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Intermediate-level Fermentation Scientist |  |
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Location - Edmonton, Alberta, Canada  |  |
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About TerraVerdae:
TerraVerdae BioWorks is developing an innovative biorefinery platform for production of high-value, sustainable biobased products. Our capabilities and focus extend to development of next generation biobased materials as alternatives to petroleum-derived plastics. Our approach blends leading technology from a broad range of disciplines including industrial biotechnology, polymer chemistry, metabolic engineering, and systems biology. With operations in Canada and the UK, we work in partnership with leading commercial, technology, and research organizations in Canada, the UK, the USA, and Australia. We are establishing our Edmonton Research and Development facility to support our global bioprocess development effort. We are currently seeking a highly talented and motivated Intermediate-level Fermentation Scientist to become part of our team in our Edmonton location.
Position Summary:
The Intermediate-level Fermentation Scientist will contribute to the development and optimization of a microbial fermentation process for the production of biomaterials and biobased chemicals. The ideal candidate has strong technical aptitude and is highly motivated and energetic, with excellent organizational and communication skills. The ability to analyze and develop creative solutions to challenging problems is essential. The successful candidate will be a key member of a team focused on development and optimization of bioproduction processes and will work closely with a broader global team including biology and biochemistry researchers, downstream chemists and engineers, and external collaborators.
Primary Responsibilities and Essential Duties:
- Contributes to development, evaluation, and/or optimization of technologies, processes, methodologies and strains for microbial production of biomaterials and bio-based chemicals
- Applies the latest knowledge of microbial physiology, secondary metabolism and biosynthetic pathways to process design and optimization, including reactor design, reaction kinetics, material and energy balances, data and process modeling, and process variable and feedstock studies
- Responsible for set up, operation, and routine maintenance of processing and extraction technologies from bench scale to 100+ L; monitors processes to ensure consistency and reliability
- Contributes to development of protocols, guidelines, SOPs and experimental protocols
- Establishes/maintains effective working relationships with internal team members, as well as government, academic, and industry partners and collaborators
Desired Skills and Experience:
- PhD in Biological sciences, Biochemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related discipline
- 5-10 years experience with fermentation processes optimization and scale-up/scale-down
- Strong background in microbial culturing techniques with a deep understanding of microbial metabolism, as well as bioreactor design and operating principles (mass transfer, heat transfer, and microbial kinetics)
- Experience with state-of-the-art analytical techniques necessary for on-line and off-line monitoring of fermentation performance
- Experience in rational and statistical design of experiments related to fermentation optimization and process improvement
- Strong project management, organization, facilitation, problem solving, and quantitative analysis skills are essential. Ability to plan projects effectively, set goals, manage several projects simultaneously and meet deadlines
- Excellent oral and written communication skills, including ability to prepare project reports, technical papers for publication and presentation, and draft proposals in response to RFPs and grants, as well as understand and document heterogeneous data and communicate effectively
- Modeling software (Matlab, Aspen, Hysis, or similar), as well as spreadsheet, Office, and other software commonly used by engineers
TerraVerdae is an equal opportunity employer. Please note that employment
authorization in certain geographies is required.
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