WaterTechLab coördinator

In our Bioreactor lab at Environmental Technology and the Water and sediment lab at Hydrology and Environmental Hydraulics we explore innovative technologies for recovering valuable resources from wastewater, producing clean water, and understanding hydrological processes in rivers and deltas. Central to this work is the strong connection between water quality and water quantity across themes such as wetlands, emerging pollutants, and fluid mechanics.

As part of our team, you will support PhD and MSc students in designing their reactors, introduce and evaluate new measurement techniques, monitor budgets, and foster effective knowledge exchange within the group.

Your tasks and responsibilities include:

• maintaining and improving lab spaces and equipment, in consultation with WUR facility services and external companies
• supporting the design, construction and troubleshooting of reactors and connected equipment (pumps, sensors, pH controllers) and data collection systems, including the development of new measurement methods
• contributing to practicals and lab-based education for BSc, MSc and PhD students

Your Team
You will work with a team of 3 to 4 research technicians in the WaterTechLab and be in regular contact with the team of 7 technicians from the analytical lab at Environmental Technology. You will also frequently consult with PhD and MSc students and their supervisors from the academic staff.

Your workplace
The WaterTechLab is a multifunctional laboratory and field instrumentation facility supporting research and education in water technology at WUR. It consists of two locations: ETE and HWM.

The ETE location consists of 34 cabinets with various (bio)reactor setups equipped with (online) monitoring, as well as outdoor basins containing wetlands. These reactors and wetlands are used to study themes such as the removal of emerging contaminants from water and soil, desalination, and the recovery of valuable components from wastewater. The cabinets can be equipped for safe handling of toxic substances. There is also a direct connection to the wastewater stream of the Bennekom wastewater treatment plant, enabling research on real wastewater.

The HWM location consists of four flumes in different dimensions, two of which can recirculate both water (fresh or saline) and particles (e.g., sediment or microplastics), along with additional educational and demonstration facilities. The flumes are equipped with high-quality instruments for measuring flow characteristics and particle transport.

You are an enthusiastic, hands-on colleague with an interest in sustainable technological solutions for environmental challenges. You are able to oversee and critically assess the PhD projects within the WaterTechLab. You have experience in designing, building and troubleshooting lab- and pilot-scale systems for biological and electrochemical experiments, and you are skilled in various data collection systems.

You also possess:

• a PhD in Environmental Technology
• demonstrable experience in designing and building (bio)reactor setups
• demonstrable experience in designing and programming SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems
• communication skills to effectively supervise MSc and PhD students
• demonstrable experience in drafting and monitoring safety protocols for laboratories, biosafety level 1
• good command of both Dutch and English

Besides fluency in spoken and written Dutch, English is increasingly used in our international work environment. This position requires C1 English proficiency. If you are not at this level yet, we will of course support you through our language centre, Wageningen in’to Language.

You will see that this position offers plenty of challenges, which can also be regarded as development opportunities. If you do not yet meet every requirement in the vacancy but do have solid work experience, we warmly encourage you to apply.

Wageningen University & Research offers excellent terms of employment. A few highlights from our Collective Labour Agreement include:

• sabbatical leave, study leave, and partially paid parental leave;
• working hours that can be discussed and arranged so that they allow for the best possible work-life balance;
• there is a strong focus on vitality and you can make use of the sports facilities available on campus for a small fee;
• a fixed year-end bonus of 8.3%;
• excellent pension scheme.

In addition to these first-rate employee benefits, you will of course receive a good salary. Depending on your experience, we offer a competitive gross salary of between € 3.546,- and € 5.538,- for a full-time working week of 38 hours, in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreements for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU) (scale 10). Preferably we would offer you a 32 hour contract per week. However, a 28-hour appointment is possible. As for your contract, we initially offer a one-year contract that can be extended - if possible within (company) organizational circumstances - on good performance. / We offer you a temporary contract for the duration of one year. Of course, we are happy to have a conversation with you if you have any questions about this.

Wageningen University & Research offers plenty of opportunities for growth and development, with a strong internal recruitment policy and excellent training programmes.

You will work on the greenest and most innovative campus in the Netherlands, in an international and open working environment. For 20 consecutive years, we have been voted the "best university" in the Netherlands! A place to be proud of.

The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life”. Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment. With its roughly 30 branches, 7,600 employees (6,700 fte) and 13,100 students and over 150,000 participants to WUR’s Life Long Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.

Read the 5 reasons why your future colleagues enjoy working at WUR and watch the video below to get an idea of our green campus!

We will recruit for the vacancy ourselves, so no employment agencies please. However, sharing in your network is appreciated.

WUR welcomes applications from international candidates. However, for applicants for this specific position from outside the EU/EFTA zone, immigration restrictions may apply based on Dutch and EU immigration laws. Such candidates may be eligible for an “orientation year” in the Netherlands or a visa as a “knowledge migrant”.

Wageningen University & Research is the university and research centre for life sciences. The themes we deal with are relevant to everyone around the world and Wageningen, therefore, has a large international community and a lot to offer to international employees.

Because we expect you to work and live in the Netherlands our team of advisors on Dutch immigration procedures will help you with the visa application procedures for yourself and, if applicable, for your family. If you come with a partner, we offer a Dual Career group program organized by our Welcome Center. This program helps your partner to get familiar with the Dutch culture, labour market and assists your partner to find a job.

Feeling welcome also has everything to do with being well informed. Wageningen University & Research's International Community page contains practical information about what we can do to support international employees coming to Wageningen. Furthermore, our Welcome Center can assist you with any additional advice and information about for example housing, opening a bank account or schooling. Finally, certain categories of international staff may be eligible for a tax exemption on a part of their salary during the first five years in the Netherlands.