R&D Coatings Engineer III

Professional Placement Services; Manor (TX); On-site; USD 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Professional Placement Services is seeking an R&D Coatings Engineer to develop and optimize advanced coating technologies used in semiconductor and advanced manufacturing industries. This hands-on role emphasizes experimentation, troubleshooting, and problem solving.

You will design and execute DOE studies, evaluate coating chemistries, and collaborate with Engineering and NPI teams to move technologies from development to production.

Qualifications

• Coatings experience is required and must be demonstrated by hands-on work.
• Experience with chemicals, materials, coatings, thermal spray or related process development.
• Strong problem-solving and hands-on experimentation abilities.
• Experience with formulation, DOE, and process optimization.
• Willingness to travel internationally in blocks up to two weeks.

Responsibilities

• Develop and optimize coating chemistries and processes for advanced applications.
• Recreate and develop coatings for thermal spray technologies (APS/SPS).
• Experiment with formulations to achieve target chemistry, porosity, hardness, and durability.
• Troubleshoot coating issues and optimize processing conditions.
• Design and execute experiments and DOE studies to identify best solutions.
• Evaluate coatings with metrology and characterization techniques.
• Develop scalable processes and support transitions to production.
• Collaborate with Engineering and NPI teams for deployments and trials.
• Research new equipment/materials for potential production use.
• Support customer discussions, presentations, and visits.
• Document findings and contribute to IP through disclosures.
• Travel internationally as needed for training and project requirements.

Skills

Coatings experience

Chemicals and materials

Process development

Problem solving

DOE/experimentation

Travel internationally

Education

Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering or related fields

Tools

2D drafting/3D modeling

Job description

Build the Next Generation of Advanced Coating Technology

We are seeking an R&D Coatings Engineer to develop and optimize advanced coating technologies used in demanding applications across the semiconductor and advanced manufacturing industries.

This is a highly hands-on development role for someone who enjoys experimenting, troubleshooting, optimizing, and solving complex materials challenges. The ideal candidate brings experience in coatings, chemistry, materials, or thermal spray and is excited to develop solutions rather than simply maintain existing processes.

What You’ll Do:

• Develop and optimize coating chemistries and processes for advanced customer applications.
• Recreate and develop usable coatings for thermal spray technologies, including APS and SPS.
• Experiment with different formulations to achieve the required chemistry, porosity, hardness, durability, and performance.
• Troubleshoot coating and process issues and continuously optimize formulas and processing conditions.
• Design and execute experiments, process characterization studies, and Design of Experiments (DOE) to identify the best solutions.
• Evaluate coatings using appropriate physical and chemical metrology and characterization techniques.
• Develop process controls and ensure new processes are capable of being scaled into production.
• Work closely with Engineering and New Product Introduction (NPI) teams to transition successful coating technologies into trials and production.
• Research and evaluate new equipment, materials, and technologies for potential production applications.
• Support customer-facing activities, including technical discussions, presentations, and occasional customer visits.
• Document technical findings and help protect intellectual property through technical documentation and invention disclosures.
• Travel internationally as needed to support training, development, and customer/project requirements.

The Technology

The coating technologies being developed have applications well beyond semiconductor manufacturing.

The same fundamental coating technology can be used to create thermal barriers for aircraft engines and other extreme-temperature applications. This makes experience in semiconductor, aerospace, thermal spray, or advanced materials particularly valuable.

What We’re Looking For

Required:

• Coatings experience is required.
• Experience with chemicals, materials, coatings, thermal spray, or related process development.
• Strong hands-on problem-solving and troubleshooting abilities.
• Experience with experimentation, process optimization, formulation, or development work.
• Ability to work through trial-and-error and make adjustments based on test results.
• Willingness and ability to travel internationally in blocks of up to two weeks.

Preferred, but not required:

• Semiconductor industry experience.
• Aerospace or advanced manufacturing experience.
• Experience with APS, SPS, ALD, PVD, or other coating/deposition technologies.
• Robotics or robotics programming experience.
• Experience with 2D drafting or 3D modeling.
• Statistical process control and DOE experience.
• Technical writing, research publication, or patent experience.
• Project management experience.

Education & Experience

We are flexible on education for the right candidate.

A Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Metallurgy, Mechanical Engineering, Chemistry, Physics, or a related field is preferred. However, a degree is not required if the candidate has strong, directly relevant hands‑on experience.

Candidates with 5+ years of directly relevant coatings, materials, chemistry, or process development experience may be considered in place of a degree.

Typically, the position is suited for someone with 4–8 years of directly related engineering, process development, or coatings experience.

International Candidate Backgrounds

We are particularly interested in candidates with semiconductor or advanced materials experience from major technology markets, including:

• Semiconductor experience is highly relevant due to the strength of the industry and the overlap in coating applications.
• Aerospace, thermal spray, semiconductor, and advanced materials experience may translate well.
• Semiconductor and advanced materials experience is highly relevant.

Why This Opportunity?

• Opportunity to develop new coating formulations rather than simply operate existing processes
• Strong emphasis on hands-on experience and problem-solving
• Flexible educational requirements — we value what you can do over simply having a degree
• Willingness to train and develop the right candidate
• Flexible schedule
• International exposure and travel opportunities
• Opportunity to work alongside Engineering and NPI teams to take new technology from development through production

Position Details

Position: R&D Coatings Engineer
Experience: 4–8 years preferred; equivalent hands-on experience considered
Education: Flexible based on experience
Coatings Experience: Required
Travel: Up to two-week blocks, approximately 4–8 times per year; more frequent during training/onboarding
Relocation: Support and assistance available
Schedule: Flexible
Robotics Experience: Preferred, not required

Job Number: 5267