Cornerstone Building Brands
Materials Engineer
The role of the Material Engineer is to support the R&D department's goals of improving technology for material manufacture. This position primarily involves optimization of material compounds, colorants, paint and coatings and testing procedures. By evaluation and improvement of these and other aspects of processes, the Material Engineer will seek to improve the quality, performance, and cost of existing products as well as assist in the development of new products for construction applications. Specific projects will be assigned by the Manager and/or Director who will provide guidance in the design of experiments and interpretation of results. Job Responsibilities Investigate specific aspects of product performance where improvements are needed or performance problems have been identified. Recommend modifications of materials or processes to improve performance. Evaluate and recommend for approval additional or improved sources of raw materials or colorants. Assist with the development of appropriate specifications for these ingredients. Modify material formulations to achieve specific improvements such as enhanced performance or reduced cost. Evaluate alternate formulations and generate test data to select the formulation with the best performance to satisfy project goals. Assist with the resolution of technical problems identified by manufacturing plants, particularly problems with material compounds, paints, colorants or QA testing procedures. Develop and recommend means to improve product quality where specific needs have been identified, i.e. uniformity of product attributes and compliance with specifications. Analyze QA data as needed to define previous quality performance. Conduct experiments as required to understand causes of problems and potential solutions. Develop and implement appropriate improvements. Evaluate and implement improvements as needed in the appearance and/or weatherability of products. Work with other R&D group members to improve laboratory operations with regard to safety, housekeeping, efficiency, and quality of results. Perform other duties as assigned. Job Qualifications Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering, Plastics Engineering, Polymer Science, Chemistry or similar technical degree or an equivalent combination of experience and education would be required. Three years in plastics research, product development, technical service, or related position preferred. Rigid PVC extrusion, PP Injection Molding, plastic color or paint and coating experience preferred. Prior cementitious experience may also be required. Effective verbal and written communications skills required. Effective computer skills including databases, spreadsheets, and word processing preferred. Familiar with plastics testing (rheology, thermal and physical properties, etc.) and extrusion preferred. Familiar with PVC formulation technology and compounding preferred. Position requires light travel (probably not more than 30%), mostly to manufacturing plants.
The role of the Material Engineer is to support the R&D department's goals of improving technology for material manufacture. This position primarily involves optimization of material compounds, colorants, paint and coatings and testing procedures. By evaluation and improvement of these and other aspects of processes, the Material Engineer will seek to improve the quality, performance, and cost of existing products as well as assist in the development of new products for construction applications. Specific projects will be assigned by the Manager and/or Director who will provide guidance in the design of experiments and interpretation of results. Job Responsibilities Investigate specific aspects of product performance where improvements are needed or performance problems have been identified. Recommend modifications of materials or processes to improve performance. Evaluate and recommend for approval additional or improved sources of raw materials or colorants. Assist with the development of appropriate specifications for these ingredients. Modify material formulations to achieve specific improvements such as enhanced performance or reduced cost. Evaluate alternate formulations and generate test data to select the formulation with the best performance to satisfy project goals. Assist with the resolution of technical problems identified by manufacturing plants, particularly problems with material compounds, paints, colorants or QA testing procedures. Develop and recommend means to improve product quality where specific needs have been identified, i.e. uniformity of product attributes and compliance with specifications. Analyze QA data as needed to define previous quality performance. Conduct experiments as required to understand causes of problems and potential solutions. Develop and implement appropriate improvements. Evaluate and implement improvements as needed in the appearance and/or weatherability of products. Work with other R&D group members to improve laboratory operations with regard to safety, housekeeping, efficiency, and quality of results. Perform other duties as assigned. Job Qualifications Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering, Plastics Engineering, Polymer Science, Chemistry or similar technical degree or an equivalent combination of experience and education would be required. Three years in plastics research, product development, technical service, or related position preferred. Rigid PVC extrusion, PP Injection Molding, plastic color or paint and coating experience preferred. Prior cementitious experience may also be required. Effective verbal and written communications skills required. Effective computer skills including databases, spreadsheets, and word processing preferred. Familiar with plastics testing (rheology, thermal and physical properties, etc.) and extrusion preferred. Familiar with PVC formulation technology and compounding preferred. Position requires light travel (probably not more than 30%), mostly to manufacturing plants.