Senior Staff Engineer, Modeling

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Senior Staff Engineer – Process Modeling, Synthetic Molecule Process Development (SMPD) – focuses on robust and cost‑effective processes for manufacturing new small‑molecule pharmaceuticals, ensuring high purity and quality standards. The role involves leading challenging problems in chemical reactions, leveraging expertise in reaction kinetics, transport phenomena, mathematical modeling, and reactor design. Responsibilities include developing scale‑up and scale‑down models for unit operations using first‑principle and data‑based models, applying process analytical technologies (PAT) combined with statistical and first‑principle models, and enabling effective formulation, optimization, scale‑up, and troubleshooting of processes through in‑silico approaches.

The position reports to the Associate Engineering Fellow within SMPD’s Process Engineering & Technology Group.

• Lead and contribute to the design, development, optimization, and scale‑up of manufacturing processes for synthetic molecule drug substances using process modeling and simulation principles.
• Utilize advanced process modeling tools and digital twin functionalities, implementing model‑based design of experiments for process characterization and risk assessment.
• Lead and develop experimental designs and workflows for model development, validation, and verification.
• Collaborate with cross‑functional and external partners to develop and deploy digital twins of unit operations.
• Partner with Automation, Manufacturing, Process Engineers, and PAT experts to develop M&S solutions for global deployment.
• Recommend, justify, and implement in‑silico tools and an “in‑silico first” approach to process development.
• Contribute to the democratization of modeling and simulation tools & results within global SMPD.
• Develop project or significant technical strategy and act as a resource/expert within the department.
• Recognize and champion technical expertise within the function.
• Contribute independently to project work and platform development across multiple projects.
• Analyze technical issues and coordinate resolutions based on model predictions.
• Review, interpret, and communicate data across pharmaceutical sciences and project teams.
• Take technical responsibility for a project area/technical program within the department and potentially across Pharmaceutical Sciences.
• Stay current with novel process modeling tools, identify trends, and champion process strategy.
• Influence and support initiatives for scientific and technical improvement within and across the function.
• Lead local and global initiatives on behalf of senior staff.
• Author relevant sections of regulatory documents, validation plans, reports, and peer‑reviewed manuscripts.
• Identify vendors and build relationships to gain access to technologies for pipeline and platform goals.
• Manage key vendor relationships across projects and resolve vendor issues proactively.
• Represent Takeda and actively engage in pre‑competitive collaborations with academic and industrial partners.

• Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering or related pharmaceutical science with 11+ years of relevant industry experience.
• Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering or related pharmaceutical science with 9+ years of relevant industry experience.
• Ph.D. or postdoctoral fellowship in Chemical Engineering or related pharmaceutical science with 3+ years of relevant industry experience.
• Strong knowledge and understanding of chemical reaction engineering and catalysis.
• Strong knowledge and understanding of transport phenomena and thermodynamics.
• Extended experience with commercially available reaction kinetic modeling software such as Ansys, Reaction Lab, Dynochem, and gPROMS.
• Extended experience with commercially available CFD software such…