The Modern Product Development Chemist - A Master of Many Trades
John K Borchardt
Jobn K Borchardt is a Product Development Chemist for the Shell
Development Company. Copyright ~ 1991 John K. Borchardt.
IN CHEMISTRY DECEMBER 1991/JANUARY 1992
(Reproduced with permission.)
The piece of paper you are reading, the detergent you use to wash your clothes,
the polish you use to shine your shoes, and many other common items are
the result of a product development chemist's work. Product development
chemists don't fit most "chemist stereotypes". . .
They solve problems for their company or for customers by developing chemicals
or mixtures of chemicals that function as desired in a given end use. Product
development specialists don't just work in chemical manufacturing: they
also work in or develop products for the following industries:
coatings
electronics
food
detergents
paper
agricultural chemicals
pharmaceuticals (drugs)
plastics
petroleum
More than 20% of all chemists work in product development. To be successful,
a product development chemist usually specializes in a particular industry
and becomes a recognized expert in understanding and solving that industry's
problems. Let's look at what product development chemists do and how they
use people-oriented skills to accomplish their goals.
What Does a Product Deuelopment Chemist Do?
The product development chemist's goal is to develop new concepts for cost
effective products. Laboratory development work, product testing, and effective
marketing are all required to translate an idea into a useful and profitable
product. All these activities require teamwork.
Product concepts may be improvements of current products, totally new products
for the same use as existing products, or new products for new uses. Examples
of the first type include recently introduced super-concentrated solid laundry
detergents. These detergents come in small boxes. Because the ingredients
are so concentrated, only a small scoop is needed for a large washer load.
Heavy duty liquid laundry detergents, introduced about ten years ago, illustrate
the new-products-for-the-same-use type of product.
New products for new uses include new plastics for biodegradable trash bags,
which are currently under development in many laboratories. The insulating
tiles used on the space shuttle are another example.
Once a product concept is developed, the product development chemist must
design and perform laboratory studies and manufacturing tests and perform
consumer testing. These studies and tests are needed to transform the concept
into a marketable product. To be marketable, a product must meet consumer,
government regulatory, environmental, and safety requirements.
The product development chemist also writes reports and presents seminars
to keep coworkers informed of progress. Both written and oral reports are
needed. These reports demonstrate that the chemist is making good progress
in meeting project goals. Good progress documentation in easy-to-read reports
serves to justify additional program expenditures. Coworkers who need to
be kept informed of progress include the product development chemist's manager,
process chemists, and plant engineers, who will later be manufacturing the
product, as well as the business development and marketing groups supporting
the product development program. In addition to formal written reports and
seminars, the product development chemist often has to give and receive
information in informal discussions, telephone conversations, electronic
mail, and short memos.
If the product development effort is successful, the product development
chemist may assist the marketing effort by presenting seminars to prospective
customers. These seminars may take place at the customer's research center.
The chemist may also present a paper at a trade association or at professional
society meetings. These meetings are likely to be conferences of groups
such as the Society of Plastics Engineers or the Technical Association of
the Paper and Pulp Industry rather than more science oriented conferences
such as ACS national meetings.
It is in the late stages of new product development that the chemist's life
often gets the most complicated. Often, the product development chemist
must perform or supervise technical service work for prospective customers
and finish applications testing. The chemist may need to perform additional
product research to support a patent application. Simultaneously, the product
development chemist may be working with government regulations specialists
and company sales representatives. Business travel at this time may include
trips to customer's manufacturing facilities to supervise product trials.
With Whom Do Product Development Chemists Work
Product development is a team effort, and product development chemists are
often members of project teams that include other product development chemists,
analytical chemists, laboratory technicians, research managers, sales and
marketing personnel, patent attorneys, and government regulations and environmental
experts. Each has a job to do, and all depend on the product development
chemists for.support, technical advice, and chemical samples.
To perform the large number of laboratory studies usually needed for new
product development, chemists often work with laboratory technicians. These
skilled professionals perform many tests that product development chemists
do not have the time to do themselves. Chemists and technicians must communicate
well and cooperate to make product development programs successful. The
chemist must give the technicians clear written or oral instructions and
be sure they know how to perform the required tests. Later, the chemist
reviews test results, draws conclusions, and designs additional tests on
the basis of the technician's findings.
The product development chemist also has to rely on other chemists to perform
tests for which he or she does not have the required equipment. In addition,
the product development chemist often has to work with process chemists
to synthesize the chemicals needed for product testing. The help of analytical
chemists is needed to determine required purity specifications and the physical
and chemical properties of test chemicals. The cooperation of engineers
is needed for process scale-up studies.
Later in the product development process, sales representatives, government
regulations experts, and safety and environmental specialists must be
brought into the program and infommed about the product. In these late
stages, the product development chemist may assist in writing material safety
and data sheets, usage instructions, and even product advertising. In addition,
the creative product development chemist may need to work with a patent
attomey to determine if the product is an invention and whether the employer
should file a patent application.
The widespread adoption of the quality improvement process by American industry
has increased the product development chemist's involvement with coworkers
and customers. Quality means the product must meet the customer's requirements
in the following areas:
performance
convenience of use
physical attractiveness
price (cost effectiveness)
What attributes make a good product development chemist? To do their jobs,
product development chemists have to be masters of many skills. They must
often be managers supervising the work of laboratory technicians. They must
be good written and oral communicators to describe their results to their
managers and marketing personnel. Product devel-opment chemists often need
to be teachers to explain product chemistry to customers. They must work
with sales representatives and be part of business development teams. The
product development chemist's many responsibilities require an ability to
manage time and prioritize activities.
What does the future hold for product development chemists? As U.S.
industry struggles to become more innovative and remain competitive internationally,
the role of the product development chemist can only become more important.
For those who enjoy working with people as well as doing chemistry, chemical
product development can be an exciting and rewarding career.