Pheronym · 5 months ago
Fermentation and bioprocessing scientist/engineer
Woodland, CA
Full-time
Onsite
New Grad, Entry, Mid Level
$63K/yr - $93K/yr
0+ years expPheronym is a company focused on providing climate-friendly alternatives to pest control in agriculture using nematode pheromones. They are seeking a Fermentation and Bioprocessing Scientist/Engineer to optimize fermentation processes for nematodes and small molecule production, transitioning from shaker flasks to bioreactors.
AgricultureBiotechnologyLife Science
Responsibilities
Maintain a high standard of lab safety culture and design for safe operations
Develop new or improve existing fermentation process by employing knowledge of bioreactor design, reviewing journal articles or other related strategies
Perform small scale (microtiter plate, tube and shake flask) studies to screen for different process parameters and media components
Setup, operate and monitor fermentation processes ranging from 1 to 300 L and also operate associated sensors and lab equipment
Develop strategies to improve the overall reliability and productivity of fermentation processes
Collaborate with R&D, QC and production teams for day-to-day operations and product needs
Independently select techniques and procedures to solve problems within area of responsibility
Develop, evaluate and implement detailed experimental projects within area of responsibility
Draw conclusions, present project results and make technical recommendations to the team
Handle and protect confidential and sensitive data with integrity
Perform related work and other duties, as assigned
Implement strong communication skills across multi-disciplinary teams
Write and maintain data, analysis, and reports of your projects and standard operating procedures
Qualification
Required
Hands-on experience with benchtop bioreactors operation, maintenance, and related control software such as Eppendorf, Sartorius, Applikon or similar systems is a must
Highly knowledgeable and hands-on experience with fermentation designs, concepts, principles, and operations
Experience in developing fermentation processes including batch, fed batch and continuous fermentation and knowledge in high-throughput fermentation screening
Experience with media and process optimization to improve fermentation titers
Proven experience independently designing and troubleshooting fermentation experiments
Experience with bacteria (nematodes is a plus) and standard microbiology techniques and principles
Experience in batch control and QA/QC
Proficient in aseptic techniques (BSL1 and BSL2) for microbial growth as well as testing
Experience with process scale up is a must
Expert in standard microbiological methods including media and plating, serial dilution, viable cell counting, microbial screening, microbial enumeration, staining etc
Effective organization, communication, and leadership skills
Ability to adjust to dynamic environment of startups and willingness to assist other departments
Ph.D in Chemical Engineering, Biochemical Engineering, Bioengineering or in Microbiology, Bioprocess development, Biotechnology or related field, with 0-2 years of experience or M.S with 3+ years of relevant industrial hands-on experience
Preferred
Previous experience working in a startup, agricultural business is a plus but not required
Experience with working with soil microbes- or nematode-based process development
Extensive experience in molecular biological techniques or analytical chemistry techniques is a plus
Benefits
A 401k plan with company match
Gold-level health insurance for you and your dependents through Kaiser (company pays 80-100% of premiums for employees and dependents, based on plan selection)
Dental and vision coverage
Life insurance
Paid time off
Commuter benefit
Company
Pheronym
Pheronym is creating an all-natural highly effective insect control for agriculture.
2-10 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Early StageTotal Funding
$2.07MKey Investors
National Science FoundationSacramento AngelsSVG Ventures
2023-07-11Grant· $1M
2021-05-11Seed· $0.24M
2021-04-25Pre Seed· $0.07M
Leadership Team
Fatma Kaplan
CEO & Co-founder
Recent News
2026-01-21
2025-02-12
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