Principal Scientist at Parker Hannifin in Wickliffe, OH

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With annual sales of $15 billion in fiscal year 2020, Parker Hannifin is the world's leading diversified manufacturer of motion and control technologies and systems, providing precision-engineered solutions for a wide variety of mobile, industrial and aerospace markets. The company has operations in 50 countries around the world. Parker has increased its annual dividends paid to shareholders for 63 consecutive fiscal years, among the top five longest-running dividend-increase records in the S&P 500 index.

The Principal R&D Scientist is responsible for significantly contributing to technical initiatives geared towards new product and process development of rubber compound formulations. In this role, the scientist will research, analyze, design, develop and test materials, component parts, processes, or systems to develop new and/or improve existing products. The scientist is responsible for developing solutions to problems of difficult scope and complexity using scientific principles based on assigned technical domain (e.g. chemical, material science, etc.). The scientist will work in close collaboration with marketing, product engineering, and manufacturing engineering functions to meet strategic business objectives. Scope/Supervision and Interaction: This position does Not Have Direct Reports. May have indirect or matrix responsibility to guide the technical work of a team to achieve project milestones. May require supervising the work of student interns, co-ops or entry level engineers and scientists. Has regular and frequent internal interfacing with management to present project status and is expected to be the primary contact with customers and suppliers for projects requiring such coordination. May be the point-of-contact for sponsored university research projects.

Technical/R&D Leadership · Develop new, innovative product, process and technology platforms with a vision of achieving long-term and sustainable growth and considerable competitive advantage. · Research new technologies, trends, intellectual property and applied sciences that help improve and evolve PH’s current product and technology portfolio. · Develop working hypotheses, design experiments, and develop experimental plans to validate value propositions or gain new understandings of materials. Perform literature and patent searches to guide experimentation. · Develop custom polymer formulations and/or processes adhering to customer specifications, quality requirements, and operational goals and standards. New Product/Process Development and Quality Improvement · Position focuses on design, development, improvement and modifications of rubber compound formulations for various hydraulic and industrial hose applications. · Develops new products and technologies through ideation, concept development, design, formulating activities, lab trials, testing and analysis. · Be abreast of latest material characterization techniques and implement the same to gain an advanced understanding of structure-property-processing relationships in polymers, and use that understanding to improve existing products and processes. · Contribute to product platform development through the application of statistical experimental design, product testing, and data analysis. · Partner with manufacturing resources to develop test methods and establish quality controls for new materials/processes. · Provides technical consultation for root cause analysis and troubleshooting on manufacturing and quality issues. Project Management · Lead projects and participates in cross-functional project teams as required. · Summarize experimental strategies and data analysis in written reports and presentations for communication with peers, customers, and various levels of management. Internal/External Networking, Collaboration & Communication · Must work and interact effectively and professionally with and for others throughout various levels of the organization. · Support sales and marketing through development of product and application data. · Maintains relationships with key end-users, external business organizations, industry trendsetters, equipment manufacturers, and customers. · Establish and build external contacts at universities, national labs and contract labs to collaborate on advanced material synthesis, characterization, processing and applications. · Represent PH at technical conferences and exhibitions, and give presentations highlighting advances in material and product technologies. Patent and IP Generation · Continually contribute to PH’s intellectual property by generating patents as well as trade secrets. · Provide technical and strategic input on managing intellectual property relevant to group product and technology portfolio. Mentorship · Act as a mentor to other personnel in their teams, identify key strengths and improvement areas, and plan and participate in their professional development · Participate in the definition of individual developmental needs in technical, business and interpersonal skills. Environmental, Health & Safety initiatives Initiative · Participates and complies with Environmental, Health & Safety initiatives as set forth by the company · Work with Division EHS managers to streamline material procurement, usage and disposal across different manufacturing and R&D sites

Ph.D. in Polymer Engineering, Polymer Science, Materials Science, Chemical Engineering or a related discipline. · 5+ years of industrial and/or academic research experience with a focus on polymer-based material development, structure-property relationships and polymer processing. · A demonstrated understanding and working knowledge of structure-property-processing relationships with proven track record of implementation towards product development, process development, and failure analysis and prevention. · Excellent communication skills (verbal and written) with a proven track record of publishing patents or scientific work in peer-reviewed journals or conference proceedings, or as a technical reviewer or editor of a peer-reviewed journal. · Knowledge of stage-gate new product and process development and differentiated value proposition creation in new product development. · Strong experience with statistical analysis applications such as Minitab. Six Sigma Green Belt preferred. · Strong interpersonal skills including the ability to operate effectively and wield influence across business functions within a matrix-organized company structure, and the ability to work effectively with supplier and customer contacts Travel Required: Position may require up to 25% domestic and international travel to company locations, customers, universities and suppliers.