Lubricant R&D Chemist - Formulations & Innovation Lead

Kelly Science, Engineering, Technology & Telecom; Town of Berlin (WI); On-site; USD 100,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

Kelly Services is seeking an experienced Research & Development Chemist to lead the development, formulation, optimization, and technical support of specialty lubricant products.

The ideal candidate will have hands-on lubricant chemistry experience, including base oils, additive technology, tribology, and analytical testing, and will collaborate with Quality, Manufacturing, Purchasing, Sales, suppliers, and customers to ensure products meet performance and regulatory requirements.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Chemistry or a related science.
• 10 years of laboratory experience, including 5 years in product development/formulation for lubricants or related fields.
• Strong knowledge of industrial lubricant chemistry and formulation.
• Experience developing, optimizing, and troubleshooting lubricant formulations.
• Knowledge of base oils, additive chemistry, formulation interactions, and lubricant performance.
• Experience with ASTM and other standard lubricant test methods.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, experimental-design, and data-interpretation skills.
• Ability to work independently and with cross-functional teams.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Develop new industrial lubricant formulations to support portfolio growth and customer requirements.
• Optimize existing formulations for performance, stability, reliability, manufacturability, and cost.
• Evaluate alternative and second-source materials to improve supply-chain flexibility.
• Conduct laboratory testing, benchmarking, and product evaluations.
• Analyze data and make technical recommendations based on test results.
• Collaborate with additive suppliers and experts to troubleshoot formulation challenges.
• Assess lubricant performance, compatibility, storage, and manufacturing robustness.
• Investigate product failures and customer complaints; recommend corrective actions.
• Maintain formulations, records, test results, and technical documentation.
• Develop Master Batch Sheets, manufacturing instructions, product specs, and lab docs.
• Support Quality Control testing and investigations including root-cause analysis.
• Mentor and train lab personnel on methods and safety.
• Participate in quality-system audits and continuous-improvement initiatives.

Skills

Lubricant chemistry

Formulation development

Additive chemistry

Analytical testing

Laboratory testing

Data interpretation

Experiment design

Cross-functional collaboration

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Chemistry or related science

Tools

Analytical testing equipment

Laboratory instrumentation

Job description

Kelly Services is seeking an experienced Research & Development Chemist to lead the development, formulation, optimization, and technical support of specialty lubricant products.

The ideal candidate will have hands-on lubricant chemistry experience, including base oils, additive technology, tribology, and analytical testing, and will collaborate with Quality, Manufacturing, Purchasing, Sales, suppliers, and customers to ensure products meet performance and regulatory requirements.