About the PositionHöganäs in North America is seeking a Materials & Application Engineer to work at our Tomball, TX location. This position is responsible for the metallurgical laboratory operations and coating characterization within a customer-focused technical environment. The position collaborates closely with coatings and applications personnel to evaluate results, provide data-driven insights, and support customer trials and investigations.
Responsibilities include but are not limited to:
- Oversees day-to-day operation of the metallurgical laboratory, ensuring high-quality, consistent, and timely output to support customer-focused activities.
- Performs metallurgical sample preparation, including sectioning, mounting, grinding, polishing, and etching, following established standards and best practices.
- Conducts metallographic analysis using optical microscopy to evaluate coating characteristics such as microstructure, dilution, porosity, cracking, and bonding integrity.
- Captures and documents metallurgical data, including micrographs, hardness results, and observations, ensuring accuracy and traceability.
- Prepares clear technical reports summarizing findings, including micrographs, hardness data, and key observations, to support application development, validation, and issue resolution.
- Interprets metallurgical results and provides data-driven insights on coating performance and behavior.
- Supports customer trials and development activities by preparing and analyzing samples, documenting results, and contributing to technical discussions.
- Collaborates with coatings and applications personnel to correlate metallurgical results with process outputs and support continuous improvement.
- Supports coating process development through metallurgical evaluation, without primary ownership of process parameter development.
- Provides secondary support to cladding processes (e.g., laser cladding, HSLC, PTAW) through sample evaluation and participation in trials as needed.
- Maintains laboratory equipment, consumables, and procedures to ensure readiness and reliability.
- Opportunity to expand involvement in coating process support and applications activities as experience develops.
- Maintains a safe working environment for themselves and others.
- Displays conscious awareness of what is required to ensure a sustainable Höganäs.
Qualified candidates will possess:
- A minimum of a bachelor's degree in Materials Science, Metallurgy, or related field.
- Recent graduates to 3+ years of experience in metallurgical lab, coatings, or technical applications environments.
- Additive manufacturing experience with robotic programming is preferred.
- Strong capability in metallographic sample preparation, including sectioning, mounting, grinding, polishing, and etching.
- Proficiency in metallurgical analysis, including hardness testing and microstructural evaluation using optical microscopy.
- Working knowledge of coating processes, including laser cladding and PTAW (support/operation exposure), with basic familiarity with thermal spray.
- Ability to work independently, interpret laboratory results, and provide clear, data-driven insights.
- Experience preparing clear technical reports, including micrographs, hardness data, and key observations.
Interested? Apply today! 
