Separation Scientist (Purification) / NMR Technician

at  Sygnature Discovery Limited

BACKGROUND

Sygnature Discovery is a world-leading integrated drug discovery Contract Research Organisation based in the UK and Canada with its headquarters in Nottingham and additional facilities in Alderley Park, Macclesfield, Glasgow, Montreal and Quebec City. Its staff of over 1,000, which includes 900 scientists, partners with global pharma, biotech and NFP organisations.
Since 2004, Sygnature Discovery has delivered over 40 novel pre-clinical and 22 clinical compounds, with its scientists named on over 170 patents. Therapeutic areas of expertise include oncology, inflammation and immunology, neuroscience, metabolic diseases, infectious diseases, fibrotic diseases and more. To find out more, please visit www.sygnaturediscovery.com.

KEY REQUIREMENTS:

• You will have a BSc/MSc in Chemistry (or related subject) with core drug discovery and purification experience.
• Hands on experience of developing preparative chromatography methods using a range of techniques
• Hands on experience in applying these methods to the isolation and purification of small molecules over a range of scales
• Knowledge and experience of state-of-the-art preparative and analytical instrumentation with the ability to identify and troubleshoot equipment issues
• Understand the influence of structural characteristics / chemistry of compounds on chromatographic behaviour
• Practical experience in the operation of NMR spectrometers is desirable
• Ability to multitask across different workflows (Chromatography and NMR) and efficiently prioritise key tasks and requests
• Self-motivated, flexible approach with excellent problem-solving skills
• Ability to communicate in a scientific manner with attention to detail

ABOUT THE ROLE

Are you interested in accelerating your career in chromatography and working with state-of-the-art technology and instrumentation, then a role in Separation Science is for you.
Analytical Scientists at Sygnature Discovery play an essential role in supporting integrated client projects as well as delivering specialist services. The growing team is looking for talented scientists to push our capabilities even further.
Your main role as a Separation Scientist (90%) will be to develop new chromatographic methods and to undertake purification by preparative HPLC alongside maintenance of both analytical and preparative instrumentation.
A secondary aspect of the role (10%) will be to maintain our NMR spectrometer. You will work alongside the NMR team to manage its upkeep and ensuring its availability for our Chemistry teams.

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• To solve chromatographic problems on a wide and diverse chemical space using state-of-the-art instrumentation
• To carry out semi-automated purification process on milligram to gram scale as well as developing bespoke analytical and preparative methods
• To undertake preparative and analytical HPLC and LCMS on a daily basis and to troubleshoot instrument problems
• To provide achiral purification support to medicinal chemistry project teams and comply with departmental KPIs
• To develop high-throughput purification workflows
• To maintain an NMR spectrometer for walkup use by chemists, ensuring upkeep and performing weekly cryogen fills
• To integrate and learn from industry leading chromatographic and NMR groups
• To propose and implement new initiatives to improve workflow efficiency and enhance chromatographic capabilities