Scientist/Engineer, Downstream Process Development (Biotechnology)

Location: Alameda, CA, USA; on-site role

Salary: $110,000–$130,000 annually

Company

hirify.global develops high-performance fats and oils through precision fermentation for food, nutrition, and other applications.

What you will do

• Develop, optimize, and standardize downstream processes for recovering and refining oils from microbial biomass.
• Apply hypothesis-driven experimental design and statistical design of experiments using JMP or an equivalent tool.
• Scale processes from bench through semi-pilot and pilot operations, improving recovery, throughput, and oil quality.
• Specify, commission, and qualify extraction and refining equipment with vendors and application specialists.
• Collect and interpret in-process samples with the Analytical team, generate oil samples, and support mass balance activities.
• Prepare SOPs, batch records, technical reports, technology-transfer documents, and partner-support materials.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree with 6–10 years of relevant experience, master’s degree with 2–6 years, or Ph.D. with 0–4 years in a related scientific or engineering field.
• Experience with downstream unit operations such as extraction, cell disruption, centrifugation or separation, refining, and drying.
• Experience with process optimization, scale-up, equipment qualification, mass balance, and structured troubleshooting.
• Strong technical communication skills and the ability to work in project-driven, team-oriented environments.
• Ability to lift up to 50 lbs with assistance and work occasional early, late, and weekend coverage during campaigns.
• Must be legally authorized to work full-time in the United States; visa sponsorship is not available.

Nice to have

• Experience with oil extraction and refining in microbial, oilseed, or plant-material platforms.
• Hands-on fermentation experience, including bioreactor setup, sterilization, and operation.
• Experience with food-grade or nutritional products, validation protocols, quality review, and manufacturing transfer.
• Familiarity with electronic lab notebooks and LIMS platforms such as Benchling.

Culture & Benefits

• Work in a biotechnology environment focused on science, sustainability, and real-world product development.
• Competitive benefits and compensation package.
• Cross-functional collaboration with Fermentation, Analytical, manufacturing, vendor, and external partner teams.
• Active participation in building a strong safety culture and following standard operating procedures.