Development and Applications Chemist

Reed Specialist Recruitment; Wales; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 45,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company pension

Private healthcare

Discretionary performance-relatedbonus

Structured technical and product培训

Job summary

Reed Specialist Recruitment is seeking a Development and Applications Chemist in Clwyd, Wales, with regular UK customer visits. The role blends laboratory development with practical technical service, including trials, testing and on-site support for industrial coatings.

You will link laboratory, production, sales and customers to improve products, resolve issues and ensure successful real-world application. Travel to customer sites is expected.

Qualifications

• Experience in paints, coatings, inks, adhesives, or related chemicals.
• Hands-on laboratory work, testing and troubleshooting.
• Follow formulations and test methods with traceable results.
• Strong communication with customers and clear explanations.
• Organised and methodical record keeping.
• Willing to travel to customer sites; full UK driving licence.
• Degree in Chemistry or Polymer Science.
• Confident in the use of AI.

Responsibilities

• Plan and carry out laboratory development work on new and existing industrial coatings.
• Prepare laboratory batches and maintain traceable records of formulations and results.
• Test properties such as viscosity, density, gloss, colour, opacity, drying, adhesion and hardness.
• Investigate technical issues raised by customers, production or sales and identify root causes.
• Prepare, label and organise customer samples and trial materials on time.
• Attend customer trials and site visits to support product setup and training.
• Work with field sales to understand customer requirements and support actions.
• Assist scale-up from lab to production trial batches to maintain manufacturing performance.
• Produce technical notes, visit reports, trial summaries and investigation updates.

Education

Degree in Chemistry or Polymer Science

Tools

Laboratory equipment

Job description

Development and Applications Chemist - Coatings

Job Type: Full-time, permanent

Location: Clwyd, Wales, with regular UK customer visits

Salary: Competitive and dependant on experienceWe are seeking a Development and Applications Chemist to join a busy technical team within the industrial coatings sector. This Development and Applications Chemist position combines laboratory development with practical technical service, including customer trials, product testing and on-site support. The Development and Applications Chemist will act as a key link between the laboratory, production, sales and customers, helping to improve products, resolve technical issues and support successful application in real-world environments.

Day-to-day of the role

• Plan and carry out laboratory development work on new and existing industrial coatings.
• Prepare laboratory batches accurately and maintain clear, traceable records of formulations, raw materials, methods and results.
• Test product properties such as viscosity, density, gloss, colour, opacity, drying, adhesion, hardness and application behaviour.
• Investigate technical issues raised by customers, production, quality control or sales, identifying likely root causes and corrective actions.
• Prepare, label and organise customer samples and trial materials accurately and on time.
• Attend customer trials and site visits to support product set-up, application checks, troubleshooting and training.
• Work closely with field sales to understand customer requirements, support product selection and follow up on technical actions.
• Assist with scale-up from laboratory development to production trial batches, supporting consistency and manufacturing performance.
• Produce concise technical notes, visit reports, trial summaries and investigation updates for internal and customer use.

Required Skills & Qualifications

• Practical experience in paints, coatings, inks, adhesives, chemicals, surface finishing or a closely related technical environment.
• Hands-on experience of laboratory work, product testing, application support or technical troubleshooting.
• Ability to follow formulations and test methods accurately, observe differences and draw evidence-based conclusions.
• Strong communication skills, with confidence speaking to customers and explaining technical points clearly.
• Organised and methodical approach to record keeping, reporting and managing priorities.
• Comfortable working across technical, production, quality and sales teams.
• Full UK driving licence and willingness to travel to customer sites regularly.
• Degree in Chemistry or a related discipline such as Polymer Science, and relevant practical experience
• Confident in the use of AI

Benefits

• Company pension
• Private healthcare
• Discretionary performance-related bonus
• Structured technical and product training
• Varied role with direct involvement in product development and customer success