Staff Process Engineer (Process & Material Handling)

Sila•Alameda, CA

18h•Hybrid

About The Position

As a Staff Process Engineer on Sila’s Technology team, you will be responsible for designing, commissioning and start-up of critical steps in Sila’s first and future industrial scale plants. You’ll also start working on the next generation technology after Sila’s first plant is running. The ideal team member will have experience working efficiently in high pressure situations, such as plant startups, new grade trials, or turnarounds, to deliver product on-spec. You bring applicable experiences of having seen different manufacturing plant technologies, having worked with bulk solids in manufacturing, or have expert level competency in at least one chemical technology so you know what process engineering excellence looks like. You bring a collaborative and bias for action energy to the team. You have seamlessly worked closely with or on a chemical company’s R&D and Technology teams as well as with the Manufacturing Engineering, Operations and Maintenance teams. Most importantly, you are comfortable working on new problems everyday, have an extreme-ownership mentality, and have a track record of pushing yourself and your team to be better every single day.

Requirements

B.S. or M.S. in Chemical Engineering or Mechanical Engineering
Minimum of 5 years of experience directly owning a high volume production line or in a design-to-commissioning role as a Production or Process Design Engineer for a plant or other comparable manufacturing (speciality materials, food, chemicals, etc.)
Ability to visualize in great detail and have a first-principles understanding of an operating plant
Exposure to process design that may range from minor retrofits to new plant scope
Knowledge of basic controls schemes and familiarity with advanced control strategies
Experience with daily and long-term process optimization and production constraints
Risk management, management of change and HAZOP experience
Years of experience creating, reading and edited PFDs, P&IDs, and Operating Procedures
Ability to determine and solve for key parameters for process scale-up to commercial volumes
Track record of relentlessly challenging accepted practices and inefficiencies

Nice To Haves

Experience working efficiently in high pressure situations, such as plant startups, new grade trials, or turnarounds, to deliver product on-spec.
Applicable experiences of having seen different manufacturing plant technologies, having worked with bulk solids in manufacturing, or have expert level competency in at least one chemical technology so you know what process engineering excellence looks like.
Collaborative and bias for action energy to the team.
Seamlessly worked closely with or on a chemical company’s R&D and Technology teams as well as with the Manufacturing Engineering, Operations and Maintenance teams.
Comfortable working on new problems everyday, have an extreme-ownership mentality, and have a track record of pushing yourself and your team to be better every single day.

Responsibilities

Commission Sila’s manufacturing plant to produce next-generation battery materials
Be the Process Eng for a critical unit or set of units in the manufacturing process
Collaborate with all engineering disciplines, operations and others required for a chemical plant
Expertly balance day-to-day priorities with long term deliverables
Work seamlessly with internal teams and 3rd party vendors to drive technical deliverables
Play a critical role in the long term vision and execution of production line improvements
Drive design and control scheme modifications for large scale first-of-a-kind plant during startup
Develop HMBs, P&IDs and other FEED deliverables starting at concept for the next gen plant
Drive ideas through R&D, Material Dev, and Pilot Test Teams for at-scale implementation
Influence others across the org and drive technical solutions