Senior Process Safety Chemist

Curia • Albany, NY

5d • Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Process Safety Chemist is responsible for managing Curia's Process Safety Laboratory to liaise and support project process safety activities at different Curia sites; this includes new business opportunities, development projects, and production activities at manufacturing sites. The role works closely with the Corporate Process Safety Team on daily and strategic items. Curia is a global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) with over 30 years of experience partnering with pharmaceutical and biotech companies to provide life-saving treatments to patients. At Curia, we are on a mission to advance our customers’ therapies from curiosity to cure and ultimately to improve patients’ lives.

Requirements

• Ph.D. in Chemistry or Chemical Engineering with at least 1-2 years of experience with an emphasis on process safety
• M.S. in Chemistry or Chemical Engineering with at least 2-3 years of experience with an emphasis on process safety
• Hands-on experience with: Thermal stability (e.g., DSC, ARC), calorimetry (e.g., RC1), and gas generation
• Knowledge of chemical explosivity screening (e.g., transport regulations), of dust explosivity testing (e.g., MIE), of flammability (e.g., Flash Point, LEL/UEL), and of electrical conductivity
• Experience with applying process safety data within a chemical batch scale-up environment
• Must pass a background check
• Must pass a drug screen
• May be required to pass Occupational Health Screening

Nice To Haves

• Knowledge of synthetic chemistry and pharmaceutical development
• Ability to contribute to PHAs (e.g., HazOp, FMEA, What-If)
• Management/leadership experience and knowledge of business operations

Responsibilities

• Perform desktop-based review of current projects and new business opportunities, providing feedback on potential hazards and necessary testing to technical & bid writing teams
• Conduct literature searches for relevant process safety information (e.g., hazardous properties of materials)
• As necessary, design tailored testing protocols for unique reactive chemical hazards
• Perform and/or direct experiments internally (or externally as appropriate)
• Interpret results through application of process safety principles (e.g., explosive properties, TMR, Stoessel’s Criticality Index, dust explosivity)
• Infer safe chemical handling conditions to address physical hazards based on experimental results
• Propose risk-reduction measures to control identified hazards to acceptable levels
• Author, review, and communicate test reports to project teams
• Manage data collection to ensure accessibility across Curia
• Occasionally participate in PHAs (or educate the core team) as a reactive chemical hazards SME
• Work with the Corporate PS team to further develop guidance and to work with sites to implement
• Develop and deliver training packages pertinent to the process safety program
• Manage and prioritize multiple projects effectively to ensure that testing and reports are completed on a timely basis
• Perform regular maintenance of lab equipment, coordinate vendor service/repairing if needed
• Work with Corporate Process Safety to develop and implement a long-term laboratory improvement plan to support evolving business needs
• Perform other related duties as may be reasonably assigned in the course of business
• Ensure that all laboratory operations are conducted in a safe manner in accordance with the Chemical Hygiene Plan

Benefits

• Generous benefit options (eligible first day of employment)
• Paid training, vacation and holidays (vacation accrual begins on first day of employment)
• Career advancement opportunities
• Education reimbursement
• 401K program with matching contributions
• Learning platform

What This Job Offers

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