Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability (DTU Biosustain) in Kongens Lyngby, close to Copenhagen, is establishing a scale-up/-down piloting facility to commercialize bio-based products and molecules for a variety of customers and application markets. The work of the Piloting Facility of the Center aims towards bridging the gap between academic metabolic engineering projects from cell factories and their commercial application. The aim is to establish and integrate  a whole workflow, from synthetic biology through genetic engineering, bench-scale fermentations and scale-up process design towards gate milestone driven project and process development until successful release into the market.

The candidate

• You are knowledgeable about microbial fermentation and process development and is used to work in bench-scale and 30-50L scale fermentation skids.
• You are fluent in cell physiology and strain development approaches.
• Metabolic engineers, molecular researchers, chemists and chemical engineers work hand in hand with you to fulfill the mission of the facility.
• You are responsible to develop the cell-factories towards commercial Key Performance Indicators inside the team and return guidance and feedback to the research and development staff of the Center.

As a Senior Microbial Engineer, your position requires collaboration with internal research groups, the analytical and genome engineering group as well as with third parties, vendors, technology providers and engineering disciplines for process development. Also  you drive the development across multiple organisms on the upstream (bio-reaction) side and assist more junior team members.

Primary areas of responsibility

• Supporting the transfer of cell factories, hosts and strains as well as bioprocesses through internal gate milestones
• Collaborate with teams for performance mapping of micro-, small- and large-scale bio-reaction and verify specification demands
• Collaborate with biochemists, metabolic and fermentation engineers to develop industrially robust fermentation and cultivation conditions for GMO cell-factories
• Running, controlling and maintaining batch, fed-batch, repeated batch cultivations ideally for both bacteria and yeast, anaerobic and aerobic
• Interpreting data obtained during and after fermentation processes and develop KPIs
• Initiative and self-motivated with good planning & organizational skills
• Ability to work simultaneously on different projects
• Excellent collaboration & communication skills (English)

Job requirements

• BSc./MSc. Degree (or similar) in Microbiology, Biotechnology, Biochemistry, Bioprocess Engineering or a related field with 5+ years relevant industrial experience – or a PhD. Degree of the same with 2+ years experience
• Multi-Strain experience (bacterial, yeast, fungi) and strong on microbiology and physiology aspects of the organisms – focused on Fermentation and Cultivation skill, not genetic engineering
• Mindset to share your knowledge and experience with other disciplines and learn yourself from these.

It would be great if

• You have expertise in scale down approaches (matching performance in microtiter plates to that in fermentation scale)
• You are from the Food, Feed, Chemicals or Life Sciences industry and applied production and manufacturing standards
• You have industrial expertise with scale-up of organisms larger than small pilot scale (>100L)
• You have experience with tech transfer of materials and processes to customers and/or contract manufacturing facilities
• You have experience in organizing work with lab technicians
• You have hands on experience with Sartorius AMBR250 systems

If you would like additional information about the position, please contact Pre-Pilot Plant Director Andreas Worberg at andwor@biosustain.dtu.dk or +45 93518900.