Lead Modeling Scientist

Position Overview

Novelis is one of the world leaders in aluminum recycling and rolling and a leading sustainable aluminum solutions provider. Driven by our purpose of shaping a sustainable world together, we work alongside our customers to provide innovative solutions to the aerospace, automotive, beverage packaging and specialty markets. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Novelis has approximately 13,000 employees in 32 operating facilities on 4 continents.

Responsibilities & Qualifications

The Lead Modeling Scientist has a key role in advancing Novelis’ capabilities in computational modeling, with the primary objective of linking aluminum sheet process conditions, microstructure and texture evolution, and material properties. This work will support faster product innovation across various markets in which Novelis operates, as well as improved plant performance. The role requires an unique combination of deep expertise in metallurgy and materials science, coupled with advanced modeling proficiency.

The position focuses on predictive modeling, which is integrated with experimental validation and data analytics to optimize manufacturing processes for aluminum products. As a key member of Novelis’ Americas R&D organization, the Lead Modeling Scientist will spearhead the development and deployment of multi-physics, multi-scale materials modeling and physics-guided AI modeling capabilities. These efforts are critical for accelerating the development of sustainable products and processes.

Central to the role is bridging microstructural length scales as applied to Novelis’ products—including sheet and plate—and to the company’s manufacturing processes such as casting, rolling, and heat treatments. The position will also focus on developing a deeper understanding of the relationships among alloy chemistry, thermomechanical processing, microstructure, properties, and overall product performance.

Responsibilities:

• Develop and maintain Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME) models that connect process parameters, microstructure, and properties for flat aluminum sheet products, including processes such as homogenization, heat treatment, precipitation, recrystallization, texture development and grain growth.
• Design and implement multi-scale models to link process parameters with microstructure and properties for casting, rolling, heat treatment, coating, CASH, batch annealing and related processes relative to Flat Rolled Aluminum Products.
• Constitutive behavior models: Flow stress, work hardening, strain rate sensitivity
• Formability & failure prediction models: FLD, FLC, earing, spring-back, bendability
• Create and refine process simulation tools using methods such as finite element, finite difference, cellular automata, and phase-field modeling to predict thermal and mechanical behavior.
• Integrate modeling results with experimental characterization techniques (including SEM, EBSD, XRD, DSC) and plant data to validate predictions and continually improve model accuracy.
• Build thermodynamic and kinetic models using tools like Thermo-Calc, DICTRA, TC-Prisma, and Pandat to support alloy design and process optimization.
• Lead end-to-end modeling projects, from scoping and model development through validation and deployment, with the goal of improving or innovating aluminum sheet products and processes across beverage packaging, automotive, specialties, and aerospace markets.
• Automate workflows for predicting microstructure-property relationships and incorporate feedback from plant trials to enhance model robustness.
• Collaborate with plant engineers and R&D teams to apply models for troubleshooting and improving productivity, recovery, and quality.
• Document methodologies and results in technical reports and contribute to intellectual property through invention disclosures and patents.

Required Qualifications

• Advanced degree (M.S. or Ph.D.) in Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field, with more than ten years of experience in computational modeling.
• Expertise in metallurgy and materials science, as well as process and microstructure modeling for metallic systems, especially aluminum alloys. Flat rolled aluminum products experience is largely preferred
• Proficiency in modeling software such as Thermo-Calc, DICTRA, TC-Prisma, and Pandat, and in numerical methods including finite element, finite difference, cellular automata, and phase-field modeling.
• Programming skills in MATLAB, FORTRAN, and C/C++, along with proficiency in statistical analysis tools like JMP and R.
• Strong understanding of metallurgical principles and characterization techniques.
• Excellent technical communication and project management skills.
• Proven track record of solving plant issues through modeling with measurable business impact.
• Experience deploying predictive models in production environments to improve throughput and quality.

• In 2027, employees based in Kennesaw will be expected to work in the office Monday through Thursday, with Friday available to work remotely or from the office.

   

Preferred Qualifications

• Machine Learning for materials: Property prediction, Process window optimization, Defect classification
• Digital twin development: End-to-end process-to-property simulation
• High-performance computing (HPC): Parallel simulations, cloud computing
• Data pipelines & model deployment: MLOps, version control, model governance
• DOE (Design of Experiments)
• Multi-variable regression & sensitivity analysis
• Model calibration & uncertainty quantification

What We Offer:

Novelis benefits say a lot about how we care for each other. Our employees and their families have many different needs. As a result, our benefits offer choices on many levels and are high in quality, competitive in the marketplace, and affordable. These are a few of the benefits we offer to support you and your family’s well-being:

• Medical, dental and vision insurance
• Health savings accounts – Company Funded Health Savings Account (HSA) and Health Reimbursement Account (HRA)
• Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
• Company-paid basic life insurance and Additional voluntary life coverage
• Paid vacation and competitive personal time off
• 401(k) savings plan with company match
• Retiree Medical Plans – medical and prescription drug coverage through Novelis sponsored Retiree Health Access
• Retirement Savings Account
• Employee assistance programs – available 24/7 to you and your family
• Wellness and Work Life Support - career development and educational assistance

Disclaimer:

We encourage all potential candidates to follow the protocols below and to be diligent when sharing any personal information:

• Check the job posting is live and valid via our careers page: Careers - Novelis
• Verify any communication with us by contacting our talent team at Careers – Novelis

Location Profile

Novelis’ Global Research and Technology Center located in Kennesaw Georgia within the greater Atlanta metropolitan area is a cutting-edge full-service research and technology hub that employs approximately 200 people including world-class engineers metallurgists chemists scientists technologists and technicians. The facility includes state-of-the-art lab equipment and a diverse mix of product pilot lines that bring innovative solutions to customers in the automotive beverage can and specialty markets. Kennesaw provides a diverse and family-friendly place to live with countless museums cultural opportunities and educational institutions. Novelis is committed to the Kennesaw community and supports a number of local charitable organizations including Habitat for Humanity as well as FIRST Robotics aimed at encouraging young people to pursue the Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields in order to spur the next generation of scientists and innovators.

Novelis recognizes its talented and diverse workforce as a key competitive advantage. Novelis provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants. All terms and conditions of employment at Novelis including recruiting hiring placement promotion termination layoffs recalls transfers leaves of absence compensation and training are without regard to race color religion age sex national origin disability status genetics protected veteran status sexual orientation gender identity or expression or any other characteristic protected by federal provincial or local laws.

Disclaimer

We encourage all potential candidates to follow the protocols below and to be diligent when sharing any personal information:1. Check the job posting is live and valid via our careers page: Careers - Novelis2. Verify any communication with us by contacting our talent team at Careers - Novelis