Production Chemical Engineer

$90,000 - $135,000/Yr

American Battery Technology Company - Sparks, NV

Full-time - Mid Level

Sparks, NV

Mining (except Oil and Gas)

About the position

As our Chemical Production Engineer, you will play a crucial role in sustaining and improving the operations of our proprietary lithium-ion battery recycling and lithium refining processes. This position is integral to the success of our Pilot Plant in Sparks, Nevada, which represents the first integrated implementation of our multi-step processing train for battery metals. You will collaborate closely with the larger engineering team and various internal and external experts to ensure the successful operation of our facility. The ideal candidate will have experience operating large-scale and pilot-scale chemical manufacturing plants, troubleshooting and maintaining industrial process equipment, and supporting overall plant uptime and throughput. Your responsibilities will include a constant focus on evaluating current processing steps and proposing and developing next-generation solutions to continuously improve system performance and operability. You will be expected to respond to and recover malfunctioning equipment and processes to sustain 24/7 production operations. Additionally, you will support commissioning and startup activities for our first-in-kind battery recycling and lithium refining processes, implementing process improvement projects aimed at enhancing yield, uptime, product quality, and reducing operational expenses. You will work with the operations team to author essential documentation, including Operating Procedures, Preventative Maintenance Plans, and Spare Parts Lists. Investigating underperforming equipment and processes, troubleshooting issues, and implementing changes to improve Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) will be key aspects of your role. You will also produce Process Flow Diagrams (PFDs), Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams (P&IDs), and Mass and Energy Balances for process changes and improvements. Collaboration with vendors on equipment for our pilot and commercial processes will be necessary, as well as documenting lessons learned from commissioning and operations activities to inform future technology and process designs.

Responsibilities

• Sustain 24/7 production operations by responding to and recovering malfunctioning equipment and processes.
• Support commissioning and startup activities for our first-in-kind battery recycling and lithium refining processes.
• Implement process improvement projects to improve yield, uptime, product quality, and reduce OpEx.
• Work with the operations team to author documentation including but not limited to Operating Procedures, Preventative Maintenance Plans, Spare Parts Lists etc.
• Investigate equipment and processes that are underperforming, troubleshoot and implement changes to improve OEE.
• Produce PFDs, P&IDs, Mass and Energy Balances, Equipment Specs for process changes and improvements.
• Collaborate with vendors on equipment for our pilot and commercial processes.
• Document lessons learned from commissioning and operations activities and feed these forward into our next-gen technology and commercial process designs.
• Review and update document records for the equipment systems (e.g., Equipment Data, Process & Instrumentation Diagrams, Controls Narratives, and Wiring Diagrams, loop diagrams, and layout drawings).

Requirements

• Background in Engineering (Chemical, Mechanical preferred)
• 3+ years of engineering experience in a manufacturing environment.
• Experience with troubleshooting and commissioning process equipment.
• Experience implementing data-driven improvements to operational lines (DOE, Change Management).
• Experience in Statistical Process Control (SPC), Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma.
• Experience troubleshooting safety systems for manufacturing lines.
• Experience implementing HAZOP, FMEA and other methodologies for failure analysis for new and legacy plant design & operations.
• Working knowledge of process control methodology and discrete control strategies.
• Working knowledge Autodesk Software: Revit, AutoCAD and/or Navisworks.
• Experience working with high-performing teams on first-of-kind technology.
• Self-motivated and passionate about battery materials and sustainability.
• Collaborative approach to problem-solving.

Benefits

• Competitive salary
• Company-sponsored health, dental, vision, and life insurance
• Company-sponsored Employee Assistance Program
• Stock options
• 401(K)
• Flexible paid time off
• Monthly phone stipend