Assistant Director and Technical Engineer, Facilities and Infrastructure

Department

PME Space Infrastructure and Facilities

About the Department

The Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (PME) was established in May 2019 and evolved from the Institute for Molecular Engineering, which was founded in 2011. The PME integrates science and engineering to address global challenges from the molecular level up. The PME’s rigorous academic and research programs are made possible through the University of Chicago’s unique partnership with Argonne National Laboratory. The Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering is the first new school at the University of Chicago in three decades and the first school in the nation dedicated to molecular engineering. In the next phase of growth as a School, the PME will continue to expand its team of world-class faculty researchers and empower students from diverse backgrounds to collaborate with faculty in cutting-edge facilities. The PME aims to bring solutions for urgent societal problems to the forefront, while training the next generation of scientific leaders and entrepreneurs.

Job Summary

Reporting to the Executive Director of Space, Infrastructure and Facilities, the Assistant Director and Technical Engineer will oversee the development of complex and highly technical space plans and layouts for all PME space across 20 buildings on the University of Chicago campus and three sites off campus (Argonne, Hyde Park Labs, Fulton Labs, and Harper Court). This role provides leadership and direction for the capital projects delivery process, from the design phase through commissioning and close-out. The Assistant Director will work with the Associate Director of Capital Planning and Space Infrastructure, faculty, and staff to plan and design lab, research, administrative, and other spaces and develop schedules and budget estimates that meet the tactical and strategic long-range goals and lab design of research spaces.

Responsibilities

• Maintains equipment manuals, repair notes, processes, establishes quality monitoring, and improves the yield and performance of equipment across multiple buildings, labs, and sites. .  Performs routine inspection, operation, and improvement of facilities such as HVAC, exhaust, DI water system, PCW, house vacuum, air compressor, acid waste neutralization system, gas delivery system, scrubber, TGMS, and particle counting.
• Performs inventory of supplies, chemicals, gases, and record keeping. Anticipates and takes proactive measures to ensure laboratories run smoothly.
• Handles hazardous materials, chemicals, and gases. Works with EH&S and in charge of chemical waste disposal.
• Reports issues and maintenance updates to the Lab Safety Specialist and lab managers and works with lab users closely.
• Identifies equipment failure modes. Creates and enforces operation protocols. Coordinates with Lab Safety Specialist to provide lab safety and equipment training to users. Assists with automating existing manual processes and the scale-up of full automated production lines.
• Coordinates with the Lab Safety Specialist, EH&S and FMS to establish lab safety, inspection, and emergency response procedures. Develops and keeps chemical and equipment SOPs updated. Coordinates with EH&S on general laboratory safety inspections.
• Performs work in a manner that is safe to personnel, surroundings, and equipment, fostering a safe work environment for all. Exercises judgment, based on previous experience, practices, and precedents, to identify and solve problems that arise with little or no precedent.
• Identifies and addresses potential areas for improvement to maintain high levels of equipment availability and process stability. Audits PMs and tasks, driving improvement, ensuring part list accuracy, and following all safety requirements. Develops and authors SOPs and work instructions, and provides training and continuous feedback to team members to ensure adherence to procedures.
• Handles multiple tasks simultaneously and prioritize activities. Flexibility to real-time requests. Troubleshoots, provides effective solutions in the repair of complex electrical and mechanical components and equipment. If necessary, participates in root cause analyses (RCAs) to help identify causes of equipment or process deviation.
• Works with vendors and field service. Keeps equipment operational by coordinating maintenance and repair services with vendors.
• Develops new maintenance procedures, provides supporting documentation and training, via computer maintenance management systems (CMMS) and spare parts management systems. Monitors equipment uptime and performance metrics (MTBF, etc.) and drive improvement projects. Develops and implements maintenance, service, calibration, and spares programs for all critical, internal manufacturing equipment, ensuring downtime is minimized. Drives