Senior Materials Engineer, Polymers

MATERIALS / ENGINEERING

• Research & develop new polymer technologies (plastics, elastomers, composites, adhesives, and coatings), systems and manufacturing techniques
• Apply knowledge & understanding to define high performance solutions
• Identify engineering trends and drive strategies to guide the organization’s technical direction
• Review intellectual property and technical publications to identify opportunities for development
• Provide technical leadership, direction, guidance and engineering expertise to the organization
• Perform root cause failure analysis of field & test failures
• Self-motivation to lead material/process investigations to solve and/or prevent quality issues
• Recognize inefficiencies in materials applications and sponsor improvement and cost/weight-saving activities

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

• Independently schedule, develop agendas for, facilitate and document technical project meetings and formal presentations
• Draw concise, logical, written conclusions from experiments and present recommendations to a variety of company levels and educational disciplines
• Effectively identify and communicate issues to upper management in a clear, concise and timely manner while driving action based on urgency
• Manage external relationships with university research teams, start-up companies, professional societies & associations and external testing experts
• Mentor and train junior engineers in their design, material selection, and failure analysis

What TOOLS You’ll Bring With You

• BS in Materials Science/Engineering with polymers focus. Master’s degree preferred, but not required.
• 8+ years hands-on, practical experience in polymer manufacturing, testing, R&D, and design.
• Experience with various materials, manufacturing & applications - emphasis on plastics, elastomers, thermoset resins, adhesives & coatings.
• Understanding & experience with rapid prototyping, injection molding & overmolding technologies
• Excellent problem-solving skills and a hands-on attitude.
• Excellent written & verbal communication skills
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision
• High proficiency in Microsoft Office programs, especially Excel and Power Point.
• Ability to travel 10% of the time to suppliers, development partners, production facilities & conferences
• Travel between local buildings (Menomonee Falls & Brookfield) for use of analysis equipment.
• Experience with failure analysis & fractography
• Preferred thermal analysis knowledge – TGA, DSC, DMA
• Preferred compositional testing knowledge – FTIR, SEM/EDS, GCMS, XRF, MFR
• Preferred mechanical testing knowledge – Tensile/Flex, Fatigue, Creep & Impact
• Proficiency in CAD (NX, Fusion 360) and FEA (Ansys) software is preferred
• Competency in Moldflow simulation is desirable, but not required.

Benefits

• Generous benefits including health, dental, vision, life insurance, and 401k matching
• Aid in the creation of disruptive new technologies and solutions
• An on-site cafeteria, state of the art fitness facility, recreational sports leagues, and company outings