Hybrid Process Development Engineer — Specialty Chemicals

Placements24; Mtubatuba Local Municipality; Hybrid; ZAR 900,000 - 1,300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work arrangement

Modern laboratory & pilot plant access

Competitive salary and benefits

Job summary

Placements24 is seeking a Process Development Engineer for a Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal role. You will bridge lab innovation and commercial production by developing and scaling new chemical processes with R&D and production teams.

The role offers on-site collaboration with flexible remote days for analysis and documentation. You will work on process development, hazard analyses, and technology transfer to ensure safe, efficient production of specialty chemicals.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering; Master's preferred.
• 3–5 years in process development, scale-up or chemical manufacturing.
• Experience with lab and pilot plant operations; data analysis experience.

Responsibilities

• Develop and optimize chemical processes from lab scale to pilot plant.
• Conduct feasibility studies and risk assessments for new processes.
• Design pilot plant trials and collect data to define parameters.
• Create PFDs and P&IDs for new and modified processes.
• Collaborate with R&D and production to transfer tech to production.
• Troubleshoot process issues during development and initial runs.
• Evaluate new technologies to improve efficiency, safety and sustainability.
• Maintain notebooks and technical documentation with accuracy.
• Ensure SHE regulatory compliance and best practices.

Skills

Process development

Scale-up

Data analysis

Technical communication

Team collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering

Master's degree preferred

Tools

Aspen Plus

Process simulation software

Job description

Placements24 is seeking a Process Development Engineer for a Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal role. You will bridge lab innovation and commercial production by developing and scaling new chemical processes with R&D and production teams.

The role offers on-site collaboration with flexible remote days for analysis and documentation. You will work on process development, hazard analyses, and technology transfer to ensure safe, efficient production of specialty chemicals.