Role: Materials Performance Engineer
Team: Material Performance
Scope: Individual Contributor, P3
Year of Experience needed: 3-5+
Location: Ventura, CA
General Summary
As a Materials Performance Engineer, you will play a key role in ensuring that materials meet all required performance standards, with a primary focus on insulation, waterproof breathable fabrics, and synthetic wovens. You will be responsible for planning and executing material testing, analyzing results, and clearly communicating findings to cross-functional teams, including seasonal and innovation groups. In this role, you will also design experiments to develop new performance standards or refine existing ones. As the subject matter expert on material performance within your category, you will translate lab results into real-world product implications, ensuring that materials perform as expected in the hands of the customer.
What You’ll Do:
- Manage all development testing for category and as needed for other departments. Communicate results & recommendations to Material Developer, Manager, and appropriate cross-functional teams within Patagonia
- Develop, update and maintain material development testing requirements and standards to ensure appropriate material performance for end use
- Participate in and/or lead projects to determine function of failures during development or field testing
- Work closely with Field Testing team to proactively identify gaps in current testing methods and processes, developing or proposing new test methods to find failures in lab instead of in field
- Validate marketing claims, utilizing testing methods if necessary
- Analyze finished garment performance in comparison to competitive products as required
- Interface with Field Testing to validate perception-based claims
- Support evaluation of garment constructions and washing instructions as appropriate
- Actively participate in the development, utilization, and maintenance of lab equipment and fabric information systems
- Stay current in new technologies, processes, industry trends and changes in test methodologies. Re-evaluate appropriateness of test requirements for intended end use of fabric styles as needed
- Participate in trade shows, committee meetings, tours and clinics as needed
Who You Are:
- Passionate- for materials and saving our planet
- Adaptable- able to work in a dynamic environment
- Resilient- comfortable and confident through change management
- Nimble – can move from strategic process to tactical execution and back seamlessly
- Team player- solid positive energy and collaborative
- Integrity – presenting results with no bias
- Quality – keeping materials performance as highest priority
Experience You Bring:
- Bachelor's Degree in Textile Science, Apparel Engineering, Apparel Design, or related field
- 3-5 years of experience managing and analyzing testing of materials, preferably insulation and composite fabrics
- Knowledge of Industry Standard Test Methods and application based on material selection
- Knowledge of textile construction to allow appropriate interpretation of test results
- Development, design, and execution of experiments
- Ability to collate and communicate relevant test data for cross functional decision making
- Ability to exercise a high degree of professionalism and deliver results against tight and complex timelines
- High attention to detail and excellent organizational skills are required
- Excellent analytical skills, and ability to design experiments – preferred skills: JMP or other DOE software
- Excellent communication skills: written, verbal, and presentation
- Experience communicating and collaborating with global partners
- Ability to travel, representing the Company in a professional and capable manner
Hiring Range: $100,000-$110,000 USD Annual
At Patagonia, pay ranges are assigned to a job based on the location specific market median of similar jobs according to 3rd party salary benchmark surveys. Individual pay within that range can vary for several reasons including skills/capabilities, experience, and available budget. Note the full pay range for this role ranges from: $83,840.00 - $125,760.00 USD Annual. The Hiring Range reflects where in the range we intend to hire for this role.
Employee Conduct
It is the responsibility of every employee to contribute to a positive work environment through cooperative and professional interactions with co-workers, customers and vendors.
Equal Employment Opportunity
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or any other factors prohibited by law.
