Innovation Engineer

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Job description

Innovation Engineer

Granville, OH

Competitive Compensation and Benefits

Innovation Engineer will be responsible for leading the ideation, development, and implementation of new technologies related to shingles with focus on shingle aesthetics, cool roof technology, and bio-resistance. This role will translate customer insights and manufacturing & application needs into effective product designs and material specifications, using aesthetic design, material science, technology fundamentals to deliver innovative solutions that win with customers and drive growth, quality & productivity.

Innovation Engineer Responsibilities:

• Lead product innovation projects from inception through commercialization.
• Create new shingle colors that appeal to our customers and meet code and commercial requirements of the region.
• Identify creative new product, process, and raw materials innovations while incorporating sustainable and cost-effective designs.
• Develop technical solutions that resonate with our customers through use of Voice of Customer, Human Centered Design, or other similar methodologies.
• Use material science, technology fundamentals, and experimental designs to quickly create prototypes and scaled-up solutions that win with customers, drive quality/productivity, and create intellectual property.
• Partner with cross-functional resources to develop and launch products that meet customer needs.
• Partner with plants and vendors to develop quality standards and specifications and execute manufacturing quality/productivity improvements.
• Actively analyze competitive product trends and utilize to drive product line enhancements and developments. Provide periodic updates to the business on trends in the industry from the technical and material innovation standpoint.
• Conceive, plan, design, and conduct independent research on relevant technologies.
• Interact with top technical leaders, suppliers, and industry organizations to identify, evaluate, and implement new ideas.
• Generate technical insights which lead to discovering product intellectual property and competitive advantage.
• Coordinate testing, analyze data, draw conclusions, make recommendations, and implement improvements to test methods, processes, and products. Recognize problems and initiate corrective actions.
• Practice good Project Management skills for effective execution and clear communication including alignment of team roles, timeline and resource planning, and communication of technical results.
• Utilize technical literature, conferences, and subject matter experts to remain technically current and grow expertise. Leverage outside resources to accelerate learnings and advance our capabilities for fundamentals and solution development.
• Collaborate with Strategic Marketing, Manufacturing, Science and Technology, Sourcing, Capital Engineering, Intellectual Property, and Product Stewardship organizations to deliver sustainable solutions.
• Lead and execute trials that validate performance and mitigate risks.
• Participate in plant trials as part of the core team for new shingle colors or technology as required to advance the program.
• Employ statistical methodologies to drive efficient data-based decisions, elevating confidence to levels that mitigate risks.
• Executive technical and project leadership on other programs.
• Collaborate with other technical experts internally to advance their programs.
• Provide technical support to Marketing to evaluate new market opportunities, and to Manufacturing to enhance or evaluate existing products.
• Provide product training to sales and marketing to communicate product benefits, application methods and answer questions.
• Initiate and drive external relationships to build knowledge and product leadership.

Innovation Engineer Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree or higher in Scientific or Engineering field such as chemical engineering, material science, mechanical, or chemistry. Other technical fields may be considered.
• 2+ years of experience in engineering or science-related industry position.
• Demonstrated effective project management on technical or product development projects with preferred experience in customer focused and multifunction development environments.
• Ability to manage multiple technical projects and work across the multiple business functions (ops, sourcing, etc.).
• Willingness to travel 20-40% is needed to support project work related to plant trials, etc. Majority of travel is planned well in advance.
• Very strong attention to detail and ability to identify subtle differences in product aesthetics and coordinate colors.
• Excellent communication skills, including ability to present data to multifunctional audiences to drive the decision-making process, technical report writing, and general coordination of projects.
• Resilience and agility to adapt to and mitigate risks in an ever-changing environment and business.
• Proficiency with MS Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Teams).
• Background in product or process development is preferred.
• Ability to develop products and material innovations based on material science fundamentals, material characterization, and product testing to deliver products with customer defined performance is preferred.
• Self-directed and self-motivated with the ability and desire to work independently, learn and apply new technical areas, innovate, and own delivery of project outcomes is preferred.
• Team oriented, with high energy and desire to build strong relationships, collaborate and drive results across multi-functional boundaries in a dynamic, multi-project environment.