Good Chemistry Newsletter - February 2025

Welcome to the February 2025 issue of Good Chemistry News!

Growing energy needs for several sectors will make power efficiency and generation a major theme of 2025. Supply chains will also be tested both by new tariffs and potential new domestic drilling and natural resource extraction.

Manufacturing will be affected at several levels, and it will be more important than ever to have experienced and talented workers ready to take on new dynamic challenges. I’m including some of those outstanding candidates below as well as a few of the current opportunities I am working on.

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This Month’s Featured Top Talent

Title: Maintenance Engineer

Location: Houston area

Career Profile:

• 2 1/2 years overall work experience, all with one company
• BS degree in Mechanical Engineering (May 2022)
• Has worked with both fixed and rotating equipment
• Experienced in Root Cause Analysis, OSHA PSM MOC, SolidWorks, and Mechanical Integrity standard
• Troubleshooting of fixed and other mechanical equipment, and instrumentation
• Has utilized SAP and PCMS as CMMS tools
• Understanding of metallurgical science, materials selection, and material failure modes

Title: Mechanical Reliability Engineer

Location: Houston area

Career Profile:

• 6 years reliability engineering experience in chemical manufacturing
• BS Mechanical Engineering (2019)
• Strong rotating equipment experience including managing lubrication analysis and vibration analysis PdM program for all rotating assets
• Experienced in Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) principles to improve MTBF, Root Cause Failure Analysis, repair scopes
• Led PM and PdM maintenance initiatives to optimize performance
• Experienced in troubleshooting heat exchangers, pressure vessels
• HAZOP Studies

Title: Process Engineer Location: Houston area Career Profile:

• 2 years process engineering experience in continuous chemical manufacturing operations
• Skilled in process improvement studies and troubleshooting
• Experienced in troubleshooting and improving plant utilities – boilers, cooling water, water treatment
• Has performed plant debottlenecking studies and implemented improvement points, increasing system efficiency and reliability
• Experienced in Aspen IP.21, Chemcad, HTRI Xist to simulation plant process conditions and identify improvement opportunities

Open to Opportunities? Check Out This Month’s New Jobs!

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Chemical Engineering:

·?????? Production & Senior Production Engineers (Houston area, Louisiana)

·?????? Process & Senior Process Engineers (Houston area, Louisiana)

·?????? Process/Project Engineers (Houston area)

·?????? Operations Engineer (Houston area)

Process Control/Automation:

·?????? Senior Process Control Engineer (Louisiana)

·?????? Process Controls Engineering Supervisor (Louisiana)

·?????? Process Control Engineer (Western Pennsylvania)

Mechanical Engineering:

·?????? Maintenance Engineer (several opportunities - Houston area)

·?????? Senior Maintenance Engineer (Houston area)

·?????? Rotating Equipment Reliability Engineers (Louisiana)

Instrumentation & Electrical:

·?????? I&E Specialist or Engineer (Houston area)

Environmental, Health, & Safety:

·?????? Environmental Engineer (Houston area)

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Employment Summary for December 2024

Overall employment rose by 122,000 in December and annual pay increased 4.6% compared to last year. Manufacturing and oil & gas employment dropped slightly in December.

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https://www.americanchemistry.com/chemistry-in-america/news-trends/weekly-economic-report/2025/weekly-chemistry-and-economic-trends-january-24-2025

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Chemical Industry News

New energy production is the best time to invest in decarbonization as hydrogen, nuclear, and geothermal gain ground as alternatives to fossil fuels.

https://www.chemicalprocessing.com/utilities-energy/article/55261894/chemical-industry-eyes-hydrogen-nuclear-and-geothermal-to-fuel-decarbonization

The 2025 outlook for the chemical industry builds gradual momentum after interest rate cuts following the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

https://www.chemicalprocessing.com/asset-management/economics/article/55250915/chemical-industry-outlook-2025-gradual-momentum-builds

Both environmental and cost concerns are driving manufacturers to minimize their energy consumption.

https://www.plantengineering.com/articles/finding-balance-in-high-output-manufacturing-with-low-energy/

Exxon develops a new hydrogen burner as global demand for plastic grows and efforts to decarbonize become more necessary.

https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/petrochemicals/28012025/exxonmobil-develops-new-hydrogen-burner/

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About the MRI Chemicals & Refining Group: Don Sharp has led the award-winning MRI Chemicals & Refining Group since 1994 and has been connecting great companies with outstanding candidates for over 30 years. Our work in the Houston area chemical, petrochemical, and refining industry over the past three decades has provided many of the best companies with talented professionals they have not been able to find elsewhere. Interested in talking with us? Do you know someone looking for a new position? With the intense competition for talent in Houston, partnering with an experienced Recruiter as a confidential, trusted advisor is more important than ever. If you are growing your team or would like more information about any of the candidates mentioned above, please send me a short reply and we can set up a time to start a conversation.