R&D Chemist

Land O'Lakes•River Falls, WI

About The Position

The R&D Chemist drives research and development and commercialization domestically and internationally. The role manages pilot lab operations and facilitates technology transfer from laboratory and pilot-scale work to commercial production. It oversees projects intended to reduce business risk, implements new capabilities and techniques, and supports production efficiency, product improvement, and the stability and quality of commercial products while following safety and regulatory standards. The Chemist is the primary technical contact for plant nutrition products, QA/QC, and technology transfer to manufacturing facilities. As technical lead for R&D projects, the Chemist guides work through all stages, completes project actions within defined timelines, solves complex problems, and supports commercialization as well as marketing and training materials. The role serves as the plant nutrition subject matter expert, guides junior team members, identifies continuous-improvement opportunities, and recommends secondary sourcing and materials procurement approaches to support supply assurance. The position manages and coordinates projects across business units, develops project scoping and charter documentation, represents work to stakeholders, and writes reports and recommendations to support commercialization in international markets. It supports legally binding documents, investigates field and production QA/QC issues with Corporate Quality, conducts root-cause analysis, and engages external companies to identify technologies or solutions. As the manufacturing liaison, the Chemist recommends manufacturers, manages relationships, supports product launches, selects manufacturing sites, approves external contract manufacturers, and represents Winfield onsite during commercial production. The role coordinates with Omnium and Winfield R&D to transfer technology and information, oversees scale-up at the innovation center on lab and pilot scales, and manages pilot lab operations, budgeting, capital expenses, consumables, and waste. The Chemist is the pilot lab safety captain, coordinating pre-pilot operations with building operations, security, and the site safety manager. The role trains and onboards employees, communicates changes to safety standards, follows laboratory rules and procedures, reads safety data sheets, attends monthly safety meetings, completes assigned safety modules and training checklists, maintains a safe and clean laboratory, keeps reagents and standards stocked, and follows chemical disposal requirements. Land O’Lakes is a Fortune 250, farmer- and member-owned cooperative. The company states that it supports diversity in employment practices and provides a broad portfolio of benefits for employees and their families.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in chemistry, chemical engineering, or a closely related field.
10 years of laboratory R&D experience.
Knowledge of surface tension chemistry, analytical chemistry, physical chemistry, inorganic chemistry, coordination chemistry, micelle chemistry, complex ion equilibria, and biochemistry for formulation work.
Knowledge of QA/QC, manufacturing, and continuous improvement.
Knowledge of laboratory processes, OSHA requirements, and industry processes and standards through government organizations and industry groups such as AAPFCO, ASTM, CIPAC, and CPDA-AIC.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree preferred.

Responsibilities

Lead R&D projects through all stages and complete required actions within project timelines.
Serve as the technical subject matter expert and primary point of contact for plant nutrition products.
Solve complex technical problems and direct or recommend work to junior team members.
Identify continuous-improvement opportunities and recommend secondary sourcing and material procurement approaches to support supply assurance.
Manage projects, recommend courses of action, and drive projects to completion.
Coordinate across business units and develop project scoping and charter documentation.
Represent work and influence stakeholders to gain support for recommended actions.
Write reports and make recommendations to international businesses to support commercialization.
Review and recommend actions on legally binding documents to support compliance with applicable law.
Serve as the primary point of contact for field and production QA/QC issues; coordinate investigations with Corporate Quality and recommend solutions based on root-cause analysis.
Engage external companies to identify technologies and solutions for organizational needs.
Liaise between laboratory and pilot operations and full-scale manufacturing, recommending manufacturers and managing relationships to support product launches.
Implement capabilities and techniques for new products; select manufacturing sites and approve external contract manufacturers.
Develop strategies to improve production efficiency, set standards, and improve products.
Represent Winfield onsite during commercial production and manage the relationship between Omnium and Winfield R&D.
Set up and maintain recurring meetings to facilitate collaboration and technology transfer between Winfield and Omnium.
Oversee scale-up operations at the innovation center on laboratory and pilot scales.
Manage pilot lab operations, budgeting, capital expenses, consumables, and waste.
Act as safety captain for the pilot lab and coordinate pre-pilot operations with building operations, security, and the site safety manager.
Train and onboard employees and train employees on changes to Winfield/LOL safety standards.
Follow laboratory rules, regulations, health and safety policies, and SOPs; read safety data sheets; attend monthly safety meetings; complete assigned safety modules and the lab training checklist.
Help maintain a safe and clean chemistry lab, keep reagents and standards stocked, and follow chemical disposal requirements.