Engineer II - LCA and Engineering Analysis

at  Rochester Institute of Technology

JOB SUMMARY

Engineers at the Golisano Institute for Sustainability (GIS) at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) conduct applied research, technical assistance, and training to advance the GIS mission. GIS engineer core responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Participate as a technical resource on various technical assistance and applied research projects
• Build and manage relationships with clients/sponsors to understand needs and goals, and scope projects
• Collect, aggregate, and analyze data; apply engineering principles and critical thinking skills to solve technical challenges
• Write technical documentation and reports
• Use innovative, out-of-the-box thinking to develop project concepts, new methodologies, tools, and solutions
• Educate current and future workforce by developing and delivering training
• Share knowledge and research findings through publications, technical reports, conference presentations and other events
• Manage multiple projects; work on teams to successfully execute project and programs
• Perform literature searches on a variety of research project specific topics; explores new technology and stays abreast of emerging technology and tools to provide state-of-the art, cutting edge solutions for clients and sponsors

The Engineer II, LCA and Engineering Analysis position is part of the GIS Circular Economy Innovation team. This team is responsible for conducting circular economy and environmental sustainability research and technical assistance projects, which may include life cycle assessment, sustainable design, product development assessment and assistance, environmental impact assessment and other related work. Members of the team may also at times support the GIS Pollution Prevention and/or Advanced and Sustainable Manufacturing teams.

Circular Economy Innovation team positions have duties such as the following as it relates to the GIS engineer core responsibilities:

• Conduct use-inspired and applied research
• Apply sustainable product/systems analysis techniques and tools to determine environmental impacts
• Identify opportunities for product, process and/or system improvement and devise strategies/solutions to address them
• Apply scientific/technical know-how and approaches to produce quantitative results
• Provide comprehensive assessment and analysis to deliver practical solutions

This position on the Circular Economy Innovation team will have a primary focus on life cycle assessment (LCA).

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

This position requires a Bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or equivalent technical degree, plus a minimum of 3 years of related work experience, or a Masters degree in Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or equivalent technical degree, plus a minimum of 1 year of related work experience. An equivalent combination of experience and education may be considered.

• Must have practical, hands on experience in conducting life cycle assessments (LCA)
• Proficiency using SimaPro
• Ability to quickly learn new software tools
• Critical thinking skills; ability to quantitatively analyze data
• Intermediate conceptual knowledge of engineering principles, practices, and procedures; practical understanding of industry best practices, techniques, and standards.
• Ability to solve standard problems by analyzing possible solutions using experience, judgment, and precedents
• Comfortable explaining information to others within the team and within other areas of the department; ability to communicate with management, as well as clients.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

Big-picture, system-level thinking

DEPARTMENT/COLLEGE DESCRIPTION

The Golisano Institute for Sustainability (GIS) is a leading sustainability research and education organization at Rochester Institute of Technology. GIS is made up of a diverse set of academic programs and applied research centers focused on the optimization of industrial systems to maximize material and energy efficiency while minimizing adverse environmental impacts. We work with partners in all areas of industry, government, and business to put technology and innovation to work for a sustainable future. The diverse perspectives we bring to a project or problem reflect our broad expertise across industries and the many partnerships weve formed with forward-thinking corporations, government agencies, and research organizations over the last 30 years. Our six industry-facing applied research centers focus on sustainable manufacturing, energy, transportation, and buildings. They work to develop advanced technologies, sustainable industrial processes and practices, and data-informed policy recommendations. Each year, about 100+ companies, governments, and other organizations engage GISs research centers on a variety of projects to solve technical problems, innovate products or processes, research manufacturing technologies, reduce their environmental footprint, or commercialize a new technology. Research center projects are led by full-time professional staff with significant industry experience.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

This position requires a Bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or equivalent technical degree, plus a minimum of 3 years of related work experience, or a Masters degree in Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or equivalent technical degree, plus a minimum of 1 year of related work experience. An equivalent combination of experience and education may be considered.

• Must have practical, hands on experience in conducting life cycle assessments (LCA)
• Proficiency using SimaPro
• Ability to quickly learn new software tools
• Critical thinking skills; ability to quantitatively analyze data
• Intermediate conceptual knowledge of engineering principles, practices, and procedures; practical understanding of industry best practices, techniques, and standards.
• Ability to solve standard problems by analyzing possible solutions using experience, judgment, and precedents
• Comfortable explaining information to others within the team and within other areas of the department; ability to communicate with management, as well as clients.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

The Engineer II, LCA and Engineering Analysis will work within guidelines and policies and use standard procedures to solve a range of straightforward problems and analyze possible solutions. The Engineer II may also provide guidance to new associates. Specific responsibilities include:

• With a moderate level of guidance and direction from senior staff, serve as a key resource for ISO compliant life cycle assessments, including:
• Utilizing appropriate Product Category Rules (PCRs) as the LCA framework to support clients pursuit of Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) publications
• Developing process flow diagrams
• Gathering life cycle inventory (LCI) data from clients and conducting research to support collection of secondary LCI data
• Developing LCA models in LCA software (SimaPro)
• Compiling and entering LCI data into LCA software
• Running LCA simulations
• Interpreting and summarizing LCA results
• Contributing to LCA reporting
• Conduct research and provide technical assistance towards potential solutions to reduce environmental impacts identified in initial LCA results
• Assist in modifying LCAs to adjust for improvements implemented as a result of research and technical assistance
• Assist in the facilitation of Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) publication
• Assist with sustainability-focused, use-inspired and applied research and technical assistance projects, including technical report writing; scope projects and develop project scopes of work; lead small/straightforward projects
• Provide technical assistance in other areas of the Golisano Institute of Sustainability, which may include supporting pollution prevention projects

Engineers at the Golisano Institute for Sustainability (GIS) at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) conduct applied research, technical assistance, and training to advance the GIS mission. GIS engineer core responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Participate as a technical resource on various technical assistance and applied research projects
• Build and manage relationships with clients/sponsors to understand needs and goals, and scope projects
• Collect, aggregate, and analyze data; apply engineering principles and critical thinking skills to solve technical challenges
• Write technical documentation and reports
• Use innovative, out-of-the-box thinking to develop project concepts, new methodologies, tools, and solutions
• Educate current and future workforce by developing and delivering training
• Share knowledge and research findings through publications, technical reports, conference presentations and other events
• Manage multiple projects; work on teams to successfully execute project and programs
• Perform literature searches on a variety of research project specific topics; explores new technology and stays abreast of emerging technology and tools to provide state-of-the art, cutting edge solutions for clients and sponsor

Circular Economy Innovation team positions have duties such as the following as it relates to the GIS engineer core responsibilities:

• Conduct use-inspired and applied research
• Apply sustainable product/systems analysis techniques and tools to determine environmental impacts
• Identify opportunities for product, process and/or system improvement and devise strategies/solutions to address them
• Apply scientific/technical know-how and approaches to produce quantitative results
• Provide comprehensive assessment and analysis to deliver practical solution