Research & Development Chemist

Description

What if your formulations helped protect firefighters in the field? At Custom Laminating Corporation in Mt Bethel, PA, the R&D work you do has real-world stakes - from life-saving fire shelters to advanced building and automotive laminates. This is a hands-on, lab-forward role where your ideas matter from day one.

We're a small, tight-knit R&D team embedded alongside our manufacturing operation. That means you'll move quickly from bench to plant floor, see your formulations come to life, and collaborate directly with leadership - no red tape, no layers of bureaucracy. Just good science, great colleagues, and work that matters.

This is a backfill for someone who earned a promotion - always a good story. And we're looking to find the right person to build on that.

Is This You?

You're not looking for a job where you run the same protocol every day and wait to be told what's next. You bring technical depth, a methodical mind, and the curiosity to ask 'why' when a formulation doesn't behave the way it should.

You keep a clean lab and a thorough notebook. You read patents You notice when a new chemistry could solve an old problem. And you're just as comfortable grabbing a roll of film in the plant as you are running a rheology measurement in the lab.

You also know that great science happens in teams and enjoy collaborating and pitching in.

What You'll Do

This is a hands-on, bench-forward position with real project ownership. On any given week you might be:

• Formulating and testing water-based adhesives and coatings for new multi-layer industrial laminates
• Running the full lab cycle: make the adhesive, coat it, laminate it, test it, refine it
• Maintaining a thorough lab notebook - because if you win the lottery tomorrow, the project shouldn't stop
• Getting on the plant floor for production trials and scale-up work
• Recommending materials (films, foils, fabrics, adhesives, reinforcements) to meet customer specs and cost targets
• Troubleshooting process or product challenges alongside the team and external subject matter experts
• Reading the latest developments in polymer chemistry and bringing fresh ideas back to the bench
• Contributing to a safe, clean, and organized lab environment - always

What You Need to Succeed Here

Non-negotiables:

• Hands-on formulation experience - adhesives, coatings, water-based polymers, or a closely adjacent applied chemistry strongly preferred
• A BS/MS in Chemistry, Materials Science, or related field with 3-5 years of industry experience
• Lab safety as a personal standard - not a policy you follow when someone's watching
• Thorough, consistent documentation habits - your notebook tells the whole story
• A team-first attitude

Strongly preferred:

• Familiarity with polymer types: acrylics, urethanes, water-based systems
• Experience with laminates, coatings, paints, or converting processes
• Exposure to roll-to-roll or manufacturing-adjacent environments
• Knowledge of flame retardants or silicone-based chemistries
• Familiarity with analytical tools: FTIR, DSC, DMA, rheology
• Understanding of markets we serve: automotive, building & construction, fire protection, and electronics

This role is not for you if:

• Your experience is purely synthesis-based or academic - we formulate and apply, we don't synthesize
• You prefer a large team with well-defined lanes - on a team of three, everyone's lane is wide
• You're not genuinely curious about what's new in your field - continuous learning is a real expectation here, not a slogan

About Custom Laminating Corporation

Custom Laminating Corporation (CLC) is a division of Lamtec, Inc., a privately owned company based in Mt. Bethel, Pennsylvania. We make adhesive-based multi-layer laminates for some of the most demanding applications in the world - including the fire shelters carried by wildland firefighters. Our customers include automotive manufacturers, building and construction companies, and industrial clients who require precision, performance, and consistency.

We're not a big organization. We're a company where the owner is across the street, the president walks the floor every day, and you are two reporting levels from the top. Decisions happen fast. Ideas get heard. Impact is immediate.

Our facility is clean and safe - impressively, almost conspicuously clean for a manufacturing environment. That's not an accident; it's the culture.

What We Offer

• Company-paid medical, dental, and vision benefits - you keep more of your paycheck
• Profit sharing for every employee, on top of a competitive salary and 401(k)
• Flexible PTO
• A brand-new, beautifully maintained facility in the hills of Mt. Bethel, PA
• Real project ownership from day one on a team small enough that your work is always visible
• Relocation assistance considered for the right candidate

I'm Interested - How Do I Get Started?

If you've already built your formulation career in an applied, hands-on environment - and you're looking for a role where precision, teamwork, and real-world impact all matter - we'd love to hear from you.

Apply here: https://app.jobvite.com/j?cj=on63zfwP&s=myHRpartner

We realize that it takes time and effort to go through our application process, and we thank you for considering Custom Laminating Corporation as a potential employer.

Is this the job for you? If not, feel free to share this link with someone who might be interested.

Our hiring management partner is myHR Partner. myHR Partner is not a staffing service or recruiter. All resumes and applications will be reviewed for this position only and solely for Custom Laminating Corporation.

Custom Laminating Corporation continually celebrates the diverse community different individuals cultivate. As an equal opportunity employer, we stay true to that by ensuring that our place can be anyone's place.