Galent

Compensation

Full Description

This role leads organization’s chemistry-driven burn planning transformation, combining deep expertise in waste chemistry and thermal treatment with AI-generated burn plan design and optimization. The Director owns the definition, governance, and continuous improvement of chemistry-based burn plans—from waste profiling and compatibility, to feed composition, burn parameters, and closed-loop learning. The role is accountable for ensuring that AI-generated burn plans are chemically sound, operationally feasible, safe, and value-optimizing, and are adopted across facilities. Key Responsibilities Waste Chemistry & Burn Plan Ownership • Own the end-to-end burn planning framework, grounded in waste chemistry, calorific value, ash behaviour, moisture, metals, halogens, and incompatibility risks. • Define standard waste profiling and characterization models that feed burn planning logic. • Establish chemistry-based constraints and guardrails for blending, sequencing, and feed rates. AI-Generated Burn Plan Design • Lead the design and validation of AI-generated burn plans, ensuring models respect real-world chemical and thermal constraints. • Translate chemical rules (compatibility, reaction risk, emission limits, slagging, corrosion) into machine-consumable logic. • Partner with data science teams to define features, training signals, and success metrics for burn plan optimization models. Burn Parameter Feedback & Closed-Loop Learning • Define burn performance KPIs (thermal stability, throughput, residue quality, emissions stability). • Establish feedback loops from control room data to continuously improve AI burn plan recommendations. • Drive transition from static, manual burn planning to adaptive, chemistry-aware planning. Risk, Safety & Compliance Leadership • Ensure burn plans proactively manage chemical incompatibility, safety, and regulatory risk. • Embed gatekeeping logic for incompatible or high-risk waste streams prior to receiving and feeding. • Act as chemical authority for incident prevention, root cause analysis, and corrective action. Standardization • Collaborate with site team on Process Chemistry & Burn Planning, setting standards, playbooks, and validation protocols for AI-generated plans. • Ensure consistency of chemistry logic and burn planning methodology across facilities while accommodating site-specific constraints. • Mentor site process chemists and operators on AI-assisted decision-making. Value Realization & Optimization • Quantify and track impact from AI-enabled burn planning including: • Increased throughput and stable burns • Reduced rehandling and off-spec residue • Lower fuel and reagent consumption • Reduced operator intervention and variability Required Experience & Qualifications • MS or PhD in Chemistry or Chemical Engineering (process or thermal focus strongly preferred). • 10–12 years’ experience in waste management, hazardous waste, incineration, or thermal treatment operations. • Deep hands-on expertise in: • Waste chemistry and compatibility • Burn plan development and optimization • Thermal process control and emissions behaviour • Proven experience working with advanced analytics, AI/ML, or decision optimization systems (as a domain leader, not necessarily a coder). • Strong ability to translate chemical intuition into structured rules, constraints, and data models. Success Measures • AI-generated burn plans adopted as the primary planning mechanism. • Measurable improvement in burn stability, throughput, and safety. • Reduced chemistry-related incidents and manual overrides. • Scalable burn planning framework deployed across facilities.