Process Engineer (Chemical)

Must have: - Engineering qualification. BEng / BSc Chemical Engineering, or BEng Process Engineering, or equivalent. Other engineering disciplines with strong demonstrable process-design depth in water treatment will be considered. - Professional registration pathway. ECSA Candidate Engineer (registered or pending) at junior level; clear path toward Pr Eng at mid-level; Pr Eng or imminent at mid-senior level. - Process design fundamentals. Mass and energy balances, P&IDs and PFDs, equipment sizing and specification, control philosophy. - Water treatment exposure. Demonstrable academic or work exposure to water or wastewater treatment unit operations. Hands-on internship, vacation work, or project experience counts. - Drafting and modelling. Competence with AutoCAD or Plant 3D; familiarity with Aspen Plus or comparable process simulation tools. - Safety mindset. Understands HAZOP methodology and the importance of process safety in chemical handling environments. - Driver's licence and own transport. Site work is part of the role.

Strongly preferred: - Groundwater treatment depth. Borehole abstraction and raw groundwater treatment design — typically high iron, manganese, hardness, sometimes pathogens, sometimes elevated TDS or nitrates. RO / ion exchange / filtration / disinfection unit operations. - Regulatory familiarity. SANS 241 (potable water quality), DWS general and special limits, National Water Act Section 21 water use authorisations, fit-for-purpose standards for non-potable reuse. - Wastewater / package plant exposure. Effluent treatment, package plants, sludge handling, compliance with municipal and DWS effluent standards. - Data and instrumentation literacy. SCADA, online quality monitoring (turbidity, conductivity, chlorine residual), telemetry, alarm management, performance verification. - Programming and data tools. Python (Pandas, NumPy, SciPy, etc.) for design calculations, optimisation, or data analysis. Advanced Excel including VBA. - Lean / continuous improvement. Process optimisation, cost reduction, lifecycle thinking. - Member of WISA or comparable water sector professional body.

Key responsibilities: *Groundwater treatment design - Characterise raw water from boreholes, surface sources, or blended sources; specify the analytical scope required for design. - Select and size unit operations: pretreatment (screening, sedimentation, coagulation/flocculation), filtration (multimedia, granular activated carbon, membrane), disinfection (chlorine, UV, ozone), softening, demineralisation (RO, ion exchange), and advanced oxidation as required. - Produce mass and energy balances, hydraulic profiles, equipment specifications, and operating philosophy for the plant. - Verify compliance with SANS 241 (potable), DWS general and special limits, and any fit for-purpose standards specific to the client's use case. *Process documentation across all six ECSA stages *Safety, compliance, and quality *Cross-disciplinary coordination *Productisation & methodology