Senior Elastomer Chemist — Scale-Up & Formulation Leader

The Richmond Group USA; Charleston (SC); On-site; USD 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

The Richmond Group USA is seeking a Senior Chemist in Charleston, SC to lead elastomer formulation and material development for highly engineered products. This role blends R&D with manufacturing, translating lab formulations into robust production-grade materials.

You will drive formulation optimization, evaluate additives, and collaborate with Manufacturing, Quality, Sourcing and Product Development to ensure durable, safe elastomer systems.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of hands-on elastomer formulation and development experience.
• Master’s or Ph.D. in Polymer Chemistry, Materials Science or a related discipline.
• Strong knowledge of rubber compounding and curing systems, including sulfur and/or peroxide cure.
• Experience with NR, Butyl/Bromobutyl, EPDM or similar elastomer systems.
• Understanding of rheology, cure kinetics and structure-property relationships.
• Experience supporting manufacturing scale-up.
• Familiarity with MDR, DSC, TGA, tensile and/or dielectric testing.
• Experience with dielectric or electrical insulating materials is particularly relevant.

Responsibilities

• Lead formulation and optimization of elastomer compounds.
• Evaluate a variety of additives, raw materials and develop materials for durability and safety specifications.
• Support manufacturing scale up that includes compounding, mixing, dipping and curing processes.
• Partner with manufacturing to scale formulations from lab development through commercial production.
• Serve as a technical resource across R&D, Manufacturing, Quality, Sourcing and Product Development.
• Explore next-generation polymer technologies and new raw materials.

Skills

Elastomer formulation

Rheology & cure kinetics

Manufacturing scale-up

Dielectric testing

Education

Master’s or Ph.D. in Polymer Chemistry, Materials Science or a related discipline

Tools

MDR

DSC

TGA

Tensile testing

Job description

The Richmond Group USA is seeking a Senior Chemist in Charleston, SC to lead elastomer formulation and material development for highly engineered products. This role blends R&D with manufacturing, translating lab formulations into robust production-grade materials.

You will drive formulation optimization, evaluate additives, and collaborate with Manufacturing, Quality, Sourcing and Product Development to ensure durable, safe elastomer systems.