Engineer- Manufacturing Technology Scaling II; Chemist

First Solar reserves the right to offer you a role most applicable to your experience and skillset.

Basic

Job Functions:

• Work cross-functionally with Development Engineering, Integrated Supply-Chain, Environmental-Health-Safety and Quality & Reliability teams to scale and qualify new technology into high volume manufacturing.
• Provide technical leadership in formulation control and adjustment, material characterization, mixing process and hardware in a manufacturing setting.
• Collaborate with coating engineers correlating chemistry with wet-coating and eventual device performance.
• Define equipment and process requirements, refine vendor proposals, and lead the qualification of new process equipment through development and ramp to 24x7 manufacturing.
• Equipment and Process troubleshooting to meet and improve Safety, Throughput, Yield and Performance benchmarks.
• Use structured problem-solving (e.g., DMAIC, 8D) and statistical methods (DOE, SPC) to identify, test, and implement continuous improvements.
• Datamine and visualize process and equipment data using industry standard tools like SQL, Python, JMP, Power-BI; define and set-up visualization and data collection to enable process control.
• Author white papers for process and equipment changes per Change Management System needs.

Education/

Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in chemistry and 10 years of relevant technical experience or 2 years of experience as a Development Engineer II or Manufacturing Engineer II at First Solar.
• Master’s Degree Chemistry and 8 years of relevant technical experience or 2 years of experience as a Development Engineer II or Manufacturing Engineer II at First Solar.
• Ph.D. in Chemistry and 5 years of relevant technical experience or 2 years of experience as a Development Engineer II or Manufacturing Engineer II at First Solar.
• Prior experience in a Semiconductor or PV R&D or Mfg Setting in one or more of the following areas Lithography Chemicals Synthesis and Quality Control, Dye and Pigment Manufacturing including Unit-Operation Design and Sustaining.

Required Skills/

Competencies:

• Technical leadership in cross-functional and cross-site settings; ability to work with minimal supervision.
• Experience in blending chemical solutions, equipment for same and chemistry delivery equipment to coating process.
• Experienced in developing wet coatings (inkjet, spray, roll-coating or similar technologies).
• Proficient with demonstrable experience in Process Maps, Process Documentation including Control Plans, Statistical Process Controls, FMEAs.
• Experienced in technology development concepts like Robust Engineering, Design of Experiments and Design for Manufacturability.
• Demonstrated Hands-On experience in Equipment and Process troubleshooting; excellent in structured methods for problem solving in a manufacturing environment.
• Specifying New Equipment for Manufacturing, and Vendor engagement through Design, Build and Qualification.
• Strong communication skills and ability to develop and deliver technical training and documentation.
• Prior experience in Manufacturing or Technology development teams within Semiconductor, Photovoltaic, Flat-Panel Display, Architectural Glass Coating, Battery or Chemical Processing Industries.

Essential Responsibilities:

• Adhere to all safety procedures, protocols and contribute to EHS/Quality improvements.
• Develop, improve, qualify and document robust solar module manufacturing processes.
• Serve as a subject-matter expert for, and own, process or equipment sets assigned.
• Design and execute process experiments; analyze and present results.
• Work with equipment OEMs; evaluate, install, and qualify tools.
• Lead continuous improvement using Six Sigma methodologies.
• Mentor junior engineers and technicians and provide technical…