Laboratory Manager

Overview

When Alfred Fain founded a small Rhode Island tire store in 1924, at the time no one could have predicted how Teknor Apex would become an international custom compounder sought out by companies around the world. After a nearly hundred-year journey that’s carried us through acquisitions and expansion, we now have nine U.S. locations, as well as operations in Belgium, Singapore, Germany, and China.

Throughout this global expansion Teknor has remained a privately held company, and today Fain’s grandson sits at the helm, maintaining the family’s tradition of fostering deep employee and customer relationships. These relationships are what allow us—together—to deliver customized compound solutions and help our customer’s create better products.

“Manufacturing is a team sport, and we work together to achieve our goals.” ~Jon Fain

General Function:

Responsible for organizing, overseeing and implementing the plant laboratory in all activities of, production, quality control, raw material qualification and control, sample manufacturing, and quality program.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Review employee performance issues, progress towards goals, technical issues, and daily business.
• Leads the review, evaluation, record keeping and action item track of internal quality incidents. Coordinates laboratory and production issues with appropriate personnel.
• Reviews product formulations. Old formulas may need review with consideration to a quality issue. New formulas may need review regarding product testing requirements and alignment to lab capabilities.
• Oversee and evaluate progress towards laboratory goals. Coordinates efforts to meet corporate goals.
• Creates or updates SOPs for the Lab and trains employees.
• Supervises, reviews, and optimizes testing frequencies and techniques to old and new formulas as appropriate while meeting the customer’s specific needs.
• Consults with technical group and vendor technical group to seek new approaches to product improvement.
• Support or be lead interface with various auditing agencies.
• Evaluate customer complaints to determine root cause. Recommends, evaluates, delegates and monitors corrective action. Prepare or assigns written responses to customer when requested.
• Coordinates and consults with Sales & Marketing, and the Technical group to solve problems for customers.
• Provides front line technical support, advice, and direction to the customer.
• Establishes training objectives for employees at various skill levels and outlines methods to achieve objectives. Assists employees with career planning.
• Evaluates and documents employee performance. Provides feedback relative to employee goals. Documents and implements disciplinary action.
• Tracks and reports performance for previous day against established objectives: weekly, monthly and quarterly reports to direct supervisor and senior management may be requested.
• Provides supervisory responsibility for direct reports.
• On an as needed basis, develops test methods and SOP’s.
• Conducts scheduled lab meetings to identify training and equipment needs, as well as to resolve conflicts, amend/adopt policies or procedures, and enhance communication among lab employees.
• Reviews lab expenses to ensure costs remain within the established budget.
• Oversee the process of packaging and shipping product samples to the customer if and/or as requested.
• Understand and ensure safety policies and procedures are being adhered to.
• Model, promote and uphold our Core Values (Accountability, Integrity, Respect, Safety, Sustainability, Innovation & Partnership)
• Perform any other miscellaneous related responsibilities as required or directed.

Education and/or Work Experience Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree, preferably in a technical related field, or possess equivalent work experience in a field of study such as chemistry.
• Minimum 4-6 years of experience of Plastics or other technology environment experience.
• Must have strong problem solving/analytical skills.
• Creative thinking skills to solve process related issues with internal and external customers. Creative thinking must be practiced in effecting improvements to process and procedures that support site and corporate objectives.
• Be knowledgeable of safety, quality, and productivity processes.
• Ability to create accountability and to lead by example.
• Strong team building, decision-making and people management skills.

Physical Requirements:

• Ability to safely and successfully perform the essential job functions consistent with the ADA, FMLA and other federal, state and local standards, including meeting qualitative and/or quantitative productivity standards.
• Ability to maintain regular, punctual attendance consistent with the ADA, FMLA and other federal, state and local standards
• Must be able to stand for long periods of time, squat, bend, twist and turn as needed to perform the job.
• Must be able to climb ladders and stairs multiple times throughout the shift.
• Must possess good manual and mechanical dexterity to perform job duties.
• Must be able to lift up to 15 pounds.
• Must be able to wear required safety equipment.

This description is a summary of principal responsibilities and is not intended to include all duties that may be assigned.

Teknor Apex is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against any protected status under state or federal laws. Must be 18 years of age or older to work at Teknor Apex.