Director, Process Engineering- Lilly Medicine Foundry

Senior Advisor/Director For Kilo Lab Equipment Development & Process Engineering

At Lilly, we unite caring with discovery to make life better for people around the world. We are a global healthcare leader headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our employees around the world work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to our communities through philanthropy and volunteerism. We give our best effort to our work, and we put people first.

We're looking for people who are determined to make life better for people around the world.

Lilly recently announced a $4.5 billion investment to create the Lilly Medicine Foundry, a new center for advanced manufacturing and drug development. The first-ever facility of its kind, combining research and manufacturing in a single location, the Medicine Foundry will allow Lilly to further develop innovative solutions to optimize manufacturing processes and increase capacity for clinical trial medicines, while also reducing costs and environmental impact.

Lilly is currently constructing an advanced research facility for production of API molecules for clinical trials located in Lebanon, IN. This facility is Lilly's largest investment in a clinical trial manufacturing capacity and is intended to provide APIs for current and future products, including new modalities. This is a unique opportunity to be a part of the startup team for a greenfield manufacturing site, and the successful candidate will help to build the processes and facility to enable a successful startup into GMP manufacturing operations.

We are seeking an experienced Advisor in Equipment Development and Process Engineering to support the kilo lab operations for complex therapies including small molecules, peptides, oligonucleotides, and bioconjugates. This position involves leading technical innovation in equipment design, developing predictive modeling capabilities, and establishing scalable manufacturing paradigms for novel therapeutic modalities.

Position Summary

The Senior Advisor/Director for Kilo Lab Equipment Development & Process Engineering serves as a technical leader responsible for driving innovation in equipment design, rapid prototyping, and scale-up strategies for complex therapeutic manufacturing. This role includes leadership of a small team of 1 to 3 engineers and requires mastery of first principles chemical engineering to develop novel equipment solutions and manufacturing processes.

The successful candidate will apply fundamental principles of heat and mass transfer, reaction kinetics, thermodynamics, and transport phenomena to design, prototype, and qualify equipment for complex therapies that integrate biologics and synthetic chemistry. Through rapid prototyping methodologies and predictive modeling, this leader will accelerate equipment development cycles, challenge existing manufacturing paradigms, and establish scalable processes that enable breakthrough therapies to reach patients faster.

Responsibilities

• Complex Therapy Development
• Modeling & Simulation Leadership
• Team Leadership
• Technical Leadership & Collaboration
• Quality & Compliance
• Equipment Development & Scale-Up
• Cross-Disciplinary Innovation

Basic Requirements

PhD in Chemical Engineering, or related discipline and a minimum of five years of experience in pharmaceutical, biotech, or CMO environment supporting process engineering and equipment development for drug substance API manufacturing

MS in Chemical Engineering or related discipline with minimum 12 years of relevant experience in pharmaceutical, biotech, or CMO environment supporting process engineering and equipment development for drug substance API manufacturing

BS in Chemical Engineering or related discipline with minimum 14 years of relevant experience in pharmaceutical, biotech, or CMO environment supporting process engineering and equipment development for drug substance API manufacturing

Additional Preferences

Proven track record of challenging and transforming manufacturing paradigms through innovative technical approaches

Proven ability to lead, mentor, and develop technical talent at individual and team levels

Expert-level knowledge in modeling and simulation tools (e.g., Dynochem, Aspen, COMSOL, computational fluid dynamics software)

Deep understanding of reaction kinetics, transport phenomena, thermodynamics, and biophysical characterization

Experience with process analytical technology (PAT) and advanced process control strategies

Proficiency with automation systems (DeltaV), data analytics platforms (OSI-PI), and electronic lab notebooks

Experience with complex therapeutic modalities (biologics, synthetic molecules, conjugates, oligonucleotides, peptides)

Outstanding oral and written communication skills for diverse audiences, from operations staff to executive leadership

Ability to work independently while maintaining strong collaborative relationships

Other Information

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