Senior Fermentation Process Lead: Microbiology Expert

Placements24; Paarl; On-site; ZAR 900,000 - 1,700,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Retirement contributions

Annual bonus

Paid time off

Training opportunities

Job summary

Placements24 is seeking a Senior Microbiologist in Paarl, Western Cape, to lead fermentation process development and optimization for industrial biotechnology applications. The role focuses on improving microbial strains, yields, and product quality with a cross-functional team of biochemists, engineers, and strain developers.

You will design and execute experiments, scale processes from lab to pilot, and contribute to IP and reporting.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of hands-on experience in industrial microbiology and fermentation process development.
• Expertise in microbial physiology, genetics, and metabolic engineering.
• Experience with bioreactor operation, scale-up, and aseptic techniques.
• Experience with analytical techniques for characterizing fermentation products.

Responsibilities

• Lead development and optimization of microbial fermentation processes.
• Design experiments to improve strain performance, yield and productivity.
• Optimize media, temperature, pH and aeration parameters.
• Develop analytical methods to monitor fermentation progress and product quality.
• Scale-up processes from lab bench to pilot-scale bioreactors.
• Collaborate with strain engineering to evaluate genetic modifications.
• Troubleshoot fermentation issues and ensure process robustness.
• Prepare reports and contribute to intellectual property generation.

Skills

Team leadership

Problem solving

Communication skills

DoE (Design of Experiments)

Education

M.Sc. in Microbiology/Biotechnology/Biochemical Engineering

Ph.D. in Microbiology/Biotechnology/Biochemical Engineering

Job description

Placements24 is seeking a Senior Microbiologist in Paarl, Western Cape, to lead fermentation process development and optimization for industrial biotechnology applications. The role focuses on improving microbial strains, yields, and product quality with a cross-functional team of biochemists, engineers, and strain developers.

You will design and execute experiments, scale processes from lab to pilot, and contribute to IP and reporting.