Senior Scientist in Precipitation & Particle Design

At Johnson & Johnson, we believe health is everything. Our strength in healthcare innovation empowers us to build a world where complex diseases are prevented, treated, and cured, where treatments are smarter and less invasive, and solutions are personal. Through our expertise in Innovative Medicine and MedTech, we are uniquely positioned to innovate across the full spectrum of healthcare solutions today to deliver the breakthroughs of tomorrow, and profoundly impact health for humanity. Learn more at jnj.com.

As guided by Our Credo, Johnson & Johnson is responsible to our employees who work with us throughout the world. We provide an inclusive work environment where each person is considered as an individual. At Johnson & Johnson, we respect the diversity and dignity of our employees and recognize their merit.

Job Function:

Discovery & Pre-Clinical/Clinical Development

Job Sub Function:

Chemical Research

Job Category:

Scientific/Technology

All Job Posting Locations:

Beerse, Antwerp, Belgium

Job Description:

Scientist : Precipitation & Particle Design Research

Crystallization Technology Unit (CTU) | Beerse, Belgium

At Johnson & Johnson, we believe health is everything. As an (Senior) Scientist in Precipitation & Particle Design, you will play a meaningful role in designing and engineering particle attributes of peptides that enable robust, scalable, and manufacturable Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs).

You will combine expertise in crystallization, amorphous precipitation, isolation, drying, and particle characterization to develop processes that deliver the optimal API characteristics required for successful drug product manufacture. A particular focus will be placed on peptides, where amorphous precipitation is often required and where isolation and drying can be especially challenging due to the complex physicochemical properties, sensitivity, and handling behavior of these molecules.

Based in Belgium, Beerse, you will join the Crystallization Technology Unit (CTU)—a recognized center of excellence supporting particle engineering and crystallization process development across the Johnson & Johnson synthetic molecule portfolio.

This position is offered as a fixed term with a duration of 24 months. You will have the opportunity to work in a leading research team and innovation driven R&D campus. This experience will support your development towards next job opportunities.

Your impact

In this role, you will research particle tuning strategies for amorphous APIs, developing robust precipitation and isolation processes that deliver the desired API properties for successful manufacture of drug products.

You will:

• Perform lab research into controlled precipitation and isolation procedures for amorphous APIs.
• Evaluate different precipitation and isolation technologies and approaches.
• Design and optimize particle engineering strategies to achieve target API characteristics such as particle size distribution, morphology, density, filtration performance, flowability, and solid-state form.
• Develop mechanistic understanding of precipitation and particle formation through data-rich experimentation, process analytics, and scientific modeling.
• Evaluate the impact of process parameters on precipitation behavior, particle properties, manufacturability, and downstream process performance.
• Design scalable processes that consistently deliver desired API specifications from laboratory through commercial manufacturing.
• Apply advanced analytical techniques and PAT tools (e.g., UPLC, XRD, Raman, ATR-FTIR, laser diffraction, image analysis, DSC, DVS,...) to guide your research.
• Drive innovation in amorphous precipitation process development through external collaborations, scientific networking, and engagement with academic partners.

What you bring

Required

• PhD (or equivalent experience) in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Materials Science, or a related discipline.

• Strong fundamental understanding of amorphous properties, precipitation principles and the relationship between processing conditions and API attributes.
• Strong hands‑on laboratory expertise, with demonstrated responsibility for the design, execution, and interpretation of data‑rich experiments
• Strong scientific foundation in amorphous product behaviour, particle characterization, and process development.
• Experience in generating high‑quality experimental data to support process understanding, development decisions, and scale‑up.
• Excellent in scientific communication skills in English, both verbal and written, with the ability to clearly document, interpret, and present experimental results.
• Ability to work effectively in a dynamic, cross‑functional environment, collaborating with diverse project teams to develop and implement efficient processes.

Preferred

• Industrial experience in crystallization, precipitation, isolation, and drying processes
• Experience with crystallization and/or isolation of biomacromolecules (e.g., proteins, peptides)
• Experience with scale‑up and technology transfer from lab to pilot or production plant
• Familiarity with crystallizability screening, phase diagrams, DoE, and downstream operations
• Experience with particle tuning and crystal engineering
• Experience with scientific modeling (G-Proms, PBM...) programming or data science using (Python, R, or Matlab) is considered an advantage.

What we offer

• The opportunity to contribute to breakthrough medicines with global patient impact
• A world‑class, highly collaborative scientific environment where you work alongside recognized experts and build scientific direction, within a close‑knit ~18‑person expert team at the J&J Beerse site, embedded in the Crystallization Expertise center.
• Access to state‑of‑the‑art facilities and sophisticated PAT technologies, enabling high‑quality, data‑driven science
• High visibility and real impact — your research directly supports clinical development and reliable commercial supply of medicines!
• Strong scientific ownership, with the autonomy and trust to design, interpret, and defend your work independently
• End‑to‑end exposure, allowing you to translate scientific ideas from early laboratory experiments to full‑scale manufacturing
• Competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits, including on‑site sports facilities and well‑being programs
• Flexible working hours and hybrid options for non‑lab activities, supporting sustainable performance and work‑life balance

Ready to turn molecules into medicines?

If you are passionate about process and particle design and want your work to make a tangible difference in patients’ lives, we would love to hear from you.

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

Required Skills:

Collaborating, Critical Thinking, Data Quality, Drug Discovery Development, Emerging Technologies, Execution Focus, Chemistry, Industry Analysis, Innovation, Interdisciplinary Work, Pharmaceutical Trends, Pharmacognosy, Pharmacology, Amorphous Quantitative Research, Research Ethics, Scientific Research, Technologically Savvy

Required Skills:

Preferred Skills:

Chemistry, Collaboration, Critical Thinking, Data Quality, Drug Discovery Development, Emerging Technologies, Execution Focus, Industry Analysis, Innovation, Interdisciplinary Work, Pharmaceutical Trends, Pharmacognosy, Pharmacology, Quantitative Research, Research Ethics, Scientific Research, Technologically Savvy

The anticipated base pay range for this position is:

€63,300.00 - €97,635.00

Benefits:

In addition to base pay, we offer the following benefits*: an annual bonus with set target (% of pay) depending on pay grade / location, where the actual amount is based on the employees’ and companies’ performance of the previous calendar year, or sales commissions. Moreover, we offer vacation days, parental leave for a minimum of 12 weeks, bereavement leave, caregiver leave, volunteer leave, well-being reimbursement, programs for financial, physical and mental health. We also offer service anniversary and recognition awards, and subject to the terms of their respective plans, employees - and in some location’s eligible dependents - can participate in several insurance plans. For more information, visit Employee benefits | Supporting well-being & career growth | Johnson & Johnson Careers.

*This is for informative purposes only. Amounts and actual benefits may vary by location and are subject to change.