Materials Engineer Candidate Brief for the position of: Centre for Research in Engineering Surface - Crest | Focas Institute
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Candidate Brief for the position of:
Materials Engineer
Centre for Research in Engineering Surface
Technology (CREST)
(Fixed-term Specified Purpose contract, up to 5 years)
Dublin Institute of Technology
Reference: NA /131/18
1Dublin Institute of Technology
DIT at a glance
• Original foundation dating from 1887- in its current form since 1992
• 9% of all higher education students in Ireland
• 20% of student population come from outside Ireland
• 12% of DIT students are mature learners
• Students registered on programmes in four Colleges - Arts and Tourism; Business;
Engineering and Built Environment; Sciences and Health
• One of the national degree-awarding bodies in higher education
• Over 2,000 staff members of academic, administrative and support staff
• 800 students and academic staff actively engaged in research
• Ranked in the top 4% of universities internationally
• 4000+ graduates each year
• Active in civic and industry engagement
• Annual budget circa €170M
For further detail, please see http://www.dit.ie/
2Dublin Institute of Technology With a history dating back to 1887, Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT) is one of the largest education providers in Ireland currently accounting for 9% of all higher education students. Programmes offered in DIT, from apprenticeship to PhD, are distinctively practice-based and research-informed. Responding to education, cultural and economic changes in our society, DIT engages with local community partners; works closely with industry; and collaborates with academic institutions nationally and internationally. The development of the new DIT campus at Grangegorman in Dublin’s inner city is the biggest project of its kind in Europe and will see more than 50% of all current DIT activities located on one campus by 2019. Meanwhile, working with partner institutions in IT Blanchardstown (ITB) and IT Tallaght (ITT), DIT aims to develop Ireland’s first Technological University which will make a significant contribution to the social and economic development of the Dublin region - see the Alliance’s Higher Education Landscape submission 1 for details of the TU4Dublin vision. College of Sciences & Health The College of Sciences and Health at the Dublin Institute of Technology was established in 2010 and is located at DIT’s Kevin Street and Cathal Brugha Street sites. The College builds on 120 years of experience in science and technology education and now offers practical, professional and career- oriented education, training and research in mathematics, computing, sciences and health. The mission of the College is to support economic and societal development by providing highly skilled graduates, trained researchers and an up-skilled workforce capable of anticipating and meeting demand in competitive global sectors including Food, Pharmaceutical and Life Sciences, ICT, Green Technology, Financial Services, Education and the Allied Health Professions. The programmes that are currently offered by the College demonstrate the breath of opportunity available to prospective students in our College. Our strengths come from our excellent teaching staff, our successful research profile and our close ties with industry, the professions and the health sector. Almost all of our programmes are linked with industry and relevant professions through placement opportunities and other engagement activities, and our research is guided and informed by the needs of relevant sectors. Centre for Research in Engineering Surface Technology (CREST) The CREST Centre is the only dedicated surface coatings laboratory in Ireland. It exists to serve the SMART economy by means of translating in-house fundamental knowledge from the bench-top to the market. The Centre has over sixty years of commercial surface coating experience to provide this level of service. CREST recruits and develops industrial development scientists with a product development background operating within an ISO 9001 Quality Management System to guarantee consistent and reliable project delivery. Product development needs to be sustained, as secret know-how and craft can quickly become obsolete, therefore, robust intellectual property (IP) development that has sustained market value requires long-term focused strategic investment in fundamental research. 1 http://www.dit.ie/media/aboutdit/documents/highereducationpolicydevelopment/TU%20Dublin%20Submission%20to%20HEA%2031%2 0July%2012.pdf 3
CREST is one of 15 centres in Ireland that form the Enterprise Ireland funded Technology Gateway
Network (http://www.technologygateway.ie). To date the Technology Gateways have achieved
significant success in delivering over 2,100 projects with 850 companies across a range of sectors
since 2013. A significant proportion of these projects have been delivered through the Materials and
Engineering Gateways comprised of the APT, CREST, Design+, MET, PEM and SEAM Gateways.
Job Description
Role Overview
The Centre for Research in Engineering Surface Technology (CREST) is seeking to employ a Materials
Engineer (or equivalent) with sufficient industrial experience to deliver essential technical expertise
through the CREST DIT Technology Gateway (TG). The postholder will be required to deliver
technical surface analysis and materials development expertise and engage with potential industrial
partners to develop and foster projects. The ideal candidate will have a postgraduate degree (in
Materials Science or a related discipline) and have experience with surface treatments and
protective coatings. Experience with standard coating characterisation techniques is essential.
Experience with SEM/EDS would be an advantage. The candidate must have excellent
communication skills as they will be engaging with industrial clients and must be capable of working
under their own initiative.
Principal Accountabilities
The key responsibilities of the job include:
Deliver essential technical expertise through the CREST DIT Technology Gateway (TG).
• Develop strong working relationships with industrial partners.
• Provide expertise in materials analysis using optical, metallurgical and electron microscopy.
• Provide expertise in surface analysis, and characterisation.
• Laboratory based work in materials engineering and evaluation.
• Write technical reports.
• Assist in the further development of the Centre’s research activities and in seeking and
pursuing appropriate external funding.
• Prepare and coordinate proposals for funding from research bodies, EI, SFI, EU etc.
• Take responsibility for and manage and conduct administrative and management tasks
associated with the Centre’s research activities.
• Play an active role in knowledge and technology transfer activities.
• Engage in appropriate training and professional development opportunities as
required by the Centre manager.
• Prepare and present research findings to colleagues and industrial partners for review
purposes.
• Prepare progress reports on research for funding bodies as required.
4• Participate fully in the wider research and scholarly activities of the Research
Centre/Institute and College/School.
• The post holder will carry out any other duties within the scope, spirit and purpose
of the job as requested by the line manager or Director of the College/School.
• Comply with all DIT policies and regulations, including those in relation to Research
Ethics and Health and Safety.
Person Specification
The ideal candidate will demonstrate the appropriate mix of knowledge, experience, skills, talent
and abilities as outlined below:
Knowledge
• An Honours Degree in Science or Engineering from an approved degree awarding institution
or equivalent in an appropriate discipline
• PhD or equivalent in Materials Science or Chemistry (preferably Physical or Analytical) or a
closely related discipline (essential).
• Knowledge of research techniques and methodologies.
Experience
• Successfully completed at least one Postdoctoral Fellowship or industrial equivalent in the
public or private sector (essential).
• At least 5 accumulated years’ industrial experience (post Honours Degree qualification) in a
technological/engineering/scientific role
• Evidence of a research profile with a publication or technical reporting track record within
the requisite subject area (essential).
• Extensive protective/engineering coatings experience and/or surface analysis experience.
Skills, talents & abilities
• Effective written and verbal communication skills with the ability to present complex
information effectively to a range of audiences (essential).
• Commitment to high quality technical research.
5• Strong evidence of technical reporting skills.
• Proficient in using spreadsheets and graphical packages.
• Must display capability of working under own initiative and interacting with industrial
partners/clients.
Eligibility to compete
Former Public Service employees:
Eligibility to compete may be affected where applicants were formerly employed by the Irish Public
Service and previously availed of an Irish Public Service Scheme including:
- Incentivised Scheme for Early Retirement (ISER)
- Department of Health and Children Circular (7/2010)
- Collective Agreement: Redundancy Payments to Public Servants
Applicants should ensure that they are not precluded from re-engagement in the Irish Public Service
under the terms of such Schemes. This is a non-exhaustive list and any queries should be directed to
an applicant’s former Irish Public Service Employer in the first instance.
Terms and Conditions of Employment
A full statement of terms and conditions of employment will be given to the successful applicant in
accordance with Terms of Employment (Information) Acts 1994 and 2001.
The main terms and conditions of employment are as follows:
Tenure
This is a fixed-term specified purpose appointment for up to a maximum of 5 years which will run
from date of employment until the end of the purpose or until the funding for this post comes to an
end, whichever is the sooner. Funding is in place until 31/12/22
Location
This post is currently located in CREST, Focas Institute, DIT Kevin Street, Camden Row, Dublin 8. All
DIT programmes will transfer to the Campus in Grangegorman. Before this transfer the location of
this post may vary at the discretion of the President.
It is expected that following the passing of the Technological Universities Act 2018 in March 2018
the three institutions in the Dublin region – Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT), Institute of
6Technology, Blanchardstown (ITB) and Institute of Technology, Tallaght (ITT) will seek designation to become a Technological University for Dublin. For further information please see www.tu4dublin.ie and www.dit.ie/grangegorman Salary This post will be aligned to the Senior Post Doctoral Researcher Salary Scale for pay purposes only. Starting pay will be paid at point (01) of the Scale i.e. €42,394 gross per annum. Remuneration may be adjusted from time to time in line with Government pay policy. Incremental Credit may apply in line with Institute Policy. Hours of work A 39 hour working week is in operation. Hours may be adjusted from time to time under sectoral agreements. Having regard to the nature of the work, attendance outside these hours may be required from time to time. Starting and finishing times to be agreed with the Project Director. Probation The terms of the Institute’s Staff Induction and Probation Policy will apply. Annual leave Annual Leave and Public Holidays shall be granted as per the Holidays (Employees) Act 1973 and Organisation of Working Time Act 1997. The annual leave for this post is currently 25 days per annum inclusive of any compulsory annual leave days as determined by the Institute. Retirement The appointee will not be entitled to join the Education Sector Superannuation Scheme; however the Institute has a PRSA in place. A PRSA is a straightforward pension product that was introduced in 2003 by the Pensions (Amendment) Act 2002. It is a contract between an individual and the authorised PRSA provider in the form of an investment account that can be used to save for retirement. Sick Leave Up to 7 single days’ per two years uncertified sick leave plus a maximum of 14 days certified sick leave per annum pro rata may be granted. Pro rata sick leave entitlements will apply to contracts of less than one year's duration. Payments in respect of sick leave will be adjusted by reference to any disability benefit received from the Department of Social Protection. Certificates Persons appointed will be required to furnish: a) Documentary evidence of educational attainments/qualifications b) Two satisfactory references, one of which will be requested from current manager 7
Nature of the post This is a fixed-term specified purpose appointment for up to a maximum of 5 years which will run from date of employment until the end of the purpose or until the funding for this post comes to an end, whichever is the sooner. Initial funding is in place until 31.12.2022. The purpose of this post is to deliver technical surface analysis and material development expertise and to engage with potential industrial partners to develop and foster research projects. The provisions of the Dublin Institute of Technology Act, 1992 to 2006 and any subsequent Acts replacing or amending these Acts and any orders and regulations made under these Acts will apply. External Funding This contract post is a fully “externally funded post” as envisaged by the Employment Control Framework for Higher Education Sector’ published by the Higher Education Authority pursuant to the Moratorium on Recruitment and Promotions in the Public Service as a currently implemented by the Government. It is a condition of this contract that if such external funding ceases or if the Institute is obliged to terminate the post for other reasons outside of its control (such as State policy), a redundancy will arise in respect of this position. Application Process Application Form Applications will be accepted through the online application service at www.dit.ie/vacancies. A CV will be required in addition to the application form. All correspondence from the Institute regarding your application will be by email. Please ensure that the security filters on your email provider will accept emails from DIT. Closing Date The closing date for applications is 5pm on Thursday 12h July 2018. Late applications will not be accepted. Contact information For further information about this post please contact: Dr Brendan Duffy at brendan.duffy@dit.ie For queries regarding the application process, please contact Marina Murtagh, Human Resources, at 01 220 5064 between 9.30 and 5.00pm, Monday to Friday or email marina.murtagh@dit.ie. Further Information for Candidates − Canvassing will automatically disqualify. − Late applications will not be accepted. 8
− Shortlisting of applicants may take place, on the basis of information supplied in the application
form.
− It is Institute policy to seek written references from your referees, one of whom must be your
current or most recent employer. Candidates are advised to please ensure the nominated
referees are aware of this requirement.
− DIT is an equal opportunities employer and is committed to the employment policies,
procedures and practices which do not discriminate on grounds such as gender, civil status,
family status, age, disability, race, religious belief, sexual orientation or membership of the
travelling community.
− DIT operates a policy of Garda Vetting & Disclosure of Criminal Convictions. All applicants will
be asked to disclose criminal convictions and will have to undergo Garda Vetting as part of the
selection process. Please note all International Office Staff are required to be Garda Vetted.
− Persons appointed for the first time to a wholetime position within the Institute will be required
to furnish:
− a satisfactory Health Certificate from a medical practitioner nominated by the Institute;
− as evidence of age, a certified extract from a Public Register of Births;
− a passport (if a passport is not currently held, a birth certificate and a form of photographic
identification is required);
− Proof of PPS Number (e.g. social services card);
− Income Tax - Certificate of Tax-Free Allowance or Cessation Certificate (P45 Form);
− Qualifications: the successful candidate will be required to submit parchments of Degrees,
Diplomas, Certificates and other professional qualifications.
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