Senior Product Development Chemist

PPG Industries, Inc; Cleveland (OH); On-site; USD 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

PPG Industries, Inc. in Cleveland, OH, seeks an S&T Product Development Chemist II (Senior) to lead development of waterborne basecoat technologies for automotive refinish coatings. You will drive strategy, guide technical execution, and mentor teammates while coordinating cross-functional teams toward commercialization.

The role emphasizes strategic leadership, rigorous data interpretation, and strong communication with stakeholders to advance programs with minimal supervision.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Chemistry or related STEM.
• 8+ years in technical/lab/product development roles.
• Ability to lead projects with minimal supervision.
• Data-driven decisions to advance complex projects.
• Strong formulation, lab practices, and problem solving.

Responsibilities

• Lead development and optimization of coatings formulations.
• Define strategy and experimental plans.
• Make critical technical decisions with evidence.
• Mentor less experienced chemists.
• Coordinate cross-functional teams across R&D, manufacturing, marketing.
• Support technology transfer and scale-up.

Skills

Coatings formulation

Project leadership

Data interpretation

Cross-functional collaboration

Safety compliance

Education

Bachelor's degree in Chemistry or related STEM

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Position Overview

PPG has an exciting opportunity for a technical project leader interested in advancing automotive refinish coatings technology. The Automotive Refinish business has an opening for an S&T Product Development Chemist II, Senior position at our facility in Cleveland, OH.

The successful candidate will join the Refinish Product Development team and serve as a technical project lead for the development, optimization, and launch of new waterborne basecoat technologies, the color layer of automotive refinish coatings. This role is well suited for a highly experienced chemist, engineer, or materials scientist with a strong record of delivering formulation development, coatings innovation, polymer or dispersion technologies, and complex technical problem solving in an industrial environment.

At this level, the individual will be expected to lead technical projects, define technical strategy, make critical technical decisions, and advance projects through ambiguity. The role requires the ability to translate business and customer needs into a practical technical plan, evaluate risks, align stakeholders, and guide the technical execution needed to move programs forward.

This is an individual contributor technical leadership role. No employees are expected to report directly to this individual; however, the person in this role will be expected to influence across teams, guide younger and less experienced chemists, raise the technical capability of the group, and set a strong example for scientific rigor, laboratory safety, project ownership, and technical communication.

The role requires advanced laboratory judgment, strong formulation expertise, disciplined data interpretation, and the ability to communicate clear recommendations to technical and non-technical stakeholders. The candidate will manage multiple high-impact priorities, lead cross-functional technical discussions, and help drive development programs toward successful commercialization with minimal supervision.

Role emphasis: technical leadership, decision-making, strategic project direction, and mentorship within an individual contributor role.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the development, optimization, and evaluation of coatings formulations for waterborne automotive refinish basecoat technologies and related product platforms.

• Define technical project strategy, establish experimental plans, prioritize technical work, and drive development programs from concept through commercialization.

• Make critical technical decisions using sound scientific principles, experimental evidence, risk assessment, and business or customer requirements.

• Lead complex technical investigations involving formulation performance, application behavior, appearance, color properties, durability, manufacturability, or product robustness.

• Design, direct, and execute laboratory experiments using appropriate controls, disciplined methodology, and clear success criteria.

• Translate experimental results and technical risks into actionable recommendations that influence project direction, resource priorities, and commercialization readiness.

• Guide, coach, and mentor less experienced chemists in experimental design, formulation approach, data interpretation, troubleshooting, and technical communication.

• Provide technical leadership to cross-functional and global project teams, including R&D, manufacturing, marketing, sales, procurement, quality, and product management.

• Lead or support technology transfer, scale-up, manufacturing trials, and launch readiness efforts.

• Formulate, prepare, spray apply, and evaluate standard and experimental color coatings as needed to support project objectives and technical decision‑making.

• Conduct and/or direct physical, chemical, application, appearance, color, and performance testing of coatings technologies.

• Identify technical gaps, anticipate project risks, develop mitigation plans, and proactively remove barriers to project progress.

• Communicate technical results, project status, risks, recommendations, and decision points through clear presentations and stakeholder discussions.

• Build productive relationships with suppliers, customers, and broader PPG technical communities to support raw material evaluations, technology scouting, and project execution.

• Maintain strong documentation practices in accordance with internal requirements, intellectual property needs, safety expectations, and project governance.

• Model a safety‑first mindset while leading laboratory work, promoting safe work practices, and participating in team safety initiatives.

• Actively support 6S, continuous improvement, laboratory productivity, and technical best‑practice development across the team.

• Adhere to corporate policies, government regulations, business conduct standards, environmental requirements, and EEO guidelines.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Polymer Science, Coatings Science, or a related STEM discipline.

• 8+ years of professional experience in a technical, laboratory, product development, formulation, applications, or materials‑related role, or an equivalent combination of advanced education and relevant industrial experience.

• Demonstrated ability to lead technical projects or major technical workstreams with minimal supervision.

• Proven ability to make data‑driven technical decisions that advance complex projects and influence technical direction.

• Strong knowledge of formulation development, experimental design, laboratory practices, data interpretation, and structured technical problem solving.

• Demonstrated ability to troubleshoot complex formulation, application, appearance, performance, color, or manufacturing‑related challenges.

• Ability to mentor less experienced technical staff and guide others through experimental planning, data analysis, and technical decision‑making.

• Strong organizational and project leadership skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities, deliverables, and stakeholders.

• Excellent analytical, critical thinking, troubleshooting, and problem‑solving skills.

• Strong interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills, including the ability to communicate recommendations to both technical and non‑technical stakeholders.

• Ability to work effectively in a collaborative, cross‑functional, and global team environment while taking ownership of technical outcomes.

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office products, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

• Commitment to safe laboratory practices and compliance with established safety, regulatory, and environmental standards.

Preferred Qualifications

• Advanced degree in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Polymer Science, Coatings Science, or a related STEM discipline.

• Professional experience in waterborne coatings, paints, automotive refinish, color coatings, dispersions, emulsions, polymer solutions, inks, or related formulated products.

• Deep technical knowledge in waterborne formulation development, pigment dispersion, rheology, spray application, film formation, color development, or coatings performance testing.

• Experience leading new product development projects, product platform development, technology transfer, scale‑up, manufacturing trials, or commercialization activities.

• Familiarity with color science, color theory, color matching, appearance measurement, or automotive refinish application processes.

• Experience using design of experiments (DOE), statistical analysis, structured problem‑solving tools, or data‑driven decision frameworks.

• Experience working with global product development teams, cross‑functional project teams, suppliers, customers, or external technical partners.

• Demonstrated ability to influence project direction, align stakeholders, and resolve technical uncertainty without direct reporting authority.

• Experience evaluating raw materials, qualifying alternative materials, or collaborating with suppliers to solve formulation or supply continuity challenges.

• Track record of mentoring colleagues, building technical capability within a team, and improving laboratory or project execution practices.

Tietoja meistä:

PPG: ME SUOJELEMME JA KAUNISTAMME MAAILMAA

Innovaatioiden, kestavan kehityksen ja variratkaisujen edellakavijana PPG auttaa teollisuuden, kuljetuksen, kuluttajatuotteiden seka rakentamisen sektoreiden asiakkaita parantamaan pintoja useammilla tavoilla kuin mikan muu yritys. Lisatietoja loydat osoitteesta www.ppg.com, ja X-palvelussa meita voi seurata tunnuksella @PPG.

The PPG Way 2030

Olemme asiakkaiden puolestapuhujia.

Ennakoivia. Rohkeita. Luotettavia. Kaikki mita teemme, alkaa asiakkaistamme. Kuuntelemme, toimimus nopeasti emmeka pysahdy ennen kuin olemme ratkaisseet heidan suurimmat haasteensa. Kun asiakkaamme menestyvät, me kaikki kasvamme.

Toimimme merkityksellisesti ja nopeasti.

Kettera. Dataohjattu. Voimakas. Otamme harkittuja riskeja pysyaksemme kilpailijoiden edella. Toimimme ennakoivasti ja ketterasti hyodyntaen laadukasta dataa kehittaksemme ratkaisuja , jotka tuottavat arvoa.

Olemme erinomaisia toimijoita

Tuottavia. Yhteistyohenkisia. Vastuullisia. Roolistamme riippumatta tunnistamme ongelmat, otamme vastuun ja tuomme aina ratkaisuja. Olemme seka ennakoivia etta reagoivia, jotta voimme edista jatkuvaa parantamista ja saavuttaa tuloksia. Tuemme etulinjaamme - PPG:n kasvoja asiakkaillemme.

Me kilpailemme voittaaksemme

Tulevaisuuteen suuntautuneita. Maratietoisia. Kunnianhimoisia. Olemme intohimoisia liiketoimintamme kasvattamisessa ja asiakkaidemme kanssa menestymisessa. Toimitamme tuloksia, omaksumme uudet teknologiat ja hyodynnamme ketteryytta ja nopeutta vahvuuksinamme.

Olemme ylpeita PPG:sta

Vahvoja. Yhtenaisia. Intohimoisia. Tyoskentelemme turvallisesti, toimimme rehellisesti ja arvostamme monipuolisia nakokulmia. Juhlistamme saavutuksia ja tunnemme ylpeytta myonteisesta vaikutuksesta, jonka luomme yhdessa suojellaksemme ja kaunistaaksemme maailmaa.

PPG:lla kaytamme tekoalya rekrytointiprosessissa tehdaksemme siita tehokkaamman. Tekoalytyokalut eivat tee rekrytointipatoksia. Lisatietoja saat osoitteesta https://careers.ppg.com/fi/fi/candidate-resources.

PPG tarjoaa tasavertaiset mahdollisuudet kaikille hakijoille ja tyontekijoille. Tarjoamme mahdollisuuden kasvaa ja kehitta uraasi ymparistossa, joka tarjoaa tyontekijoille merkityksellisen tyopaikan, luo jatkuvan oppimisen ilmapiirin ja arvostaa muiden ideoita ja monimuotoisuutta. Kaikki patevat hakijat otetaan huomioon tyohonottopatoksissa sukupuolesta, raskaudesta, rodusta, ihonvarista, vakaumuksesta, uskonnosta, kansallisyydestä, iasta, vammaisuudesta, siviilisadysta, veteraanitilasta, seksuaalisesta suuntautumisesta, sukupuoli-identiteetista tai -ilmaisusta riippumatta.

Jos tarvitset mukautusta vamman vuoksi, laheta sahkopostia osoitteeseen [e-mail].

PPG:n palkkatasot ja edut voivat vaihdella lokaation mukaan, mika mahdollistaa kilpailukykyisen palkitsemisen eri maantieteellisilla markkinoilla. PPG ottaa palkitsemisessa huomioon useita tekijoita, mukaan lukien, taidot, kokemus ja koulutus, patevyydet ja koulutustaso, luvat ja sertifikaatit seka muut organisaation tarpeet. Myos muita kannustimia saatetaan soveltaa.

Tyontekijoidemme etuohjelmat on suunniteltu tukemaan tyontekijoidemme terveytta ja hyvinvointia. Kaikki vakuutusturvat ja edut ovat voimassa sovellettavien ohjelmien ehtojen ja niihin liittyvien hallinnollisten asiakirjojen mukaisesti. Eduista keskustellaan kanssasi rekrytoijan toimesta rekrytointiprosessin aikana.

PPG arvostaa palautettasi rekrytointiprosessistamme. Kannustamme sinua vierailemaan Glassdoor.comissa ja antamaan palautetta prosessista.