Operations Co-op - Safety, Maintenance

Synthomer is a leading supplier of high-performance, highly specialised polymers and ingredients that play vital roles in key sectors such as coatings, construction, adhesives, and health and protection – growing markets that serve billions of end users worldwide. Headquartered in London, UK and publicly listed there since 1971, we employ c.3,500 employees across our 5 innovation centres of excellence and more than 28 manufacturing sites across Europe, North America and Asia. Around 20% of our sales volumes are from new and patent protected products.

At our innovation centres of excellence in the UK, Germany, China, Malaysia and Ohio, USA we collaborate closely with our customers to develop new products and enhance existing ones tailored to their needs, with an increasing range of sustainability benefits. Since 2021, we have been proud holders of the London Stock Exchange Green Economy Mark, which recognises green technology businesses making a significant contribution to a more sustainable, low-carbon economy.

Synthomer Jefferson Hills is looking for highly motivated Engineering students, to enter our co-op program starting in the Spring 2025 semester. 

What will you gain from this opportunity? 

Co-op opportunities provide current students job experience that brings the classroom to life. Synthomer Jefferson Hills strives to provide a wide variety of experiences across multiple co-op terms. As a co-op at Jefferson Hills, you will have the ability to work on a variety of assignments that will not only challenge you technically but have a tangible impact to the daily operation. These opportunities provide rewarding work experience that is foundational for career development.

What typical assignments can you expect in the program? 

Each term in the program is designed to expose the student to the many facets of Chemical Engineering within manufacturing.  The various projects will touch process chemistry, process improvement, reliability, capital project management, and safety. In these assignments, the student will work with engineers, craftsmen, and operators to push their projects forward and absorb industry knowledge. Typical projects/assignments include:

• Process chemistry – optimization of continuous or batch reactions
• Process improvement – bottleneck elimination, cost reduction, and yield improvement
• Reliability – multidisciplinary work to reduce downtime and address bad actors
• Capital Projects – execute small capital jobs across several disciplines
• Safety – occupational and process safety projects to reduce or eliminate hazards

Benefits of Synthomer Jefferson Hills Co-op:  

• Real life experience in a large chemical facility
• Exposure to the various roles that an Engineer can have
• Rewarding assignments that have impact to the daily operation
• Competitive pay
• Professional Growth - Full-time opportunities after graduation. Our engineering co-op program is an important avenue for hiring full-time engineers throughout the US region for Synthomer.

Who are we looking for? 

• Must be authorized to work in the United States without requiring work authorization sponsorship by our company for this position now or in the future.
• Students who are interested in working in a chemical manufacturing environment. 
• Students currently pursuing an undergraduate degree in Engineering from an accredited university
• Students with GPA > 3.0 will be given priority consideration. 

🌍 Global Benefits Overview

• 💰 Competitive, market-aligned compensation

• 🎯 Discretionary global bonus scheme

• 📈 Discretionary Long-Term Incentive Plan (LTIP) – for senior positions

• 🚗 Company car or car allowance – varies by region and role

• 🩺 Healthcare – tailored to regional locations

• 👶 Parental leave and family support – maternity, paternity, adoption (aligned with regional policies)

• 🏡 Working options – flexibility where it matters, based on role and business needs

• 📚 Learning & development opportunities – training, online platforms, buddy/mentorship programs, Internal Synthomer University with L&D offers

• 💙 Wellbeing support – employee assistance program (EAP), mental health resources, wellbeing initiatives

• 🌱 Retirement / pension contributions – plans vary by country

• 🤝 Culture of Inclusion – where everyone can thrive

• 🏆 Performance culture, global reward & recognition programmes