WHAT DOES A FORMULATION CHEMIST DO?

Published: Mar 26, 2025 – The Formulation Chemist initiates and manages formulation projects from proposal through commercialization, ensuring alignment with market trends and technological advancements. This position utilizes technical expertise to identify innovative materials, develop robust product formulations, and conduct rigorous validation testing to support successful product launches. The chemist also provides cross-functional technical leadership, solving formulation issues to maintain high product quality and timely production schedules.

A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Formulation Chemist

1. Formulation Chemist Responsibilities

  • Formulation Development: Develops new formulas and reformulates existing products under management direction
  • Stability Testing Management: Manages product stability testing (in-house and with external research organizations)
  • Clinical Sample Manufacturing: Manufactures clinical trial samples
  • Technology Transfer Documentation: Prepares technology transfer instructions for all approved new formulations, including formula, process, specification sheet, and stability report
  • Cost and Timeline Management: Maintains project cost objectives and timelines
  • Ingredient Sourcing: Identifies sources and price quotes for ingredients
  • Manufacturing Logistics: Manages timeline and logistics for product manufacture
  • Lab Supply Management: Orders and manages laboratory supplies
  • Research and Development Support: Assists with Research and Development projects

2. Formulation Chemist Job Summary

  • Product Development: Develop new soaps, shampoos, lotions, hand sanitizers, and related products
  • Formulation Improvement: Modify existing formulations to improve product performance
  • Raw Material Evaluation: Evaluate new raw materials to achieve better product performance, lower cost, etc.
  • Bench-to-Pilot Scale-up: Scale-up bench formulation to pilot scale
  • Commercial Scale-up Assistance: Work with a process chemist to assist in scaling up to commercial-scale manufacturing
  • Procedure Documentation: Write manufacturing procedures and SOPs
  • Technical Customer Interface: Function as a technical interface for customers
  • Cross-Functional Collaboration: Collaborate cross-functionally with legal, marketing, regulatory, etc.

3. Formulation Chemist Accountabilities

  • Product Innovation: Develop new and innovative non-conventional fertilizers and production processes
  • Organic Amendments: Utilize organic/recycled amendments, bio-fertilizers (microbes, bacteria, fungi, etc.), bio-stimulants, and regulators.
  • Ecological Design: Innovative products with ecological appeal that utilize soil ecosystem processes
  • Soil Health Improvement: Improve soil health and allow timely nutrient availability to crops, thus reducing nutrient losses.
  • Efficiency Enhancement: Develop new ideas and technologies to improve the nutrient use efficiency of existing fertilizer products with safe inhibitors and biodegradable coatings
  • Nutrient Balancing: Improve nutrient balance with secondary and micronutrient coatings, bio-stimulants, etc.
  • Nano-Technology: Develop new products and technologies with low particle size (micro- or nanoscale)
  • Absorption Efficiency: Increase the efficiency of absorption and plant uptake.
  • Partnership Development: Work with public and private sector partners to develop and commercialize (scale up) new products.
  • Research Management: Develop, conduct, and assist with research (identify research topics, develop proposals on potential research projects, etc.)
  • Technical Reporting: Prepare and/or present technical reports, scientific journal publications, and project proposals.
  • Global Consulting: Provide technical assistance, consultancies, and training programs to institutions and private companies globally.

4. Formulation Chemist Job Description

  • Product Development: Develop and evaluate new products to bring to market speedily and effectively
  • Formulation Management: Create products through development stages, including raw materials selection, formulation, re-formulation, and appropriate testing plans
  • Testing Coordination: Ensure all test results are available on time (formulation, stability, challenge tests, safety tests, etc.)
  • Technical Documentation: Understand and develop Safety Data Sheets, Technical Data Sheets, and fact sheets
  • Dangerous Goods Documentation: Create precise and correct information for the use of Dangerous Goods Notes
  • Lab Compliance: Ensure lab resources are in good working order and ensure compliance with safety regulations and quality procedures in force in the laboratory
  • Equipment Sourcing: Recommend and source laboratory and testing equipment
  • Customer Communication: Confident in professionally explaining processes and procedures during customer visits and on video for marketing purposes
  • Export Compliance: Answer questions relating to formulations and dangerous goods for use in government documentation in the instance of export
  • Regulatory Updates: Keep abreast of regulatory changes
  • Project Collaboration: Attend internal meetings to discuss the progress of projects

5. Formulation Chemist Overview

  • Record Keeping: Ensure proper housekeeping and systematic records of experiment results
  • Traceability Assurance: Ensure traceability and repeatability of experiment results
  • Technical Quality Improvement: Improve technical service quality and competency
  • Laboratory Safety: Improve and emphasize laboratory safety
  • Project Efficiency: Contribute to maximizing the efficiency and achievements of the project team by meeting time, quality, and cost targets
  • Technical Troubleshooting: Provide feasible technical solutions to the production/process team when troubles happen
  • Risk Assessment Support: Support the risk assessment of the FFP plant
  • Process Optimization: Support process engineer for process optimization
  • Experimental Design: Design and conduct experimental programs and physicochemical test regimes from research scale in the lab to late development (pilot-scale) within an established quality and safety framework.
  • Data Analysis: Analyze data, prepare reports, present them to internal stakeholders, and represent Formulation Development in cross-functional project teams.
  • Project Management: Actively participate in and/or manage formulation research and development projects.
  • Cross-Functional Collaboration: Engage directly with other functions and sites to ensure the successful delivery of projects (e.g., synthetic chemistry, biology, engineering, manufacturing, marketing, and supply chain)

6. Formulation Chemist Details and Accountabilities

  • Formula Development: Develop formulas, product specifications, and processing parameters for new maintenance chemicals.
  • Safety and ISO Compliance: Ensure that Corporate Safety and ISO procedures are followed in the area of responsibility.
  • Lab Management: Follow general laboratory procedures, maintain instruments in calibrated condition, and manage lab supply/inventory.
  • Field Testing Coordination: Coordinate field trial testing and seek customer feedback.
  • Raw Material Evaluation: Evaluate new raw materials for cost reduction or regulatory compliance in existing products.
  • Product Collaboration: Collaborate with internal and external customers to evaluate new or existing products, programs, and tests.
  • Issue Identification: Recognize early failures and discuss them with the program leader.
  • Product Documentation: Create functionality studies, product profiles, and product specifications for new products.
  • Innovation and Idea Generation: Generate new product ideas or formulas.
  • Data Reporting: Collect and report data to the manager and assist in the preparation of reports/presentations.
  • Process Troubleshooting: Train to troubleshoot process issues, operations, sales calls, customer complaints, and quality with other formulation groups (lubricants, water treatment, etc.) at NCH.
  • Product Testing Oversight: Oversee the testing of physical attributes, stability, and performance of products.
  • Quality and Economic Standards: Ensure quality compliance with economic standards as marketed through North America Chemicals and international distribution.

7. Formulation Chemist Tasks

  • Laboratory Experience: Sufficient laboratory experience to efficiently develop test methods and evaluate equipment/instruments
  • Hypothesis Testing: Demonstrated record of progress through formulating and testing hypotheses.
  • Lab Study Management: Independently plan, organize, and conduct laboratory studies to develop, evaluate, and optimize relevant technologies following departmental priorities
  • Information Delivery: Deliver critical information to local and global project teams
  • Self-Monitoring: Self-monitor for progress, recognize and anticipate areas with technical obstacles, and devise strategies to overcome them
  • External Expertise Utilization: Access external expertise and science where needed
  • Proprietary Advantage Recognition: Recognize areas of potential proprietary advantage and capture opportunities accordingly
  • Knowledge Transfer: Transfer of expertise and new technologies to other scientists, with strong interpersonal skills and the ability to adapt to and exploit informal networks
  • Technical Communication: Concise, clear, and timely written and oral communications to support technology transfer
  • Professional Networking: Networking with the local formulation technical community to recognize difficulties and opportunities

8. Formulation Chemist Additional Details

  • Formulation Development: New formulation development, formulation improvement, and evaluation
  • Reverse Engineering: Reverse engineer competitor products
  • Trial Leadership: Act as lead on stability, efficacy, and trials associated with formulations
  • Record Maintenance: Take responsibility for maintaining records
  • Sample Manufacturing: Manufacture sample formulations for product chemistry, efficacy studies, and sample programs
  • Stability Studies: Schedule and assist with stability studies to support formulations
  • Formula Documentation: Author formula cards, including Darwin formulas, particularly formulation processes, product specifications, and technology transfers.
  • Formulation Innovation: Develop new formulations and reformulate existing products
  • Innovative Research: Research and develop new innovative technologies
  • Formula Modification: Modify or improve existing formulas
  • Clinical Trial Management: Manufacture and oversee clinical trials
  • Supplier Communication: Meet and correspond with suppliers
  • Lab Safety: Maintain laboratory safety standards
  • IP Collaboration: Collaborate with business intellectual property counsel and other scientists regarding the rights to market, patent applications, and office actions.
  • Scientific Knowledge Sharing: Drive ongoing scientific understanding by sharing knowledge with scientists worldwide.

9. Formulation Chemist Role Purpose

  • Project Initiation: Initiate projects, develop project proposals, and plan work execution.
  • Project Management: Manage projects and project teams from inception to launch.
  • Technology Application: Identify and apply new technologies towards the development of innovative new products and the enhancement of existing products.
  • Innovation Awareness: Stay at the forefront of innovations and trends by sharing back with project teams and more broadly within the division so that new technologies can be leveraged in new products and new product packaging.
  • Market and Material Knowledge: Keep abreast of emerging technologies/raw materials that could improve existing clients' Professional product value that meet the needs of the B2B markets.
  • External Resource Utilization: Utilize available external resources (patent literature, suppliers, etc.) to identify and recommend applicable new technologies.
  • Technical Leadership: Provide strong technical leadership within a cross-functional team.
  • Cross-Functional Collaboration: Collaborate with multifunctional core teams to successfully identify, develop, and launch new products in an accelerated manner.
  • Global Project Execution: Execute global development projects by creating and following effective and efficient project timelines and related success criteria to realize on-time project completion dates.
  • Commercialization Expertise: Utilize expertise to contribute to the successful commercialization of new ideas, driving market and corporate value.
  • Product Validation: Design, coordinate, and complete performance and quality validation testing in support of new product launches.
  • Documentation and Protocols: Write and review lab test procedures, scale-up protocols, and specifications needed to support product development activities.
  • Technical Specification Development: Generate robust specifications, finished good product specifications, and bills of materials as part of the technical validation process.
  • Technical Problem-Solving: Provide technical expertise and problem-solving skills to evaluate and correct formulation-related issues to maintain production schedules and product quality.

10. Formulation Chemist Key Accountabilities

  • Drug Formulation: Execute the design and development of solid/liquid/semisolid and novel drug delivery dosage forms for the allergy, analgesics, cough and cold, and GI BCC categories
  • Project Management: Manages projects in formulation development to ensure a stable formula and on-time delivery
  • Product Dossier Development: Develops formulations and creates product dossiers for new products by ensuring that all FD work is performed effectively, in the appropriate fashion, according to agreed-upon timelines, and at a high level of quality
  • Portfolio Management: Manages a portfolio of projects and is responsible for prioritizing activities to effectively and efficiently deliver on commitments
  • Innovation Development: Plays an active role in contributing to innovation by actively turning ideas/concepts into prototypes, evaluating external new technologies and drug delivery, and presenting new product ideas to commercial teams
  • Lab Coordination: Coordinating and executing laboratory development activities
  • Analytical Collaboration: Working with Analytical Development to determine experimental and stability test requirements
  • Paint Formulation: Formulate spray-processable paints (including color-matching, milling, sourcing colorants, material integration, protocol development, and validation)
  • Spray Application: Spray and/or paint large area substrates and characterization of resultant colors
  • Research Reporting: Generate, analyze, and consolidate findings in research updates, reports, presentations, etc.
  • Experimental Design: Design own experiments and contribute to the interdisciplinary research team
  • Inventory Management: Maintaining inventory of laboratory chemicals and supplies, including documentation and ordering
  • Adhesive Development: Develop new technology for pressure-sensitive adhesives, including rubber-based hotmelts, acrylics, and polyesters
  • Technical Project Planning: Develop and implement complete technical project plans, lead project teams, and report to Research and Development and business leadership
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