Process Safety Engineer

Speedrun Talent Network; Menlo Park, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 200,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

Periodic Labs is seeking an experienced EHS/Process Safety leader to oversee hazard reviews, risk assessments, and safety systems for a high-throughput autonomous materials lab. You will guide PSSR/MOC programs, incident investigations, and compliance across facilities in a fast-paced environment.

You will collaborate with ML/AI teams to integrate safety into autonomous workflows, and serve as Chemical Hygiene Officer with a focus on hazard control for 24/7 operations.

Qualifications

• 7–10+ years in EHS, process safety, or chemical operations in labs, pilot plants, or semiconductor fabs.
• Hands-on experience leading HAZOPs or FMEAs and running PSSR and MOC programs.
• Working knowledge of functional safety interlocks, safety PLCs, and ISO 13849 / IEC 61508.
• Knowledge of Cal/OSHA, OSHA PELs, ACGIH TLVs/BEIs, NIOSH, and ANSI standards.
• On-site work in a fast-paced, high-complexity lab environment with evolving hazard profiles.

Responsibilities

• Lead and document HAZOPs, PHA/FMEA, and risk assessments for new processes and lab systems.
• Establish operational readiness and laboratory reliability systems for autonomous operations, including PSSR, MOC, commissioning validation, alarm rationalization, and procedures.
• Collaborate with automation and controls teams to implement safeguarding, interlocks, and safety controls for autonomous systems.
• Develop and maintain EHS standards, specifications, procedures, and governance across facilities.
• Collaborate with ML/AI engineers to train an LLM to reason about process hazards and safety constraints.
• Provide technical expertise in high-throughput R&D with focus on chemical safety and lab equipment.
• Lead incident investigations and root cause analyses; own Cal/OSHA 300 log reporting and corrective actions.
• Assess permitting and MAQ implications; represent process safety during inspections and ensure CUPA compliance.
• Serve as Chemical Hygiene Officer and maintain the Chemical Hygiene Plan.

Skills

HAZOP leadership

FMEA expertise

PSSR & MOC programs

Functional safety knowledge

Cal/OSHA and safety standards

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Job description

About Periodic Labs

We’re an AI and physical sciences company building state-of-the-art models to accelerate breakthroughs across materials, energy, and beyond. Backed by world-class investors and growing rapidly, we operate at the pace the frontier requires. Our team brings deep expertise, genuine ownership, and an insatiable drive to push the boundaries of what’s scientifically possible.

About the Role

Periodic Labs is building an AI that can simulate science and verify its own predictions — training on the full scientific method. Central to that mission is a high-throughput experimental materials science lab that handles hazardous chemistries, high-pressure and high-temperature processes, air-sensitive synthesis, toxic gas exposure risks, and an expanding suite of thin-film deposition tools including PVD and PLD. The complexity of what we run overnight and autonomously increases every month.

We believe EHS is integral to this ambition, not a compliance function bolted on after the fact, but a core design discipline that makes autonomous science possible. This role focuses on operational safety: making sure every new process, tool, and autonomous workflow is hazard-reviewed, safe to start up, and safe to run around the clock. You will also help train our AI to reason about risk during experimental planning and execution.

What You’ll Do

• Lead and document HAZOPs, PHA/FMEA, and risk assessments for new processes and lab systems, including toxic and pyrophoric material, high-pressure operations, glovebox workflows, and thin-film deposition platforms.

• Establish operational readiness and laboratory reliability systems for autonomous operations, including pre-startup safety reviews (PSSR), management of change (MOC), commissioning validation, alarm rationalization, startup/shutdown procedures, and critical equipment inspection programs.

• Partner with automation and controls teams to implement machine safeguarding, fail-safes, interlocks, robotics safety controls, functional safety validation, safety PLC reviews, and automated motion hazard assessments for autonomous experimental systems.

• Develop and maintain EHS standards, specifications, procedures, and governance systems that can scale across multiple facilities.

• Collaborate with ML/AI engineers on training an LLM to reason through process hazards, risk assessments, and safety constraints during experimental planning and autonomous execution — making EHS a first-class input to our AI’s decision-making.

• Provide technical expertise in high-throughput R&D with a strong focus on chemical safety, including the thin-film lab's specialty gas delivery, vacuum, and RF/high-voltage systems. .

• Lead incident investigations and root cause analyses, own injury reporting and recordkeeping (Cal/OSHA 300 log, serious-injury reporting), and drive corrective actions to closure.

• Assess permitting and MAQ implications of new processes and chemistries across our labs, represent process safety during fire marshal and CUPA inspections, and partner with EHS operations on CERS and BAAQMD compliance.

• Serve as Chemical Hygiene Officer, maintaining the Chemical Hygiene Plan across our labs.

You Will Thrive in This Role If You Have

• 7–10+ years of experience in EHS, process safety, or chemical operations in labs, pilot plants, or semiconductor fabs, preferably with a strong chemistry background (solid-state chemistry, materials processing, or lab automation a plus).

• Hands‑on experience leading HAZOPs or FMEAs and running PSSR and MOC programs.

• Working knowledge of functional safety: interlocks, safety PLCs, and ISO 13849 / IEC 61508 concepts.

• Working knowledge of Cal/OSHA, OSHA PELs, ACGIH TLVs/BEIs, NIOSH, and ANSI standards.

• Comfort working on‑site in a fast‑paced, high‑complexity lab environment where experiments run 24/7 and the hazard profile evolves as new processes and equipment are introduced.

Especially Strong Candidates May Also Have

• Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Associate Safety Professional (ASP), Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH), or similar credential.

• Experience with semiconductor or thin‑film process safety: HF, toxic and pyrophoric gases, gas cabinets, and SEMI S2.

• Experience designing EHS systems for autonomous or semi‑autonomous lab environments where processes run without continuous human supervision.

• Familiarity with AI or ML tools as applied to risk assessment, safety documentation, or experimental planning or genuine curiosity about how to apply them.

Mechanics

Minimum education: Bachelor’s degree or similar experience

Location: Menlo Park, CA

Compensation: $200,000-250,000 + equity

Visa sponsorship: Yes, we sponsor visas.