Head of Engineering

About Equatic

Equatic addresses one of mankind’s most pressing problems, climate change, by removing CO2 from the atmosphere and generating carbon-negative hydrogen. Equatic’s founders developed an electrochemical process that traps CO2 in the form of mineral solids (e.g., chalk powder: CaCO3), and bicarbonate ions (HCO3-) that are dissolved in seawater. This allows the oceans to capture CO2 from the atmosphere, thereby reducing atmospheric CO2 content. Beyond CO2 removal, the Equatic process also produces hydrogen, a clean fuel as a co-product. This enables two key pillars of the energy transition: carbon removal, and the production of zero-carbon fuels. Equatic sells carbon credits (“negative CO2 emissions”) and hydrogen to governments, corporations, and some cases, even individuals. To achieve this, we are further developing our pioneering technology and design, construct and operate industrially relevant (size, scale, and affordable cost) CO2 removal plants around the world.

About the role

Equatic is seeking a Head of Engineering to lead the design and engineering of our next generation of carbon dioxide removal plants. This is a foundational leadership role, accountable for the engineering of a first of a kind plant, and the successful candidate will lead all elements of the company’s engineering design strategy, resource prioritization, and project management.

You will work together with the Equatic founders to set the vision for the engineering road-map and have full accountability for increasingly larger scale plant design. 

The ideal candidate will have deep experience in engineering design and delivery of industrial plants. The candidate will thrive in a rapidly evolving environment and will be self-motivated to deliver a critical solution to mitigate the impact of climate change.

This position involves close engagement with multiple R&D and operations teams, as well as with external engineering vendors. The applicant must be ready to lead in a results-driven team environment.

Role Description

• Lead the Engineering team and develop the design of Equatic’s technology, constantly looking for ways to improve and deliver a step-change in performance, quality, cost, and manufacturability.
• Engineering of sub-commercial and commercial-scale plants to FEL-3, prepare for construction 
• Design, simulate and engineer individual parts and pieces of equipment, for example Equatic’s electrochemical cell, through to whole-of-plant design, simulation and engineering, for example Equatic’s commercial-scale carbon dioxide removal plant.
• Recruit, develop, motivate and mentor a talented, high-performance Engineering organization (including chemical, mechanical, process engineers).
• Develop relationships and drive active engagement with select vendors to progress multiple projects concurrently with internal and external teams, while providing the necessary guidance that a first of a kind plant will require.
• Develop proprietary designs and processes that ensure Equatic’s competitive advantage.
• Responsible for leading the design and delivery of medium- and long-term engineering roadmaps that results in the next level of system efficiency and commercial performance.
• Implement a disciplined stage-gate approach to program design and delivery to ensure tracking and timely milestone achievement, consideration of dependencies, risks and alternative pathways, while ensuring Equatic maximizes operational and financial outcomes.
• Support R&D and operations functions in addressing technology challenges, including testing, and qualifying new materials, processes, techniques, and plant designs, to ensure Equatic is driving toward a higher performance while sharing learnings for future design efforts.
• Build and manage the Engineering budget, including hiring, operating expenses, and capital outlays in support of engineering projects. 
• Set-up an internal Engineering team culture focused on strong internal processes, including methodologies for resource prioritization, risk assessments process, and common standards for documentation.

Requirements & Qualifications

• BSc, MSc  or PhD in chemical engineering.
• 10-15 years of experience in engineering or product development, including at least 3-5 years in a management role.
• Extensive knowledge of engineering principles and experience in technical analysis, technical writing, and complex problem solving, especially in making simple solutions despite complex problems.
• Hands-on experience with electrolyzers and related technologies, and a systems-level understanding of (electro-)chemical processes and the operations of a renewable-based process..
• Demonstrated experience in successfully developing large complex industrial products in a fully commercialized environment (not just labs and prototypes).
• Demonstrated experience in delivering first of a kind technologies, either electrolyzers or other similarly complex industrial technologies.
• Demonstrated experience in engineering process and documentation management.
• Demonstrated experience in interfacing with R&D, manufacturing and operations organizations during new-product technologies introduction and scale to manufacturing process.
• Strong commercial acumen, including opportunity assessment, feasibility assessment and resource prioritization.
• Comfortable in a fast-paced, collaborative work environment. 
• Strong, professional communications and presentation skills and highly capable of operating in a global environment. 
• Ability to exercise sound judgment, think strategically and pragmatically, plan, organize, innovate, and analyze complex data and situations. 
• Must be highly skilled leading multidisciplinary teams while able to clearly convey the vision, motivate employees, create effective teams, and build peer and industry relationships. 
• Ability to clearly assess, articulate, and manage risk with a sense of urgency to meet product requirements on schedule and on budget.
• Must have the ability to see the big picture, prepare contingency plans, and ensure execution of plans through effective organizational awareness and communication.