Natural Negative is a materials AI company. We’re building DropForm, a platform that predicts how recycled and bio-based materials will perform on existing manufacturing lines, so material makers and the brands they supply can adopt them without months of trial and error. We already work with paying customers in personal care and consumer products, and our lab is where those predictions are tested against reality.
We’re investor-backed, with active Innovate UK and Horizon Europe funding and partnerships across leading research and innovation organisations. Our lab is at Plus X Innovation Hub, Brighton.
The role
We’re looking for a Materials Scientist / Engineer to contribute to our materials lab as we grow. You’ll be hands‑on with extrusion and materials processing, primarily thermoplastics such as PHAs and post‑consumer recycled (PCR) plastics. Existing extrusion experience is not needed: we’ll train you on our processing kit. You’ll help run the lab day to day, prepare and dispatch samples for customer and grant projects, and help build the systems and standards that let the lab scale.
You’ll work closely with our Lead Polymer Scientist, who sets scientific direction and will support your development. Your job is to translate that direction into disciplined, well‑documented lab work, and to bring your own curiosity and judgement to how we run. The data you generate is what validates DropForm’s predictions, so your lab work feeds directly into the platform.
What you’ll do
- Run materials processing. Work hands‑on with extrusion and other thermoplastic processing operations, across PHAs and post‑consumer recycled plastics. Develop improvements that make the work faster, more consistent, and more repeatable.
- Help run the lab. Support the day‑to‑day running of the lab: equipment operation and maintenance, consumables and stock, sample preparation, workspace organisation, safety, and keeping things R&D‑ready.
- Test and validate. Carry out characterisation and testing of new formulations, and where a method doesn’t exist yet, work out a practical way to get the data. When results don’t go as expected, dig into why and feed what you learn into the next run.
- Make things. Manufacture prototypes and production samples. Use CAD and workshop skills to design and build fixtures, tooling, and test rigs where useful.
- Deliver for customers. Prepare and dispatch samples, coordinate with external testing facilities and manufacturing partners, keep multiple workstreams moving on time.
- Contribute to funded R&D. Participate directly in our Innovate UK‑funded projects.
- Build the standards. Develop and maintain SOPs, risk assessments, COSHH documentation, and lab notebooks to the standard our funders, partners, and customers rely on.
In your first six months
You’ll have been trained on our processing and characterisation workflows and be up to speed on our current formulations, running experiments with growing independence, running the lab day to day, contributing to process improvements, and helping build the systems that let the lab scale as we grow.
How we work
- Truth and open communication. We say what we think, kindly. We’re open about our mistakes.
- Wellbeing and nurture. We look after each other and ourselves. Life outside work matters.
- Integrity and discipline. We do what we say we’ll do. We take our craft seriously.
- Warmth. We treat each other well.
- Curiosity. We’re here because the problem is interesting. We learn out loud.
- Joy. We enjoy the work, even when it’s hard.
Sprint culture doesn’t solve materials science problems. We move thoughtfully.
Requirements
Must-have
- A degree in materials science, polymer science, chemistry, chemical or mechanical engineering, or a related field.
- Around 1–2 years of hands‑on lab experience, whether from industry, a research group, a PhD/MSc project, or a technical role.
- R&D mindset. When an experiment doesn’t work, you want to know why. You dig into root causes, record what you learned, and use it to improve the next run.
- Keen to learn. You’re curious about materials, methods, and equipment you haven’t worked with yet, and you pick new things up quickly. We’re happy to teach. Willingness to learn matters more to us than knowing everything on day one.
- A process improver. You don’t just execute processes, you look for ways to make them faster, more consistent, or more repeatable.
- Growing independence. With support early on, you’ll increasingly plan and run your own work.
- Comfortable working alongside a materials scientist and translating scientific direction into lab plans.
- Rigorous with data, documentation, and traceability.
- Collaborative. You operate well in a small team and give and receive feedback well.
We care more about what you’ve done than how long you’ve been doing it. If you don’t tick every box but are keen to learn, we’d still love to hear from you.
Nice to have
- Polymer formulation and/or characterisation experience (e.g. DSC, TGA, rheology, mechanical testing, GPC)
- Extrusion or other thermoplastic processing
- COSHH, lab H&S practice, writing SOPs or risk assessments
- Coordinating with external manufacturing or testing partners
- Prior experience in a startup or small‑team environment
- Direct experience with bioplastics, compostable materials, or biopolymers
- CAD (SolidWorks, Onshape, or Fusion 360) and basic machining
- Grant reporting experience, particularly Innovate UK
- Location: based at our lab at Plus X Innovation Hub, Brighton
- Contract: full‑time, permanent
- Right to work: you must be UK‑based with the right to work in the UK. We are unable to consider applications from candidates residing outside the UK or requiring visa sponsorship.
- A competitive salary + meaningful equity.
- A direct working relationship with the founders. No layers between you and the people making decisions.
- 28 days including public holidays.
- A team that doesn’t reward presenteeism and doesn’t micromanage. Family, rest, and time to think are how good work gets done, not what gets traded to do it.
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