Warning Letter of the Week: lost in the move edition

A missive from the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research to the president of Bingbing Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd (emphasis mine):

1.    Your firm failed to maintain written production, control, or distribution records specifically associated with a batch of a drug product for at least one year after the expiration date of the batch (21 CFR 211.180(a)). 

You manufactured drugs at your Wuhan facility at Building [redacted], No. 5, Kangda Street, Longyang Avenue, Hanyang District, Wuhan, and then transferred drug production to your Hubei facility and closed the Wuhan facility. Your firm failed to maintain manufacturing records, raw material and finished product testing records, retain samples, stability samples, and other CGMP records for your over-the-counter (OTC) [redacted] drug products manufactured at your Wuhan facility. During the inspection at the Hubei facility, you stated that you lost CGMP manufacturing documentation and drug product samples during the transfer of your manufacturing facility from Wuhan to Hubei in May 2018.

Yep, happens all the time in moves. You put your batch records in the box, the box gets loaded onto a truck, stuff gets moved around, it gets lost! 

Job postings: Flow/Organic Chemist, and Analytical Chemist, CONTINUUS Pharmaceuticals, Woburn, MA

From the inbox, an analytical chemist and a flow chemist for CONTINUUS Pharmaceuticals in Woburn, MA:

Analytical chemist (BS/MS): CONTINUUS is looking to hire a full-time analytical chemist to work on the analysis of samples (mainly HPLC) from continuous manufacturing processes for small-molecule pharmaceuticals. This represents a unique opportunity to become involved in the development of next generation drug manufacturing technologies as a key member of a fast-growing company. The individual must thrive in a fast-paced environment, be adaptable and motivated by the opportunity to learn new technologies.  

Flow chemist (PhD): CONTINUUS Pharmaceuticals is seeking a highly qualified flow chemist who will be responsible for developing creative solutions for small molecule drug candidates manufactured via continuous processing. This scientist will provide process analytical technology and continuous manufacturing expertise, devising synthetic routes and developing new technologies to enable continuous processing. 

Full ads here and here. Best wishes to those interested. 

The 2020 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List: 463 research/teaching positions and 29 teaching faculty positions

The 2020 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List (curated by Andrew Spaeth and myself) has 463 research/teaching positions and 29 teaching assistant professor positions.

Want to add a position? Here's a Google Form to enter positions. In 2019-2020, we will be adding teaching professor positions, targeting positions that demonstrate an intention to renew permanently, 3 year terms and a promotion ladder and/or are titled "assistant teaching professor" or "associate teaching professor." As of 9/20/19, we are adding community college positions if they explicitly offer tenure.

See an error? Please contact us at chemjobber@gmail.com

On November 13, 2018, the 2018 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List had 458 positions.

Here's a link to the first open thread; here's a link to the second. Here is a link to the third open thread, which will close on Tuesday at 12 PM Eastern. This will be the fourth open thread, which will close on the Tuesday after it reaches 200 or more comments.

Can't see additional comments? Look for the "load more" button underneath the comment box.

Postdoctoral position: chemical biology of natural products, Burkhart Lab, UCSD, La Jolla, CA

From the inbox, a postdoctoral position at UCSD:

Postdoctoral Position in Chemical Biology of Natural Products The Burkart lab is seeking a natural product scientist to support chemical and structural biology studies of biosynthetic enzymes. Applicants should have a Ph.D. (or anticipated) in chemistry, biochemistry, or microbiology and have experience with molecular biology of metabolic pathways in Streptomyces or related microorganisms. This is a paid, full time, postdoctoral position based in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the main campus of University of California, San Diego in La Jolla, CA. For immediate consideration please send a cover letter and resume to Prof. Michael Burkart at mburkart@ucsd.edu. 

Best wishes to those interested. 

The Chemical Engineering Faculty Jobs List: 83 positions

The Chemical Engineering Faculty Jobs List has 83 positions. It is curated by Lilian Josephson (@lljosephson). 

The Academic Staff Jobs List: 28 positions

The Academic Staff Jobs list has 28 positions.

This list is curated by Sarah Cady. It targets:

• Full-time STAFF positions in a Chem/Biochem/ChemE lab/facility at an academic institution/natl lab
• Lab Coordinator positions for research groups or undergraduate labs 
• and for an institution in Canada or the United States

Want to help out? Here's a Google Form to enter positions.

Want to chat about staff scientist positions? Try the open thread.

Student burned in high school chemistry class in alcohol fire

It happened again:

GREENSBORO, N.C. — A Western Guilford High School student is in the hospital after an explosion in her chemistry class Wednesday. Aimee Green, 16, is a junior at the high school. She is listed in good condition at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, according to a spokesperson. 

“Please pray for our beautiful daughter Aimee Green. She was in chemistry today, and the teacher was doing an experiment. It went badly and exploded. The explosion went right onto Aimee, and caught her hair, face, chest and arm on fire,” Aimee’s mom, Alicia Coverston Green, wrote on Facebook. 

The experiment involved ethanol, alcohol and salt, Green said. 

Green said her daughter was admitted to the burn ICU on Friday for fluid resuscitation, pain control and wound care. 

Another student was injured but not as badly, officials with the school district said.

Other reports indicate that it could not be confirmed that the student was wearing PPE.

A reminder that the American Chemical Society's Committee on Chemical Safety "recommends that the “Rainbow” demonstration on open benches involving the use of flammable solvents such as methanol be discontinued immediately due to extreme risk of flash fires and flame jetting."

View From My Hood?: Frankfurt, Germany edition

(got a View from Your Hood submission? Send it in (with a caption and preference for name/anonymity, please) at chemjobber@gmail.com; will run every other Friday.)

Bagel Bite 2: sandwiches

There are more than 20 times as many chemical manufacturers in China as the US

Via a very interesting article in The New York Times Magazine on DEA efforts to stem the fentanyl trade, this remarkable description of the Chinese chemical industry: 

According to the State Department, China has between 160,000 and 400,000 chemical companies operating legally, illegally or somewhere in between — an expansive estimate that reflects both the vastness of the industry and the scarcity of the information available. Some of these facilities manufacture tons of chemicals every week, or more than a million pills per day. In 2016, the industry made up 3 percent of China’s national economy, with over $100 billion in profits annually. Most of these companies are members of the vast pharmaceutical underclass, pumping out huge quantities of inexpensive generic drugs and pharmaceutical ingredients. It’s a low-cost, low-profit business, but the barriers to entry are minimal, and the market is immense: The basic pharmaceutical ingredients that China produces are needed by more advanced drug companies everywhere in the world — including the United States — for synthesis into more complex and profitable medicines. 

The agency responsible for overseeing production of drugs and detecting malfeasance in China is understaffed and overwhelmed: As of 2017, there were around 2,000 inspectors at the agency, and they conducted a total of only 751 inspections that year, a minuscule figure compared with the enormousness of the industry. In the United States, law enforcement and prosecutors have the tools to react quickly to the rise of new copycat drugs that could be used for illicit purposes. Under the Controlled Substance Analogue Enforcement Act, passed in 1986, any new compound that is “substantially similar” to an already banned, or scheduled, drug can be treated as if it were chemically identical. But chemicals banned in the United States often remain legal in China, where the process for controlling chemicals is slow and cumbersome, especially for substances like fentanyl that exist in the purgatory between legitimate pharmaceuticals and illicit drugs.

By comparison, an EPA web page last updated in 2016 indicates there are 13,500 chemical manufacturing facilities, with 9000 companies that own them. That's quite a difference. 

The 2020 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List: 447 research/teaching positions and 28 teaching faculty positions

The 2020 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List (curated by Andrew Spaeth and myself) has 447 research/teaching positions and 28 teaching assistant professor positions.

Want to add a position? Here's a Google Form to enter positions. In 2019-2020, we will be adding teaching professor positions, targeting positions that demonstrate an intention to renew permanently, 3 year terms and a promotion ladder and/or are titled "assistant teaching professor" or "associate teaching professor." As of 9/20/19, we are adding community college positions if they explicitly offer tenure.

See an error? Please contact us at chemjobber@gmail.com

On November 6, 2018, the 2018 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List had 450 positions.

Here's a link to the first open thread; here's a link to the second. Here is a link to the third open thread, which will close a week from today. 

The Chemical Engineering Faculty Jobs List: 79 positions

The Chemical Engineering Faculty Jobs List has 79 positions. It is curated by Lilian Josephson (@lljosephson). 

The Academic Staff Jobs List: 28 positions

The Academic Staff Jobs list has 28 positions.

This list is curated by Sarah Cady. It targets:

• Full-time STAFF positions in a Chem/Biochem/ChemE lab/facility at an academic institution/natl lab
• Lab Coordinator positions for research groups or undergraduate labs 
• and for an institution in Canada or the United States

Want to help out? Here's a Google Form to enter positions.

Want to chat about staff scientist positions? Try the open thread.

What is this layoff season going to look like?

Because I don't fully understand the rhythms of the American corporate machine just quite yet, it has taken me a number of years to fully understand why we have layoffs in November and December, around the time of Thanksgiving and Christmas. Nowadays, I better understand that it is about third quarter results, and the reactions of corporate officers to either a good year (no layoffs, ideally) or a bad year (start cutting jobs now.) It's November now, and here we go with Amgen (via FiercePharma): 

As Amgen rides the wave of hype and hope for its early-stage KRAS effort as well as other cancer assets in its pipeline, this is pushing out its work on neuroscience. 

To that end, the biopharma company is looking to slim down its efforts in that area, which could see nearly 200 jobs at risk, as it moves away from its neuro work in Cambridge, and focuses more on its R&D on the West Coast. 

Also, from last month in the Philadelphia Inquirer: 

Merck, the international pharmaceutical giant, announced mass layoffs that will hit its sales personnel based in suburban Philadelphia. 

About 500 people affiliated with Merck’s offices in Lansdale and Upper Gwynedd will lose their jobs in permanent reductions in force, the company said in a required letter it filed Wednesday with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry... Earlier this month, Johnson & Johnson said it planned to eliminate 297 employees at its Wayne facility, in a similar letter sent to the Department of Labor.

Overall, according to Challenger, Gray and Christmas's layoff report, layoffs in the pharmaceutical industry are up 4.6% this year from 2018. We'll have to see how this goes. At the same time, Friday's jobs report numbers were pretty decent (via The New York Times): 

The American jobs engine has been beaten and battered, but it just keeps chugging along. 

Employers added 128,000 jobs in October, the Labor Department said Friday, and revisions to prior months’ data tacked on another 95,000. The figures for October would have been stronger had it not been for the strike at General Motors, which shaved close to 50,000 workers from the employment rolls, and for the layoff of some 20,000 temporary census workers. 

The unemployment rate ticked up to 3.6 percent, still near a half-century low.

If we're going to have a classic recession, we'll see decreases in jobs in November and December. While my intuitions are entirely leaning towards the thought that there will be a recession of some kind next year (i.e. visible declines in the topline jobs numbers and/or negative quarters of GDP), we haven't seen those signs yet in the broader economy. It will be very interesting to see if we see evidence of declines in hiring in the chemistry/pharma market.

Job posting: Ambercycle, R&D chemist, Los Angeles, CA

From the inbox, this position: 

BACKGROUND 

We are a fast-moving, high-growth chemical technology startup that is developing a process to turn old clothing into new textiles. Our highly dynamic, collaborative team is composed of the world’s brightest and most unique scientists and engineers. 

THE JOB 

We are looking for a highly motivated scientist who will develop and scale our technology for making brand new yarns from old clothing. 

You will be working with senior leadership to understand and prioritize process improvements, design experiments to make those improvements, and execute these plans in the laboratory. You will develop analytical methods for R&D as well as scale-up, and develop new products within our R&D team. You will use your chemistry know-how to work with engineers and scale-up processes.

You are detail oriented and highly enthusiastic about science and scaling a first-in-kind sustainable process. Ideally, you have a strong experimental background and commanding knowledge of physical, organic, and polymer chemistry. 

Specific techniques required: GPC/SEC, DSC, GC/MS, working knowledge of elemental analysis. Adequate safety know-how is an absolute must. You must be comfortable in a fast-paced, open environment with minimal direction.

Contact information here. Best wishes to those information.

The Periodic Bagel: Alex Goldberg and Chemjobber, guest: Lisa Jarvis

Launching today is the inaugural podcast of The Periodic Bagel, with guest Lisa Jarvis of Chemical and Engineering News. Lisa speaks to us about her recent KRas cover story in C&EN as well as her strong feelings about candy corn.

Alex has done an amazing amount of work in a very fast period of time, and I am really grateful that it has turned out as well as it has. Please take a listen.

You can't subscribe to us on iTunes yet, but here's our RSS feed.

Please feel free to add comments and suggestions for guests and topics in the comments. 

51 new positions at Organic Chemistry Jobs

Over at Common Organic Chemistry, there are 23 new positions for October 26, 16 positions for October 20 and 13 positions for October 14.

The Analytical Chemistry Jobs List: 29 positions

The Analytical Chemistry Jobs List has 29 positions; this is curated by the ACS Division of Analytical Chemistry. Want to help out? Fill out this form. 

A teaser trailer for a new podcast

Enjoy a little snippet of a new podcast with Alex Goldberg and myself. 

Job posting: BS process chemist, Quanta BioDesign, Plain City, OH

From the inbox, a process chemist position in Plain City, OH:

Junior Process Chemist, Quanta BioDesign 

Quanta BioDesign is a research and manufacturing company committed to the development of a full range of discrete polyethylene glycol (dPEG®) PEGylation reagents for applications in diagnostics, therapeutics, peptide synthesis, oligonucleotide synthesis, and nanotechnology. 

To meet our growing business demands we are currently seeking to fill the position of a junior Process Chemist. The Process Chemist position entails being an essential part of our process and scale-up activities, supplying key intermediates, optimizing existing processes and exploring a growing range of new processes for making our unique dPEG® products. 

The process Chemist interacts with chemists both in and outside their group, and will be a vital link in the development of the dPEG® technology. As a result, excellent planning and problem-solving skills are a critical aspect of this position. Also, since this is a manufacturing position the Chemist must be capable of lifting up to 50lbs on a regular basis. 

Qualifications

• This is an entry level position that requires a theoretical and practical knowledge of general chemistry, organic chemistry and bio-conjugation principles.
• Candidates recently completing a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry with 1-2 years of experience are encouraged to apply.

Full ad here. Best wishes to those interested. 

The 2020 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List: 434 research/teaching positions and 25 teaching faculty positions

The 2020 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List (curated by Andrew Spaeth and myself) has 434 research/teaching positions and 25 teaching assistant professor positions.

Want to add a position? Here's a Google Form to enter positions. In 2019-2020, we will be adding teaching professor positions, targeting positions that demonstrate an intention to renew permanently, 3 year terms and a promotion ladder and/or are titled "assistant teaching professor" or "associate teaching professor." As of 9/20/19, we are adding community college positions if they explicitly offer tenure.

See an error? Please contact us at chemjobber@gmail.com

On October 30, 2018, the 2018 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List had 436 positions.

Here's a link to the first open thread; here's a link to the second, which is the current open thread. This post will be the third open thread; the second open thread will close at noon Eastern on Tuesday, October 29, 2019.

UPDATE: This thread was closed on November 12, 2019 - the new thread is here: http://chemjobber.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-2020-chemistry-faculty-jobs-list_12.html

Postdoctoral fellowship: environmental radiochemistry, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL

From the inbox: 

JOB DESCRIPTION 

The Anagnostopoulos Research Group at the Department of Chemistry at the University of Central Florida seeks to hire a postdoctoral researcher in the field of radiochemistry and environmental radiochemistry. 

This is a multi-faceted project that focuses on the oxidative dissolution of sparingly soluble radioactive phases, as well as synthesis, characterization and stability studies of mineral phases for the incorporation of anionic contaminants. 

REQUIREMENTS 

Applicants should have a Ph.D. in chemistry or closely related field. Prior demonstrated experience with spectroscopic analysis of solids and solutions (e.g. XPS, FIB, SIMS etc.) and processes such as solubility, complexation and modelling and speciation will be viewed favorably.

Full ad here. Best wishes to those interested.  

The Chemical Engineering Faculty Jobs List: 76 positions

The Chemical Engineering Faculty Jobs List has 76 positions. It is curated by Lilian Josephson (@lljosephson). 

The Academic Staff Jobs List: 28 positions

The Academic Staff Jobs list has 28 positions.

This list is curated by Sarah Cady. It targets:

• Full-time STAFF positions in a Chem/Biochem/ChemE lab/facility at an academic institution/natl lab
• Lab Coordinator positions for research groups or undergraduate labs 
• and for an institution in Canada or the United States

Want to help out? Here's a Google Form to enter positions.

Want to chat about staff scientist positions? Try the open thread.

UW Madison grad student died of suicide; father blames abusive boss

This is a post about an electrical engineering grad student at UW-Madison who died by suicide in 2016; if you don't want to read this, I won't mind. 

Taking a chance on Boston?

A great question, via Twitter:

Is there a city in the United States (or, for that matter, the world) where you would recommend someone move to without a job to get a job in chemistry?*

My short answer: no, there isn't. My longer answer: If you HAD to move some place without a job in order to look for work in science/chemistry, I would choose either Boston or San Francisco, but still seems really risky. You might be able to move into the pool of temporary workers, but it seems that temp pay probably doesn't cover the high rents.

Readers, what say you?

UPDATE, 11 AM 10232019: Anon10:21AM helpfully reminds me that there's such a thing as "the oil and gas industry"; I agree entirely.

*There was a while back where driving to Williston, North Dakota seemed like a great place to get a job and earn some money, but I don't think there were very many chemists there...

The 2020 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List: 417 research/teaching positions and 20 teaching faculty positions

The 2020 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List (curated by Andrew Spaeth and myself) has 417 research/teaching positions and 20 teaching assistant professor positions.

Want to add a position? Here's a Google Form to enter positions. In 2019-2020, we will be adding teaching professor positions, targeting positions that demonstrate an intention to renew permanently, 3 year terms and a promotion ladder and/or are titled "assistant teaching professor" or "associate teaching professor." As of 9/20/19, we are adding community college positions if they explicitly offer tenure.

See an error? Please contact us at chemjobber@gmail.com

On October 23, 2018, the 2018 Chemistry Faculty Jobs List had 420 positions.

Here's a link to the first open thread; here's a link to the second, which is the current open thread.

Job posting: assistant/associate teaching professor, Northeastern University, Boston, MA

From the inbox:

Northeastern University is seeking a full-time non-tenure track Assistant/Associate Teaching Professor in Biochemistry. Experience in teaching physical and/or analytical methods in biochemistry is preferred. Applicants should submit a CV, cover letter, teaching statement, statement describing their experiences working with diverse populations, and the contact information for three references. Applicants will be consulted before their references are contacted. All of the application information is submitted using this link:  https://careers.hrm.northeastern.edu/en-us/job/501904/assistantassociate-teaching-professor

Best wishes to those interested. 

The Chemical Engineering Faculty Jobs List: 67 positions

The Chemical Engineering Faculty Jobs List has 67 positions. It is curated by Lilian Josephson (@lljosephson). 

The Academic Staff Jobs List: 28 positions

The Academic Staff Jobs list has 28 positions.

This list is curated by Sarah Cady. It targets:

• Full-time STAFF positions in a Chem/Biochem/ChemE lab/facility at an academic institution/natl lab
• Lab Coordinator positions for research groups or undergraduate labs 
• and for an institution in Canada or the United States

Want to help out? Here's a Google Form to enter positions.

Want to chat about staff scientist positions? Try the open thread.