance, specifies and qualifies energetic-processing equipment, and creates the documentation used to operate production runs. They also help transfer formulations from R&D into production using the sensitivity, thermal stability, and compatibility data required to support the safety case. The role includes incident investigations and technical due diligence on energetics manufacturing assets and technologies. This is an onsite position in Lafayette, Colorado, in the Denver–Boulder Metro Area, with travel up to 15% to production sites, laboratories, and test facilities. Relocation assistance is offered. The annual base salary range is $160,000–$220,000, commensurate with experience, plus equity.

Requirements

PhD in chemical engineering or chemistry; an MS or BS paired with deeper industrial experience will be considered.
10+ years of process engineering experience, including hands-on work in energetics manufacturing or energetic precursor production.
Direct experience with energetic material sensitivity, thermal stability, compatibility, and the testing that establishes them.
Strong Process Safety Management and hazardous materials background in a high-hazard production environment.
Experience with process modeling, data analysis, and statistical process control.
Experience specifying, commissioning, and qualifying process equipment inside a regulated facility.
Excellent technical writing; documentation will be read by regulators and auditors.
Must be a U.S. citizen or national, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual as defined under 8 U.S.C. § 1324b(a)(3), due to access to data and systems subject to U.S. export control regulations, including ITAR.
Must be eligible to serve as an “employee possessor” of explosive materials under federal law and not be a prohibited person as defined under 18 U.S.C. § 842(i).

Nice To Haves

Nitration chemistry or oxidizer precursor production experience.
ATF licensing and DDESB siting experience.
Pyrotechnics (BKNO3) or high-explosive pellet pressing experience.
Propellant or ordnance qualification programs.
Experience with process simulation tools such as Aspen Plus, ChemCAD, or AVEVA.

Responsibilities

Design, scale, and optimize manufacturing processes for energetic materials and energetic precursors.
Own scale-up of energetic formulations from laboratory and pilot operations into qualified production.
Lead process safety work, including Process Hazard Analyses, HAZOPs, FMEAs, explosive safety assessments, in-process quantity limits, and hazard classification.
Ensure compliance with ATF, OSHA Process Safety Management, DoD explosive safety standards including DoD 4145.26 and DDESB requirements, MIL specifications, NFPA standards, and environmental regulations.
Specify, commission, and qualify equipment for energetic processing, including mixing, drying, coating, pressing, and precursor synthesis, including nitration where applicable.
Own process documentation used for production runs, including PFDs, P&IDs, SOPs, work instructions, engineering specifications, and commissioning packages.
Transition new formulations out of R&D with sensitivity, thermal stability, and compatibility data that supports the safety case.
Lead incident investigations and corrective and preventive action.
Support technical due diligence on energetics manufacturing assets and technologies as Ohr's footprint grows.