Pilot Process Engineering Lead

<p>Vulcan Elements is manufacturing American rare-earth permanent magnets for a secure, resilient future. With a focus on national security and economic resiliency, we serve critical industries such as defense, aerospace, and automotive powering a high-technology future. Vulcan Elements is building a team of ambitious professionals committed to Mission Focus, Technical Excellence and Transparency.</p>
<p>As the Pilot Process Engineering Lead, you will own the operational and engineering backbone of our rare earth magnet pilot plant from floor-level production support to MES/ERP architecture — and build the technology transfer foundation that takes us from pilot to commercial production at our Benson facility.</p>
<p><strong>Responsibilities</strong></p>
<p>OT Data Integration and Analytics Focal Point</p>
<ul>
<li>Lead MES implementation at the pilot plant, including recipe management, electronic batch records, equipment integration, and data historian connectivity.</li>
<li>Serve as the primary operations interface for ERP integration — production orders, material consumption, inventory transactions, and batch genealogy.</li>
<li>Build and maintain process data pipelines; develop operator-facing dashboards for real-time production visibility.</li>
<li>Ensure MES and ERP data architecture is designed from the start to scale directly to the Benson commercial facility with minimal rework.</li>
<li>Drive data integrity across production records, material traceability, and batch history — audit-ready and transfer-ready at all times.</li>
</ul>
<p>Production Operations</p>
<ul>
<li>Work on the floor with operators during magnet production runs: powder handling, pressing, sintering, and post-process finishing.</li>
<li>Own production scheduling support, shift standup, and daily reporting across throughput, yield, uptime, and open deviations.</li>
<li>Troubleshoot process deviations and equipment issues in real time; lead structured problem-solving and document root cause findings.</li>
<li>Partner with maintenance on preventive maintenance schedules and failure mode tracking to continuously improve equipment uptime.</li>
<li>Manage production consumables, tooling, and material readiness to keep runs on schedule.</li>
</ul>
<p>Process Engineering & Recipes</p>
<ul>
<li>Own production recipe documentation — pressing parameters, sintering profiles, atmosphere controls, and post-processing specs — in close alignment with R&D.</li>
<li>Execute and support process improvement trials at the pilot plant; analyze data and translate findings into updated procedures.</li>
<li>Apply statistical process control (SPC) and trend analysis to critical process parameters; identify drift early and drive corrective action before it impacts output.</li>
<li>Build and maintain the process characterization package that underpins commercial scale-up.</li>
</ul>
<p>Quality Documentation & Change Control</p>
<ul>
<li>Author, maintain, and train to production SOPs covering all pilot plant operations: equipment, process steps, safety, and quality checks.</li>
<li>Enforce rigorous change control on recipes and procedures — every revision documented, approved, and reflected in the MES.</li>
<li>Support internal audits and customer/partner quality reviews with organized, traceable production records.</li>
</ul>
<p>Technology Transfer to Benson</p>
<ul>
<li>Build and maintain the technology transfer package: process descriptions, critical parameters, operating ranges, known failure modes, and scale-up considerations.</li>
<li>Partner with R&D to translate experimental results into validated production procedures ready for commercial deployment.</li>
<li>Contribute to Benson equipment specifications, capacity planning, and production readiness — with direct input into how the commercial facility is designed and staffed.</li>
<li>This role is the direct path to a production engineering leadership position at Benson; the pilot plant is where that foundation gets built.</li>
</ul>
<p><em>Responsibilities and tasks outlined are not exhaustive and may change as determined by the needs of the business</em></p>
<p><strong>Qualifications</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field.</li>
<li>3+ years of process engineering or manufacturing engineering experience in a production environment — chemicals, advanced materials, metals, or similar process-intensive industries.</li>
<li>Hands-on experience with MES platforms (recipe management, electronic batch records, equipment integration); familiarity with ERP systems and production/inventory transaction workflows.</li>
<li>Demonstrated ability to own and improve a live production process — scheduling, deviation management, SPC, and root cause analysis.</li>
<li>Proficiency with data analysis tools (Python, SQL, or similar); ability to build and maintain process data pipelines and operator dashboards without heavy IT support.</li>
<li>Experience authoring and maintaining SOPs, batch records, and process documentation in a regulated or audit-ready environment.</li>
</ul>
<p><em>Must be a U.S. Person due to required access to U.S. export-controlled information or facilities.</em></p>
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