R&D Associate Chemist (Paint Team)

Bring Innovation to Life Through Science

Are you passionate about chemistry and keen to see your work make a real impact? Join Sherwin-Williams as an R&D Associate Chemist and play a key role in developing, testing, and improving paint products used by customers across the market.

This is a hands-on laboratory role where you'll work alongside experienced scientists to develop new products, improve existing formulations, support production trials, investigate quality issues, and evaluate new raw materials. You'll gain exposure to a wide range of functions including Quality, Manufacturing, Marketing, Consumer Services, and the Global Supply Chain team, making this an excellent opportunity to build both technical expertise and business knowledge.

Whether you're a recent graduate or have some industrial laboratory paint experience, this role offers fantastic development opportunities within a global organization committed to helping employees grow their careers.

The R&D Associate chemist role within the paint support team will be responsible under the supervision of the paint team leader to:

• R&D Development Work

  Work to support the development of new products/formulations.

  Testing to validate reformulation of existing products.

  Laboratory testing of formulations and products

  Working on projects managed through the stage-gate process from feasibility to scale-up.

• Product and material maintenance

  Lab work to support QA and Consumer Services Departments

  Lab work to support production batch corrections & complaint investigations.

  Understanding use of formulations/recipes within the company IT system

  Learning relevant regulations and helping to ensure product compliance

• Laboratory evaluation of products and materials

  Assist in the departmental stability studies.

  Benchmarking testing of paint products

  Undertake lab work to support evaluation and assessment of raw materials.

• General laboratory responsibilities

  Equipment maintenance & calibration

  Working to, and upholding ISO and safety standards

  Ordering of consumables

  Report writing

• Other duties appropriate to the position under the direction of the paint team leader

• Bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering, chemistry, polymer/materials science or related technical discipline

• Basic laboratory skills essential

• Competent IT skills essential

• Effective written & verbal communication skills

• Confidence in presenting in formal or informal environments

• Ability to work flexibly, adapt and respond positively to changing priorities.

• Ability to work in a team environment and on one’s own initiative.

• Strong accountability, integrity and enterprise awareness

• Strong focus on customer, value creation, and development of differentiated solutions

Preferred:

• Master’s degree in chemical engineering, chemistry, polymer/materials science or related technical discipline

• Previous industrial/chemistry experience

• Six Sigma knowledge

• Ability to work successfully in a matrixed organization.

• Paints/coatings formulation experience

• Driving license is preferred due to occasional travel.

Travel requirements:

• up to 10% of the time (very occasional)

What we Offer:

• The established salary range for this position is GBR 35,148 - 45,411

• Company bonus plan

• Work-Life Balance:We value your personal time and well-being.

• Career Opportunities:Grow within a truly international business.

• Ongoing Training and Support:Continuous learning and development opportunities.

This vacancy is advertised exclusively for internal candidates, with a closing date of Friday 23rd October.

Interview dates: Proposed for week commencing 26th October. Successful candidates will be notified in advance, allowing time to prepare.

***Please be aware that you can apply for any internal job offer after minimum one year in current role having previously informed your manager.

Please read the guidelines before handing in your application

All internal employees when applying for a role are required to upload their updated and their last 2 appraisals (which can be retrieved from HR Cloud).***

Pay Transparency

The salary range shown refers to base salary only. In addition to this, we offer a broader total reward package which may include bonus or incentive pay, relevant allowances, and a range of competitive benefits. We encourage candidates to consider the full package when evaluating an offer.

Salary is determined using a structured and objective framework, taking into account the role’s responsibilities, required skills and experience, market benchmarks, and internal equity. This ensures pay decisions are fair, consistent, and aligned with our commitment to equal pay and legal compliance.

As part of our commitment to fairness and transparency, we are now sharing the salary ranges that underpin our existing pay framework. These ranges have been in place for some time and are used to guide consistent, objective pay decisions based on factors such as role scope, skills, experience, and external market data. Employees may be positioned at different points within a range based on factors including experience, performance, and tenure in role. We encourage open conversations with managers to better understand individual positioning and development opportunities.