Chemist II - Automotive Refinish (Whitehouse)

Now hiring! Chemist II - Automotive Refinish (Whitehouse)

 

Whitehouse, OH

 

We are looking for a Chemist II to join our Coatings team in Whitehouse, OH.

 

Come create chemistry with us!

 

BASF's Coatings division is a global expert in the development, production and marketing of innovative and sustainable automotive OEM and refinish coatings, decorative paints as well as applied surface treatments for metal, plastic and glass substrates in a wide range of industries. This portfolio is supplemented by "Beyond Paint Solutions", which enable new applications with innovative surfaces. 

 

As a Chemist II in the automotive refinish division (ECR), you will play a key role in both the technical and collaborative aspects of product development. You will be responsible for the development, evaluation, testing, and quality of new products requested by regional and/or global ECR marketing teams, as well as maintaining existing products within their life-cycle in the refinish portfolio. Products could include pigmented topcoats and auxiliary products for the automotive refinish market. In addition, you will also contribute to process improvements, formula modifications, and sustainability initiatives aimed at enhancing efficiency and profitability.

As a Chemist II - Automotive Refinish (Whitehouse), you create chemistry by...

• Developing products for the refinish segment that meet global or other regional requirements, in close collaboration with marketing and technical teams.

• Modifying existing global ECR products to meet North American regional requirements, working with colleagues across regions to ensure consistency and quality.

• Designing experimental plans with supervisor approval, independently executing experiments, and communicating results to stakeholders to validate performance of coating formulations.

• Interacting regularly with production staff at various locations in North America and EMEA, using strong communication skills to address and resolve manufacturing challenges.

• Participating in global meetings with peers from technical, marketing, and supply chain, presenting your work and collaborating on solutions to shared challenges.

• Performing a variety of scientific tasks without direct supervision, while maintaining open lines of communication with your supervisor to set priorities and report progress.

• Reviewing product requirements and incorporating them into the quality system (SAP-QM), ensuring all stakeholders are informed of updates and changes.

• Participating actively in vendor meetings, communicating technical needs and building collaborative relationships. Staying current with state-of-the-art coatings, testing, process, and equipment technologies, and sharing relevant insights with your team. Managing intellectual property as it relates to ECR strategic concerns, and communicating implications to leadership as needed.

 

Collaboration and Communication Responsibilities:

• You will work closely with cross-functional teams, including marketing, production, and supply chain, to ensure that product requirements are clearly understood and met.
• Effective communication is essential, as you will regularly interact with production staff at various North American and EMEA manufacturing sites to solve manufacturing problems and optimize processes.
• You will participate in global meetings with peers from technical, marketing, and supply chain functions, presenting your work and sharing learnings from North America. This includes preparing and delivering technical reports that clearly outline activities, findings, and recommendations.
• You will actively engage in vendor meetings, fostering strong partnerships and ensuring alignment on technical requirements and quality standards.
• Your ability to communicate complex technical information in a clear and concise manner will be critical when collaborating with internal teams and external partners.

If you...

• Hold a Bachelor's degree in Chemistry or Chemical Engineering (preferred)
• Have 3+ years relevant experience in product development of automotive coatings, preferably automotive refinish related coatings
• Have good laboratory skills and the ability to carry out laboratory work in a controlled environment, including proper use of a laboratory notebook to record data and observations accurately
• Demonstrate knowledge of safe laboratory practices
• Have good project management skills to execute a project in a time/cost efficient manner
• Are skilled with common paint manufacturing and testing equipment, e.g., milling, dispersing, blending, viscosity testing, FT-IR, physic