Materials Engineer(Ink, Coating, Printing)-Packaging Team
When was the last time you enjoyed a box as much as the product inside? At Apple, every customer interaction is an opportunity for surprise and delight! This philosophy extends beyond the product to its packaging, where every detail is thoughtfully considered.
The Packaging PD team is a diverse group of people responsible for the design and execution of structural packaging for all Apple products - from shippers to finished goods boxes. Our packaging delivers an outstanding customer experience, while protecting products throughout the shipping environment, and advancing Apple’s sustainability goals. We collaborate with a wide range of teams including Industrial Design, Marketing, Environmental, Operations and many others during the design process.
We are seeking someone who approaches problem solving with passion, creativity, and curiosity. Apple’s approach to packaging is unique, so we value people who are eager to learn new skills and further improve their knowledge of packaging design, manufacturing processes, and sustainable materials. We welcome fresh influences from outside the standard packaging industry to promote innovation in creative ways.
The Packaging Materials team collaborates with a wide range of partners to develop the highest quality materials with careful consideration of environmental impact. The position requires you to drive strategic next generation materials, engage in hands-on project-based work, and establish key material supplier relationships with a sharp focus on material and process sustainability.
Responsible for driving development and evaluation new print materials, curate material portfolio, and make material recommendations
Establish and develop relationships with manufacturers and printers to identify emerging technologies.
Collaborate with partner industries and companies to develop and implement future strategy for environmentally-responsible material solutions.
Provide technical leadership to project teams for new print material development from concept to product launch, ability to deep dive into technical issues, identify technical risks and develop solutions
Collaborate with product design, graphics, and manufacturing functions to integrate application requirements to material and process properties. Develop new characterization methods to better predict the performance of coatings in end-use applications.
Create material specifications for ink/coating materials and collaborate with suppliers and manufacturing engineers to implement OQC targets.
Responsibility:
Knowledge of material science concepts, structure-property relationships, and characterization of material performance for structural and cosmetic applications, in quantitative terms.
Large scale printing or related industry experience, including water-based, UV, offset, flexo, silkscreen and inkjet technologies and processes.
Background in color science, specifically knowledge of color specifications/matching and formulation of colorants
- Knowledge of material science concepts, structure-property relationships
- BS or equivalent with in Material Science & Engineering, Polymer Science, Chemical Engineering, or Mechanical Engineering with an emphasis in Materials, Printing, Process Engineering, or related fields
- 3 or more years relevant confirmed experience
- Experience working with contract manufacturers and vendors
- Statistical Analysis knowledge (e.g., Design of Experiments (DOE), Process Stability/Control/Capability) and D/PFMEA
- Proven understanding of analytical techniques (such as XRF, SEM, EDS, FTIR, TEM, ICP, GCMS & XPS) to characterize formulations, contaminants, and fix failure modes
- Experience with paper, fiber, or bio-based materials
- MS or PhD or equivalent experience in related fields