๐ ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐๐ฟ๐-๐ผ๐น๐ฑ, ๐ณ๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐-๐ผ๐๐ป๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ป๐๐ณ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ถ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ป๐๐ฟ๐-๐๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐น ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐บ๐ถ๐๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ต-๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ป ๐ฅ&๐ ๐น๐ฎ๐ฏ. ๐ก๐ผ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด๐ ๐ฒ๐
๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐พ๐๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ, ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐'๐น๐น ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ.
๐๐ข๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ก๐ฌ
Pave Talent is hiring on behalf of Sheboygan Paint Company, a family-owned industrial coatings manufacturer that has been in business for over 100 years. With roughly 115 employees across labs in Sheboygan, Wisconsin and Cedartown, Georgia, the company ranks among the top 25 US paint companies by size, yet the culture still feels like a family business. There's a record player in the lab, group bowling nights, and leadership (including the CEO) that walks the halls and is genuinely accessible.
๐ช๐ต๐ผ ๐๐ต๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ
โข Curious self-starters who ask questions and want to understand why something works, not just follow steps
โข Comfortable working hands-on in an industrial laboratory, including standard safety procedures and personal protective equipment
โข People who want breadth early on: testing, formulation modification, and eventually customer and cross-functional exposure
โข Motivated to learn new chemistries and instrumentation without needing much hand-holding
If you want a role where every task is handed to you and mapped out in advance, or you'd rather specialize narrowly on day one, this probably isn't your fit.
๐ง๐๐ ๐ข๐ฃ๐ฃ๐ข๐ฅ๐ง๐จ๐ก๐๐ง๐ฌ
You'll join a nine-person research and development lab in Sheboygan, reporting to senior chemists and the VP of Technology and Research Operations, a 25-year coatings veteran who came up through Dow Chemical, Valspar, and Sherwin-Williams. Sheboygan is being built into the company's center of excellence for all R&D, and this lab covers a wide range of chemistries: epoxies, solvent-based and water-based polyurethanes, water-reducible and traditional alkyds, acrylics, and UV and electron beam systems. They even manufacture their own catalysts in-house.
There are no QA responsibilities in this role. You'll be mentored on real formulation and testing projects starting in your first weeks, not sidelined into pure quality control.
๐ช๐๐๐ง ๐ฌ๐ข๐จ'๐๐ ๐๐ข
โข Conduct performance and property testing on paint formulations (viscosity, gloss, cure, adhesion, weathering)
โข Modify existing formulations under senior chemist direction: raw material substitutions, gloss adjustments, viscosity reductions
โข Build and test paint batches across epoxy, polyurethane, alkyd, acrylic, and UV/electron beam chemistries
โข Learn to operate and interpret results from lab instruments such as Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), a rheometer, tensiometer, goniometer, weatherometer, and color spectrophotometer
โข Document experiments clearly and write up organized results
โข Take part in customer calls, plant visits, and cross-functional meetings as you grow into the role
๐ค๐จ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ก๐ฆ
๐ฅ๐ฒ๐พ๐๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ:
โข Bachelor's degree in a STEM field (chemistry, chemical engineering, biology, geology, materials science, or related)
โข Self-motivated, you don't wait to be told what to do next
โข Strong written and verbal communication
โข Comfortable working in an industrial laboratory environment, including standard safety procedures
๐๐ผ๐ป๐๐ ๐ฃ๐ผ๐ถ๐ป๐๐:
โข Coursework or internship experience in coatings, polymers, or formulation chemistry
โข Hands-on exposure to FTIR, a rheometer, or a color spectrophotometer
โข Interest in color science or color theory
โข Experience with statistical software (JMP, Minitab, or MATLAB)
๐๐ข๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ก๐ฆ๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ก ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ก๐๐๐๐ง๐ฆ
๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐น๐ฎ๐ฟ๐: $60,000 to $75,000 per year
๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฑ๐๐น๐ฒ: Flexible standard hours (options like 6:00 AM to 2:30 PM or 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM), on-site with some work-from-home flexibility once ramped up
๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฒ๐ณ๐ถ๐๐: Medical, dental, and vision insurance, 401(k) with company match
๐ฃ๐ง๐ข: Generous PTO and company-observed holidays
๐๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐น๐ผ๐ฝ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐: Company-funded external training, including Datacolor courses, BIC industry seminars, and local leadership programs
Interested? Apply via LinkedIn and we'll be in touch.
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