R&D Team Leader II @ Suwasthi Intense

Job Description

Purpose/Key Objectives of the Job Through a personal drive for results, this role contributes to harvesting the benefits that come from executing latest colorimetric techniques in designing and introducing K/S of toners in productlines thereby enabling the usage of color softwares and tools for an accurate match both in the lab and at the customer formula retrieval end Contributes to defining the Color R&D Technology strategy and roadmap to achieve full alignment with AkzoNobel strategies and proposing new leads. Will play a key role to validate the customer fit of new solutions and (end-to-end) process alignment. Is fully up to date to the newest relevant market and technology developments and is comfortable to contribute as a part of color projects that will bring break through solutions or futuristic technologies into the market and internal color processes. These innovations will be based on the color, paint, special pigments/color trends, Big Data & Artificial intelligence. and adoption of new digital technologies Responsible to compile the color requirements fulfilled from various stakeholders. Lab Work Requests (LWRs) are raised by various stake holders like ASC Global product development & maintenance, ASC product management teams. These LWRs are managed & the required deliverables are provided by various activities like Color Verification test (CVT), K/S estimation, Spray-outs generation, project color formula development etc. Enhance customer experience by carrying-out development of scripts for iColor Design App for Consumer Electronics & Automotive business as part of CoD BU self-support project and make sure the digital color development for various editions of iColor Design App are delivered as per agreement. Converts & proposes internal customer demands into color software requirements and proposes software functionalities in color and colorimetric tools resulting in efficient color processes. Is leading in the Go-No Go of FD related color applications, colorimetric components and color engines enabling state-of-the-art color (IT) technology to become implemented into day-to-day color processes. Works closely together with business stakeholders, application managers, project leaders, other software engineers & developers, requirement analysts, key users and across functional units to efficiently convey business requirements Conduct regular meetings with our internal customers, to ensure that the right priorities are set for all types of LWRs. Regularly review & update the progress of LWRs. To fulfill all types of color needs, require an expert knowledge on colored paints, regular & special pigments, color matching & planning skills. Continuous training and support of color matching staff in the team. Ensuring that the latest software & hardware technology is deployed and implementing the continuous process of automation and digitization of color formula development. Also plan the man power & equipment required for execution of formula development activities in the team along with required calibrations. Key contributor in setting up of new products in Color DMS & other color tools for Vehicle Refinishes, Aerospace, Automotive, Consumer Electronics businesses updating info in PDM & creating DCPP. Participate in global color innovation & process improvement and digitization/automation projects for ASC. Key responsibilities Color Formula development: Vehicle Refinishes & Commercial Vehicles : Ensure color formula development as per Global formula development (FD) plan & as per the business requirements. Develop and approve VR & CV colors by providing continuous color matching technical support to the color matchers in the team. Regularly review & update the progress against FD plan. Aerospace: Color formula development support for aerospace coatings business by delivering color formulas & color panels as per the required quality and technical specifications as and when required. Consumer Electronics : Development of Colors digitally & making scripts used in iColor Design App of consumer electronics business. Color Technical Support: Vehicle Refinishes & Commercial Vehicles : Carry-out Color Verification Tests, K/S estimation and Spray-out projects to support various product & toner introduction activities of VR/CV. Regularly review the LWRs with product management team to plan the priorities & update the progress of LWRs. Aerospace : Contribute to the introduction of various products/toners in the systems by carrying out CVT & K/S estimation for Aerospace products. This helps in development of these colors in Comet FD Tool thus improving the overall efficiencies of the color development teams. Automotive Exterior : Support product setup in Color DMS & color tools by creating the design and estimating K/S values for various Automotive Exterior products. Consumer Electronics : Support product setup in Color DMS & color tools by K/S estimation in various CE products. This enables the development of CE colors in Comet FD Tool & helps the team reduce the number of attempts & improve efficiency. Also delivers the iColor Design App scripts for timely launch of the colors in the app for customer visualisation Innovation: Actively participates in the color innovation program and projects. Explores new ideas in line with the business strategy (color digitization and color leadership), executes verification studies & K/S estimations, assesses business impact and added value, and implements approved new tools and/or processes. Focus is on reducing cycle time of color formula development (cost efficiency), significant reduction of carbon footprint by improving overall efficiencies of color formula development teams (sustainability) and ensuring delivery of accurate color formulas to the market (first time right). Works in global innovation projects for ASC and also for BA Color projects. Problem Solving: Delivers support to customers when it comes to questions/issues on color and color formulas. Is capable of correcting all types of color formulas in case a customer cannot properly use the earlier offered ones. Support: Provides project support to the global product management organization, Color Research, Color Apps & processes and paint related RD&I groups. Participates in maintenance, improvement and new development projects with respect to new colors as well as hardware and software tools supporting the formula development process. Coordinates and executes activities resulting from projects. Implements new hardware and software tools for formula development in the operations. Keeps up with the latest information concerning new pigments and new color matching equipment by consulting internal and external contacts. Management information: Reports the outcome of Color verification tests & recommends further course of action. Prepares monthly reports about the status of LWRs, color formulas developed & projects. Based on pre-defined KPIs, reports are issued on a monthly basis to key (internal) customers. Reports highlights/ bottlenecks. Quality: Assures that the color formula data in databases used in relation to the color matching process (CometFDT, digital images of effect pigments) is complete and correct, makes databases available to hundreds of users. In case of deviations, applies Root Cause Analysis to implement (preventive) corrective actions. Is aware of and works according the international ISO and/or TS-automotive, Aerospace quality standards. Also takes part in internal quality audits. Training: Evaluates the competencies of people in the team & provides the input for various training needs. Continuously supports team members by training & mentoring with various skills & development needs. Staff performance: Leading a team of :6-10 FTEs, color matchers and ensuring execution and delivery of agreed plans, using multiple areas of expertise. Proceeding from departmental staffing forecasts, assists selecting staff on the basis of skills, flexibility, career perspective, and professionalism programs. Drawing up and realizing career and training plans. Practicing delegation agreements with staff, coaching staff and assessing performances. Creating an environment and organizational structure enabling staff to realize the preset results. Staff includes FTEs, trainees and contract employees. Participates in making & executing departmental operational plan Investigates factors influencing the quality and efficiency of the formula development process. Suggests, implements and evaluates improvements for the formula development process and tools (equipment, software and data) used. Organizes and presents data in graphical and tabular formats and publishes reports about the activities to the global stakeholders Responsible for implementation of Quality Management systems in the team Ensures formula development meeting technical specifications. Plan and executes color verification tests (CVT) based on the lab work requests (LWR) received Plan & executes K&S value estimations for various ASC products & creates DCPP in Color DMS so that the values are available in various color tools. Plan & executes spray-out projects to support ASC businesses based on LWRs Monitors department process, availabilities, due dates, etc. via key performance indicators (KPIs). Manage a team of color specialists and being accountable for their performance which is measured by the various key performance indicators (KPIs). Provides training in working methods and new tools for new personnel in the team Take part in color RD&I maintenance, improvement and new development projects. Acquire and maintain knowledge with respect to color matching, pigments, paint products and tools in order to support and execute improvements and maintenance projects. Ensure operational excellence of all instruments & equipments. Initiate statistical studies for process and quality improvements. Provides helpdesk function (questions/ answers) for countries and other regions Gives project support to the ASC and Business Area Performance Coatings color group. Proceeding from departmental staffing forecasts and interviewing candidates for the team. Execute, supervise & ensures safe environment by leading various HSE&S projects in color development centre & implementing safe work practices in line with Corporate HSE&S directives & guidelines in order to build work culture driven by safety consciousness Level of Autonomy Execution of activities within the year plan framework. Team coordination and management. Color Expertise advise to projects , stake holders , regions , customers Choose correct tools for color development process in terms of technology. Create & optimize color development process in team. Request for new pigments to the color expert team Local day-to-day color development process from cradle-to-grave. Expense approval for team members. Project leader for color related projects. Examples Pressure from the all requestors over the multiple stakeholders of various segments of the business Aero, CV/CT , VR , Color Marketing etc. Special Color development must be solved to their satisfaction within the given time limit. The pressure of getting more colors done in less time is always there. Rapidly changing priorities, workload and the capacity challenges in the color development teams Ensure multiple multidisciplinary projects deliver on time in full. Ensure new color tools are developed and delivered in line with business needs. Delivery of business critical CVT/K/S when the stakes are very high Job Requirements B. E., B. Tech (Chemical/Polymer) or M. Sc. (Chemistry) Hands-on experience with 10-15 years or more of experience in the color development domain People management skills to lead the team of fresher to 10 years of experience. Colorist Certification: Color Matcher A / E (Expert) Ability to handle multiple projects/activities simultaneously with excellent prioritization skills. Significant project management knowledge and experience Ability to rapidly comprehend the functions and capabilities of new IT and color trends and technologies Strong presentation skills to various audiences like Management teams, technical teams Management, Pigment Experts, Application Owners/Managers and RD&I peers. Proficient with project management, communication and process monitoring tools. Experience with working in multi-disciplinary self-organizing agile teams Inspire people to deliver our mission and Vision, demonstrate the passion for the business and give people a reason to believe anything is possible. Raise the bar by continuously look for ways to improve, also by staying abreast of external trends Customer first mentality. Innovation and entrepreneurial mindset and familiar with innovation practices. Excellent verbal and written English skills

Employement Category:

Employement Type: Full time
Industry: Chemical / Plastic / Rubber / Glass
Role Category: Pre-Sales
Functional Area: Not Applicable
Role/Responsibilies: R&D Team Leader II

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Keyskills:   Color matching Project management Software engineering Big Data Artificial intelligence Problem Solving Quality management Project leadership Process improvement Presentation skills Colorimetric techniques Color softwares Color tools Color formula development KS estimation Sprayouts generation Digital technologies Color verification tests Color Technical Support Training mentoring Staff performance management Innovation practices