Lab Operations Manager (f/m/d) (Operations Manager/in)

Your mission
• Lead and grow the Lab Operations team: a small, specialised crew that includes a safety officer (Sicherheitsbeauftragte*r), a lab operations specialist, and our data manager. You set priorities and standards and are accountable for the team's results.
• Own the lab and pilot-plant infrastructure end to end: procurement, commissioning, calibration, preventive maintenance and documentation. This is the hands-on core of the role: you keep equipment available and the facility ready rather than working on scientific questions.
• Be accountable for occupational safety in the lab and pilot plant: you make sure DGUV and GefStoffV standards, SOPs, and hazardous-substance and waste protocols are actually followe, your safety officer runs the day-to-day.
• Own lab data management as a leadership topic: you set priorities and drive adoption and data discipline across the lab, your data manager builds and runs the systems, dashboards and databases.
• Own the process for reactor safety and TÜV/inspection approvals: keep it structured, scheduled and compliant. The individual technical cases are led by the respective R&D teams, who hold the case lead and the required certifications.
• Be the operational interface to R&D teams, infrastructure partners and vendors and the go-to troubleshooter who clears facility and logistics roadblocks.
• Allocate people, equipment, lab space and consumables across current and future sites in line with R&D priorities.

Your profile
• Degree in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Process Engineering or a related technical field (M.Sc. preferred; a PhD is welcome but not required we value hands-on operational depth as highly as the academic title).
• Min. 3 years of practical experience in lab and/or pilot-plant operations. Ideally you have worked inside a Lab Operations team and already taken first leadership steps as a deputy or stand-in.
• First experience leading or coordinating people, and the instinct to deliver through specialists rather than doing everything yourself.
• Solid practical grasp of lab and pilot-plant infrastructure, maintenance, procurement and safety frameworks (DGUV, GefStoffV).
• Excellent communication skills in English (written and spoken); German language skills are advantageous but not necessary.
• You bring a hands-on mindset, structure your work efficiently, and collaborate seamlessly across disciplines even under the dynamics of a fast-paced start-up environment.

Why us?
• Real Impact: Help redesign plastics for a truly circular economy.
• Startup Mindset: Flat hierarchies, fast decisions and early responsibility as we scale.
• Team Culture: Join a team of curious minds that challenge each other, collaborate openly and celebrate progress together.
• Growth & Learning: Steep learning curves, regular feedback and room to grow with the company.
• Well-being Perks – Hansefit membership and fresh fruit boost your overall health and well-being.

ContactReady to become an aevoloopy? Apply directly or reach out if you have any questions about the role or working at aevoloop: [email protected].

About usWe are aevoloop - a fast-scaling deep-tech startup pioneering next-generation plastics for a circular economy. We re-engineer polymers from the ground up to combine high performance with true circularity and biodegradability - turning plastic waste into valuable new materials.

Guided by our values Pioneering, Conscientious, Disruptive, Transparent and Contributive , we unite science with entrepreneurial execution to drive sustainable material innovation at scale.
You want to find out more?
• Breaking Lab Video on YouTube (German) | Deutsches Start-Up denkt Plastik molekular neu
• Press release | aevoloop has secured €8.25 million
• Article from MDR (News media) (German) | Plastik neu denken: Aevoloop entwickelt nachhaltige Kunststoffe aus Leipzig
• Video on YouTube (German) | Forscher fragen: Die Plastikwende (2024) mit Manuel Häußler
• SPRIN-D Podcast (German) | Interview with our Co-Founder Manuel Häußler

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