Process Chemist

Scientist / Engineer 1 – Process Chemistry (Life Cycle Assessment)

Salary: £26,939 - £34,939 per annum (dependent on experience)

Employment Type: 12 Month Fixed Term Contract (Maternity Cover)

Location: Sedgefield

About the organisation:

We bring together world-class science, technology and engineering to accelerate the development and commercialisation of innovative products and processes. As part of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, we work with industry, academia and government to solve complex challenges and help create a more sustainable future.

Our Process Chemistry team supports the development of sustainable technologies through environmental assessment, process understanding and innovation. We are now looking for a Scientist / Engineer to join our Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) delivery team, supporting projects across a diverse range of products, materials, processes and emerging technologies.

About the Role:

This is an exciting opportunity for someone with experience of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to apply their knowledge in a fast-paced research and innovation environment.

You'll be responsible for delivering LCA studies that help our customers and project teams make informed sustainability decisions. Working closely with scientists, engineers and industry partners, you'll develop environmental models, analyse complex datasets and communicate findings that influence the direction of technology development.

The role is predominantly desk-based and would suit someone who enjoys analytical thinking, working with data and translating technical information into meaningful insights. We are open to candidates from a range of backgrounds, including those who have gained significant LCA experience through PhD research, academia or industry.

What You'll Be Doing

• Conducting Life Cycle Assessments for products, materials, processes and technologies.
• Defining project goals, scope, system boundaries, assumptions and assessment methodologies.
• Developing and managing life cycle inventory datasets.
• Building and maintaining LCA models using recognised software platforms.
• Collecting and validating data from technical teams, clients, literature and databases.
• Interpreting results and identifying key environmental hotspots and improvement opportunities.
• Producing high-quality technical reports and presentations.
• Communicating findings to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Supporting sustainability-led decision making across innovation and research projects.
• Working collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams and external stakeholders.
• Contributing to the development of CPI's LCA capabilities, approaches and tools.

About You

We're looking for someone with practical experience of Life Cycle Assessment who is passionate about using environmental evidence to support sustainable innovation.

You may have:

• A degree, MSc, PhD or equivalent experience in:
• Sustainability
• Environmental Science
• Process Chemistry
• Chemistry
• Materials Science
• Engineering
• Or a related scientific discipline
• Experience conducting Life Cycle Assessments for products, processes, materials or technologies.
• Experience using recognised LCA software such as GaBi/LCA for Experts, SimaPro or openLCA.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent technical writing and reporting capabilities.
• The ability to present complex information clearly and effectively.
• A structured and detail-oriented approach to data management and analysis.

Desirable Experience:

Whilst not essential, we'd be particularly interested in candidates with experience or knowledge of:

• Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD)
• Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA)
• Techno-Economic Assessment (TEA)
• Life Cycle Costing (LCC)
• ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 standards
• Engineering principles, including mass and energy balances
• Working in collaborative R&D, consultancy or industrial project environments
• Customer-facing or stakeholder engagement activities

Why Join?

This role offers the opportunity to work on a wide variety of innovative projects spanning multiple sectors and technologies. You'll collaborate with experts across science and engineering disciplines, helping organisations understand and improve the environmental performance of their products and processes.

Whether you've developed your LCA expertise through industry, consultancy or academic research, this is an opportunity to apply your knowledge to real-world challenges and contribute to the development of more sustainable technologies.