• Strategic Leadership:

  • Set and drive the R&D strategy for Alloy & Process Development, defining the innovation roadmap and ensuring a healthy pipeline of alloy programmes at every stage of development — from early concept exploration through to customer-ready validated solutions.

  Alloy Development:

  • Oversee the earliest stages of alloy design — using computational tools and small-scale laboratory trials to identify, screen, and validate promising compositions before committing to larger-scale development.

  • Ensure only alloys that meet defined performance, practicality, and sustainability gates are advanced to the next stage.

  Process Development:

  • Take alloys proven at lab scale and ensure they are successfully translated into robust, repeatable industrial processes across casting, forming, and heat treatment.

  • Drive the transition from controlled pilot conditions to full production readiness, closing the gap between what works in the lab and what works on the shop floor.

  Material Characterization & Lab:

  • Provide the evidential backbone for all development decisions — delivering accurate, traceable testing and validation data at every stage of maturity, from early microstructural screening through to full mechanical, corrosion, and durability qualification in compliance with ISO/ASTM standards.

  Application & Customer Engineering:

  • Own the final stages of the development journey — validating alloys and processes against real-world customer requirements, running application-specific simulations and part-level tests, and delivering the qualification packages needed for Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) approval and commercial release.

  People & Capability:

  • Recruit, develop, and retain a high-performing multidisciplinary team capable of operating effectively across the full development spectrum.

  • Build a culture of technical excellence, collaboration, and structured stage-gate thinking.

  Knowledge Management:

  • Ensure all outputs at every stage of development — simulations, trial data, recipes, datasheets, and validation reports — are systematically documented in a shared digital knowledge base, enabling informed go/no-go decisions and institutional learning.

  Financial Management:

  • Own and manage the Alloy & Process Development function’s operating and capital budget.

  • Prepare and present budget proposals, monitor spend, and take corrective action on variances.

  • Ensure investment is appropriately staged — with early-phase programmes resourced efficiently and increased commitment reserved for alloys that have cleared defined development gates.

  • Approve purchase orders and supplier contracts within delegated authority and support business cases for significant capital investments.

  Intellectual Property Management:

  • Oversee identification, protection, and management of all intellectual property generated across Alloy & Process Development — alloy compositions, process innovations, computational models, and application methods.

  • Establish a systematic review process to capture and assess patentable developments as they emerge through the pipeline.

  • Work with legal counsel on filings, ensure all staff understand intellectual property obligations, manage intellectual property risk in collaborative programmes, and maintain a live register of the centre’s patent portfolio.

  Development of UAE Nationals:

  • Champion Emiratisation by identifying suitable roles across the full range of functions — from lab technician and characterization roles through to engineering and specialist positions.

  • Partner with HR on graduate and early-career programmes, mentor and coach UAE National employees, and set measurable Emiratisation targets reported to senior leadership.

  • Build relationships with UAE universities and government talent initiatives to develop a sustainable pipeline of Emirati R&D professionals.

  AUTHORITY/ DECISION MAKING:

  • Direct R&D programmes, set priorities, and allocate resources across all four functions.

  • Approve progression of alloys from early laboratory exploration through to pilot scale, billet casting, and production trials — acting as the principal gate-keeper at each development stage.

  • Approve process changes, equipment trials, and external technical partnerships.

  • Sign off validation packages, qualification reports, and datasheets before external release to customers or Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM).

  • Approve capex and opex within delegated budget limits.

  • Escalate significant commercial commitments or cross-functional strategy decisions to the relevant personnel.

Desired Candidate Profile

• Minimum Qualifications:

  • Degree in Materials Science, Metallurgy, or Mechanical Engineering.

  • Postgraduate qualification (MSc/PhD) strongly preferred.

  • 10+ years in aluminium R&D or metallurgical process engineering, with 3–5 years in a leadership role and demonstrable experience taking alloys from early research through to industrial qualification and customer validation.

  Technical Skills:

  • Strong knowledge of aluminium metallurgy across casting, extrusion, and heat treatment.

  • Familiarity with CALPHAD tools (Thermo-Calc, JMatPro), process simulation (Finite element method, Computational fluid dynamics, digital twins), and characterization techniques (Optical emission spectrometry, scanning electron microscope, X-Ray diffraction).

  • Solid understanding of application validation including forming, joining, crash, and fatigue — and what it takes to prove an alloy in a real part under real conditions.

  Leadership and Management:

  • Proven ability to lead multidisciplinary technical teams across the full development lifecycle.

  • Strategic thinker with experience managing structured, stage-gated R&D programmes and strong stakeholder management across customers, Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), suppliers, and senior leadership.

  Personal Attributes:

  • Collaborative and inclusive with high technical integrity.

  • Clear communicator across technical and non-technical audiences.

  • Practical and results-oriented, with the judgement to know when an alloy is ready to progress and when it is not.

  • Committed to sustainability and knowledge sharing.