Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Research and Development (R&D) Scientist Technician

The responsibilities of a Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Research and Development Scientist Technician typically include: 

• Carrying out research and development activities to improve pharmaceutical manufacturing processes, such as developing new production methods, improving existing methods, and identifying new materials or technologies that can be used in manufacturing. 

• Planning and carrying out experiments to test ideas related to the manufacturing process, such as evaluating the impact of different variables on product quality or stability. 

• Analysing data generated from experiments and interpreting results to make recommendations for process improvements. 

• Working with other departments and teams, including engineers, chemists, and quality control personnel, to identify and solve manufacturing problems and improve the overall production process. 

• Staying up-to-date with new trends and developments in pharmaceutical manufacturing technology and regulatory requirements, and incorporating this knowledge into the development of new manufacturing processes. 

• Writing technical reports and documents  related to research and development activities, such as data analysis and project summaries. 

• Ensuring that all research and development activities are conducted in compliance with regulatory requirements.

There are several skills required when working as a Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Research and Development Scientist Technician.  

These are: 

• confidence when working with technical equipment. 
• the ability to learn specific procedures and techniques and to solve any problems that may occur. 
• good time management skills as you may be working on different projects or to set time limits.  
•  good teamwork skills. 
• the ability to write technical reports and be able to analyse information. 
• excellent communication skills to allow effective communication with other colleagues and departments.

The starting salary is normally between £17,500 and £19,000, however, this is depending on the qualifications at entry.  

With some experience, the wage can increase to between £22,000 and £28,000. 

For senior or management roles, salaries can be in the range of £28,000 to £30,000. 

Some private companies can pay more for different projects. 

The working hours for a Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Research and Development Scientist Technician are normally 37 hours.   

This can vary in some companies due to the demands of the projects that are being carried out. Some research can have irregular hours due to the nature of the experimental work and the checking of experiments.   

The main employers are pharmaceutical companies. 

It is beneficial to a recruiting company if the candidate has some experience as this demonstrates that they have some knowledge of working in a laboratory and also shows that the candidate is interested in the job role.  

There is the possibility of gaining work experience in some large pharmaceutical companies, for example GSK which is offered over school holidays.  

Some degrees offer industrial placements, some sandwich degrees allow a year’s work experience to gain some knowledge of the pharmaceutical industry. 

Work tends to be completed in teams with a project or experiment to be carried out. 

Most work is carried out in a laboratory and will require safety equipment and protective clothing.   

As the work is mainly in a laboratory there are strict health and safety procedures that need to be adhered to.  There is also possible exposure to hazardous fumes and chemicals.