Graduate Associate Scientist (hiring 2 positions) in Livingston

At FlexMedical Solutions (FMS), we help our customers bring their ideas to life and create a healthier tomorrow, by providing contract design, development, and manufacturing services to medical device OEMs. Our main focus is on Point of Care (POC) in vitro diagnostic (IVD) tests. In our role as a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organisation (CDMO), we focus on the disposable component of diagnostic tests and have significant expertise with point of care (POC) in vitro diagnostics (IVD). We provide full assay development services and have impressive in-house engineering and manufacturing capabilities, allowing us to fabricate biosensors and assemble finished test cartridges; indeed, this extends to the formulation and deposition of chemistries. Our modern facilities are conveniently located in Livingston, central Scotland, less than 20 minutes from Edinburgh and 40 minutes from Glasgow. With a healthy mixture of UK and international clients, we are a forward-looking organisation with an exciting future.

As a recently qualified scientist you will bring technical expertise to the company. With undergraduate experience in the laboratory, you may already have some understanding of in vitro diagnostics and may have some specific knowledge in electrochemical and other common assay detection methods. You will have an interest in how products work chemically, mechanically, and electrically. As such, you will spend time in other areas, namely operations and engineering, developing your knowledge of our processes and business. As a contract business, we work on multiple projects simultaneously; this brings a lot of variety and requires people who are both willing and able to develop new products and processes in unison with our design control process. Your time will be spent working on some of our customer specific contracts, developing and manufacturing diagnostic products on their behalf, and working on internal development programmes. Working for a scaling organisation will provide you with a fantastic opportunity to make your mark and implement your ideas.

Key Responsibilities

• Build reagents / formulate customer solutions to their requirements
• Execute electrochemical methods for external customer requirements, and internal development programmes
• Perform tasks on FMS dispensing systems to accurately deposit solutions and perform subsequent gravimetric analysis
• Manage all on-site chemicals / reagents with regards to inventory, H&S, storage, and containment
• Execute protocols and summarise the outcome in formal reports
• Execute and report lab experiments in support of external client projects and internal development programmes
• Document project work in a compliant manner and in line with the FMS quality management system
• Provide scientific input into product and process designs ensuring optimal performance and client satisfaction
• Initiate non-conformance reports as and when required
• Support routine product manufacturing where required.

Skills, Knowledge and Experience

• A degree in a relevant scientific subject
• Competent using routine laboratory equipment
• Some experience in building reagents and formulations from first principles (buffers)
• Able to summarise and perform basic statistical analysis on data
• Able to record data and report outcomes in a compliant manner
• Work experience in a regulated environment (such as IVD)
• A keen interest in IVD products and their development
• A keen interest in electrochemical methods and other IVD detection systems such as fluorescence, chemiluminescence, optical lateral flow devices
• Knowledge of protein conjugation and purification
• Organic chemistry understanding
• Understand Good Manufacturing and Good Laboratory Practices (GxP)
• Understand Design for Manufacture (DFM) methodology
• Understand Design of Experiments methods
• Experience of using statistical tools such as Minitab