Senior Lead Process & Materials Engineer - Electronics Assembly Chemistries

Celestica International LP•Richardson, TX

17d

About The Position

The Senior Lead Process & Materials Engineer identifies, selects, evaluates, and qualifies chemistries used in electronic assembly processes. Materials include solder pastes, fluxes, underfills, adhesives, encapsulants, thermal interface materials (TIMs), conformal coatings, and cleaning chemistries. The role combines analytical chemistry, materials science, process engineering, reliability engineering, and supplier management to introduce robust materials into production. It designs, develops, deploys, executes, and optimizes test plans to assess product and process quality and reliability. The position leads material scouting and evaluation, defines material performance requirements, and conducts structured DOE-based assessments under realistic process conditions. It owns the material qualification lifecycle from initial screening through process integration and reliability testing to production release, and leads laboratory investigations and failure analysis. The role translates material properties into controlled manufacturing processes, establishes process windows and monitoring strategies, and partners with factory engineering to validate manufacturability and support production ramp-up. It also works with suppliers and cross-functional teams, prepares technical reports and process documentation, ensures environmental and regulatory compliance, and maintains a materials roadmap aligned with future product and technology needs.

Requirements

At least 5 years of experience in electronics assembly, semiconductor packaging, or advanced materials development.
Degree in Materials Science, Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Analytical Chemistry, or a related field; educational requirements may vary by geography.
Knowledge of electrochemistry and its application to corrosion of electronic assemblies.
Strong understanding of soldering, adhesives, polymers, surface finishes, and reliability mechanisms.
Hands-on experience with DOE, SPC, PFMEA, and structured problem-solving methods such as 8D and DMAIC.
Ability to translate materials science into practical, scalable manufacturing processes.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with or hands-on experience using analytical tools such as DSC, TGA, DMA, rheometry, FTIR, XRF, SEM/EDS, SIR, and mechanical testing.
Experience with high-performance computing, automotive electronics, aerospace, or mission-critical reliability requirements.
Background in solder pastes, fluxes, TIMs, underfills, or advanced polymer systems.
Knowledge of automation, dispensing, jetting, printing, and reflow technologies.

Responsibilities

Scout, down-select, and technically evaluate chemistries for SMT, die attach, underfill, TIM application, encapsulation, and cleaning processes.
Define material performance requirements, including rheology, cure kinetics, thermal stability, adhesion, wetting, residue behavior, and compatibility with other process chemistries, substrates, and finishes.
Conduct structured DOE-based evaluations to characterize material behavior under realistic process windows.
Own the full material qualification lifecycle from initial screening through process integration, reliability testing, and production release.
Develop qualification test plans covering thermal cycling, humidity, CAF, electromigration (SIR), mechanical shock, reflow robustness, and chemical compatibility.
Manage projects and lead laboratory investigations.
Analyze failure modes using microscopy, spectroscopy, mechanical testing, and cross-sectioning to determine root cause and material suitability.
Collaborate with reliability engineering to define acceptance criteria and long-term performance expectations.
Translate material properties into controlled manufacturing processes, including print parameters, dispense profiles, cure profiles, reflow profiles, and cleaning cycles.
Establish process windows, control limits, and monitoring strategies for new chemistries.
Partner with factory process engineering to validate manufacturability at scale and support ramp-to-production.
Work with material suppliers to understand formulations, stability, shelf life, and process sensitivities.
Work with commodity management on supplier audits, technical reviews, and corrective actions when material performance deviates.
Collaborate with design engineering, reliability, quality, and operations to align chemistry choices with product requirements and cost targets.
Prepare reports identifying samples, describing test methods, documenting findings, and outlining conclusions.
Create and maintain material specifications, qualification reports, PFMEAs, control plans, and process documentation.
Ensure compliance with environmental and regulatory requirements, including RoHS, REACH, halogen-free, and VOC limits.
Maintain a materials roadmap aligned with future product and technology needs.