Nova Biochem - Technical Manager (R&D and Scale-up)

Sagana GmbH; Nottingham; Hybrid; GBP 85,000 - 105,000; Full time

Job summary

Nova Biochem in Nottingham is seeking a Technical Manager to own the planning, coordination and delivery of its R&D and technical development programme. You will turn strategic priorities into a structured plan, aligning researchers, analytics, and engineering to drive scale-up from lab to pilot demonstrations.

This role requires strong technical judgement, experience leading scientific teams, and the ability to challenge assumptions while guiding decisions toward clear next steps.

Qualifications

• Experience leading multi-disciplinary R&D programmes.
• Ability to translate strategy into structured development plans.
• Experience collaborating with external engineering or industrial partners.
• Demonstrated line management or technical leadership experience.
• Background in chemical process development or industrial chemistry.

Responsibilities

• Translate company priorities into clear R&D, process development and scale-up plans.
• Own and maintain Nova's technical development plan with prioritised, sequenced activities.
• Coordinate work across research, analytics, process ops and engineering to keep development moving.
• Review significant programmes to ensure objectives and next steps are clear.
• Plan technical work ahead including equipment, materials and external expertise.
• Lead prototype campaigns and progress developments from lab scale to TRL6.

Skills

Technical leadership

R&D planning

Chemistry/Process engineering

Experiment design

Education

MSc/PhD or equivalent in chemistry/chemical engineering

Tools

Lab instrumentation

Job description

Salary: To be negotiated, based on experience

Location: Nottingham, UK

About Nova Biochem

Nova Biochem is a climate-tech company pioneering the transformation of industrial by-products into high-value, sustainable chemicals. Using our proprietary hydrothermal depolymerisation process, we convert lignin-rich residues from pulping and agriculture into renewable aromatic building blocks used in coatings, plastics, and resins - replacing fossil inputs and cutting emissions at the source.

Our mission is to unlock a circular, low-carbon model for industrial chemistry - creating new value from waste while reducing millions of tonnes of CO₂ emissions. Based in Nottingham, we’re entering a scale-up phase, expanding lab and pilot operations, delivering a €7.5M EU-funded project, and laying the groundwork for commercialisation.

This is a pivotal moment to join a small, mission-driven team determined to reshape the chemical industry through practical innovation.

The Role

We are seeking a Technical Manager to take ownership of the planning, coordination and delivery of Nova Biochem’s R&D and technical development programme.

Working between the CEO and our technical team, you will turn strategic priorities into a structured programme of R&D, process development and scale-up activity. You will ensure technical questions are clearly defined, work is properly sequenced, results are critically reviewed and there is a clear understanding of what needs to happen next.

This is not a project administration role, nor is it primarily a bench-based research position. You will need enough scientific and technical depth to understand our technology, challenge assumptions and apply sound judgement to experimental results and technical decisions.

This is an opportunity to play a central role in taking a novel chemical process from laboratory development through increasingly larger-scale demonstration, while building the technical discipline and ways of working needed for future commercialisation.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Planning & Delivery

• Translate company priorities into clear R&D, process development and scale-up plans.
• Own and maintain Nova's technical development plan, ensuring R&D, process development and scale-up activities are appropriately prioritised, sequenced and resourced, with clear next steps.
• Coordinate work across research, analytics, process operations and engineering to keep technical development moving effectively. Work closely with the Project & Operations Manager on resources, timelines and wider project coordination, while owning the technical content, priorities and sequencing of the R&D programme.
• Establish clear objectives, owners and expected outcomes for technical activities and hold the team accountable for delivery. Review significant experimental programmes before execution to ensure the objectives, approach, required data and success criteria are clear.
• Plan technical work ahead, identifying equipment, materials, analytical requirements, external expertise, dependencies, risks and blockers early enough for appropriate action to be taken.
• Own the technical planning of prototype campaigns and coordinate the progression of successful developments from laboratory scale through TRL5 and TRL6 towards industrial demonstration.

Technical Review & Direction

• Review experimental and process results with the technical team and critically assess whether the evidence supports the conclusions being drawn.
• Ensure technical work leads to clear conclusions, decisions and next steps rather than simply generating data.
• Challenge assumptions constructively and identify gaps requiring further investigation.
• Maintain a clear view of technical progress, priorities and development pathways across Nova Biochem.
• Provide the CEO with concise updates on technical progress, risks, key decisions and recommended next steps.
• Ensure important technical decisions, results and conclusions are clearly documented.

Who You Are

• Demonstrated ability to take ownership of a technical programme and drive it forward with limited day-to-day supervision.
• Degree in chemistry, chemical engineering, process engineering or a related technical discipline.
• Strong practical experience in laboratory R&D, process development or pilot-scale technology development, with a good understanding of how experimental programmes are planned, executed and reviewed.
• Strong technical judgement, with the ability to critically review experimental plans and results, interpret data, challenge assumptions and identify when further evidence is required.
• Experience planning and coordinating multiple technical workstreams and translating results into clear next steps. Demonstrated experience turning technical objectives into structured development plans and driving delivery through a multidisciplinary technical team.
• Strong understanding of experimental discipline, documentation and reproducibility.
• Experience providing technical direction to scientists, engineers or other technical colleagues and holding others accountable for agreed technical work and deliverables.
• Strong communication and organisational skills, with the confidence to work independently and hold others accountable for delivery.
• Strong bias towards action and problem solving, with a track record of identifying problems, proposing solutions and driving them through to completion.
• Experience working in a startup, scale-up or similarly fast-moving R&D environment, with limited resources and evolving priorities.
• Experience scaling technology from laboratory through pilot or industrial scale.
• Background in chemical process development or industrial chemistry.
• Experience with high-temperature and/or high-pressure systems.
• Previous line management or technical leadership experience.
• Experience working with external engineering, research or industrial partners.
• MSc/PhD or significant equivalent industrial R&D experience.

Why Join Us?

At Nova Biochem, you’ll join a small, ambitious team translating breakthrough science into real-world impact.

You’ll have the opportunity to shape how a novel chemical technology is developed and scaled, working across science, engineering and operations at a critical stage in Nova’s growth.

If you’re motivated by complex technical challenges and the opportunity to help turn innovative chemistry into an industrial reality, we’d love to hear from you.