Principal Engineer, R&D
Packaging
PrincipalEngineer,R&D-Thermoforms
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“Principal Engineer, R&D - Thermoforms at Principal Engineer, R&D. Skills: Rigid thermoform packaging, R&D, Material science, Process development. Support rigid packaging technical initiatives. Complete research, development, validation workstreams”
What You'll Achieve.
Develop and advance rigid packaging material and format solutions; Support development and validation of functional, cost-competitive rigid packaging solutions; Meet sustainability requirements; Enable innovation, compliance, and value engineering initiatives; Translate technical and sustainability requirements into commercially manufacturable solutions; Support execution of rigid packaging technical initiatives; Contribute to technical assessments and business case inputs; Support compliance with sustainability and regulatory requirements; Minimize Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) fee impacts; Support designs that help avoid material bans and regulatory risks; Support recyclable, reusable, and compliant packaging formats; Support delivery of packaging designs to Performance-Based Specifications (PBS); Meet defined functional, quality, shelf-life, consumer experience, and manufacturing performance outcomes; Contribute to execution of the rigid packaging technology strategy; Deliver technical workstreams for rigid packaging projects from concept through proof of concept and handover support; Meet committed timelines; Meet technical performance targets
Industry & Context.
Technical problem solving; Structured troubleshooting; Data analysis; Experimentation; Technical problem-solving practices
Willingness and ability to travel up to 25% of the time, Physical presence at labs and manufacturing sites (internal and external) to perform experimental and validation testing
What They're Looking For.
Must Have
6+ years of R&D packaging technology development, commercialization experience, exposure to rigid plastic thermoform packaging, project leadership experience, Working technical knowledge of materials (polymers, barriers and additives, etc.), thermoforming plastics, understanding manufacturing constraints, converting processes (e.g., lidding, molding, extrusion, form-fill-seal), Demonstrated ability to support end-to-end development activities, planning/performing experiments, documenting results, coordinating with cross-functional partners, Demonstrated capability of design of experiments, statistics, technical problem solving, Working knowledge of project execution disciplines, task planning, risk identification, stakeholder updates, comfort operating within PMO expectations/templates, Ability to support pilot line activities, scale-up to industrial production
Nice to Have
consumer goods, food & beverage, pharma or similar preferred, Experience working at converter or upstream resin or technology provider ideal, Exposure to sustainable packaging solutions, material/package industry standards and regulations
What You'll Do.
Support rigid packaging technical initiatives
validation workstreams
Contribute to technical assessments
Document technical risks
Support external collaboration activities
Coordinate samples/trials
Apply enterprise standards
Follow established guidance
Provide technical problem solving
Apply Design of Experiments
Support prototyping development
Assist with pilot line setup
Contribute to knowledge sharing
Create technical summaries
Support training content
Support informal coaching
How You'll Work.
Team & Collaboration
Collaborate with Innovation, Process, and Platform packaging teams; Collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders; Support external collaboration activities across the value chain; Coordinate with cross-functional partners
Communication Scope
Excellent communication; Interpersonal ability to influence across functions and levels
Process & Methodology
Project leadership, Project execution disciplines, Task planning, Risk identification, Stakeholder updates
Full Job Description
## _Job Description_ **Job Purpose** As the **Rigid Thermoform Packaging Engineer** , you will contribute technical expertise to help develop and advance rigid packaging material and format solutions for the North American portfolio. The objective of the role is to support development and validation of functional, cost-competitive rigid packaging solutions that meet sustainability requirements, while enabling innovation, compliance, and value engineering initiatives. You will collaborate with Innovation, Process, and Platform packaging teams and cross-functional stakeholders to translate technical and sustainability requirements into commercially manufacturable solutions under the guidance of technical leadership. **Essential Functions & Responsibilities ** * Support execution of rigid packaging technical initiatives by completing assigned research, development, and validation workstreams that balance technology exploration with proof of concept needs. * Contribute to technical assessments and business case inputs for packaging technologies/applications by gathering data, summarizing learnings, and documenting technical risks and opportunities. * Support external collaboration activities across the value chain (e.g., resin, coating, material suppliers; universities; institutes; start-ups; open innovation networks; scouting partners, industry partnerships) by coordinating samples/trials, tracking actions, and documenting outcomes. * Apply enterprise standards and manufacturability considerations by following established guidance to ensure design decisions align with enterprise standards, manufacturability needs, sustainability needs, and platform direction. * Provide technical problem solving on rigid packaging projects by using structured troubleshooting, data analysis, and experimentation to resolve technical hurdles. * Apply Design of Experiments (DoE), statistics, and technical problem-solving practices to research, development, and validation work. *
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