Application Development Engineer Europe, Thermoplastics

Location: Netherlands, can be based anywhere in the EU
Travel: Up to 50% across Europe and internationally
Seniority: Senior / Experienced Individual Contributor
Reporting to: General Manager – EMAC, dotted line to Global Technical Director – Thermoplastics R&D
Industry: Thermoplastics, Masterbatch, Compounds, Colorants & Additives
Function: Application Development, Technical Service, Commercial Support

The Opportunity

Astrantia Talent is supporting an established international manufacturer of custom colour and additive masterbatches, compounds and dispersions in the appointment of an experienced Application Development Engineer for its European operation in The Netherlands.

This is a senior, hands-on technical position for an experienced polymer professional, combining application development and technical problem-solving with significant customer and commercial exposure.

The position reports directly to the General Manager – EMAC, with a dotted-line technical reporting relationship to the Global Technical Director – Thermoplastics R&D.

You'll operate as a senior individual contributor and a key technical link between R&D, Sales, Operations and customers, supporting both European and international activities.

We're looking for someone with 10+ years of relevant industry experience who can bring credibility both on the plant floor and in front of the customer. You'll work with significant autonomy across customer discovery, application development, formulation, trials, troubleshooting and commercialisation – helping turn customer requirements into technically sound, commercially viable solutions.

This isn't a junior engineering position or a purely laboratory-based R&D role. It's an opportunity for an established thermoplastics professional who wants to combine deep technical expertise with customer interaction, commercial impact and international responsibility.

What You'll Be Doing

You'll act as a key technical resource for customers and the wider European commercial team, working closely with colleagues across R&D, Sales, Technical Service, Quality, Manufacturing and Purchasing.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Supporting customer visits, technical meetings, discovery sessions, trials and product evaluations
• Understanding customer requirements and translating them into application and development projects
• Providing technical support across formulation, polymer processing and extrusion
• Leading customer needs and innovation discussions alongside the commercial team
• Supporting Sales in identifying and developing new application opportunities
• Troubleshooting customer processing and product-performance issues using structured root-cause analysis
• Recommending formulation and processing changes to resolve technical challenges
• Supporting the development and transfer of new formulations from R&D into production
• Coordinating development projects and communicating progress, risks and results
• Preparing technical reports, trial summaries, formulation recommendations and customer presentations
• Providing technical training and guidance to internal teams and customers
• Establishing appropriate raw-material, intermediate and finished-product specifications
• Supporting continuous improvement across quality, productivity, cost and product performance
• Contributing to technology strategy and product roadmaps within the Thermoplastics business
• Supporting commercial growth through both new and existing products
• Presenting regional and global projects and business updates to senior management

What We're Looking For

This is a senior technical appointment, so we're looking for someone with significant hands-on industry experience rather than purely theoretical polymer knowledge.

Ideally, you'll bring:

• 10+ years' experience within thermoplastics, polymer processing or a closely related technical environment
• A Bachelor's degree ideally in Plastics Engineering, Polymer Engineering, Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline
• Strong working knowledge of masterbatch, compounds and polymer processing
• Experience with extruded sheet and/or Building & Construction thermoplastic applications
• Good understanding of polymers including polycarbonate, HDPE, PET and acrylic, PMMA
• Practical knowledge of single and twin-screw extrusion
• Understanding of extrusion processes and equipment including side-feeding, liquid injection, mixing, grinding and blending
• Experience supporting formulations, processing trials and technical troubleshooting
• Understanding of colourants and additives, including heat stability and relevant regulatory considerations
• Familiarity with plastics analytical testing techniques such as DSC, FTIR, MFI, mechanical-property testing and TGA
• Strong root-cause problem-solving skills
• The ability to communicate complex technical information clearly to customers and internal commercial teams
• Confidence working cross-functionally and across international teams
• The flexibility to travel up to approximately 50%, including international travel
• Experience with flame-retardant technologies would be advantageous.

The Profile

We're particularly interested in people who can link technical expertise and commercial application.

You might currently be working within:

Application Development, Technical Service, Polymer Engineering, Product Development, Technical Sales, Process Engineering

Your background could come from a masterbatch producer, compounder, polymer manufacturer, extrusion business or another technically driven thermoplastics environment.

What's most important is that you can understand the material, understand the process and then sit in front of a customer and help turn a technical challenge into a solution.

Why Consider It?

This isn't a role where you'll spend all of your time behind a desk or in a laboratory.

You'll have the opportunity to work directly with customers, collaborate with international R&D and commercial teams and influence how new applications move from customer requirement through development and trials into production.

It's a particularly interesting opportunity for someone who has built significant technical expertise within thermoplastics and now wants a position where that knowledge has a much stronger customer and commercial impact.

Interested?

If your background sits somewhere between polymers, processing, application development and customer-facing technical support, I'd love to hear from you.

For a confidential conversation about the opportunity, please contact:

Jenny Böhnlein
Astrantia Talent Limited
Specialist Recruitment | Plastics, Polymers & Chemicals
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +4917631196980
LinkedIn: Jenny Böhnlein

Alternatively, apply directly and I'll be in touch to discuss the opportunity in more detail.

All applications and conversations will be treated in confidence.