Sr Manager/Associate Director, Engineering

About the role

With extensive experience in developing biologics and bioconjugates, we offer a seamless service delivered by fully integrated teams, from early discovery to commercial manufacturing. Forward-thinking and committed, we find the best solution and use the right technologies to design, develop and manufacture your products to ensure we get vital medicines to patients quickly and safely. We are dedicated to quality excellence. We are driven to get better treatments to market, efficiently and responsibly by reducing timelines and delivering the highest quality products and services. We are Abzena. More than a CDMO, we are a responsible and dedicated partner that takes care of your products from concept to patient. The Associate Director, Engineering and Facilities is accountable for the strategic leadership, reliability, and compliance of all facility, utility, and engineering systems supporting cGMP bioconjugation manufacturing operations. This role ensures uninterrupted execution of manufacturing through robust facility performance, lifecycle asset management, and engineering excellence.   This position owns site infrastructure, including GMP utilities, cleanroom environments, process equipment, and building systems. The Associate Director establishes and drives a reliability-centered maintenance program, capital project execution, and long-term infrastructure strategy to support clinical and commercial manufacturing.   The role operates as a core member of the site leadership team and is directly responsible for eliminating facility-related execution risk, ensuring inspection readiness, and enabling right-first-time manufacturing performance.   Responsibilities Engineering Leadership   Lead Engineering teams, including maintenance, calibration, metrology, and facilities operations   Build a culture of accountability, technical ownership, and urgency aligned with manufacturing needs   Establish clear roles, expectations, and performance management across the organization     GMP Compliance and Inspection Readiness   Ensure facilities and engineering systems operate in full compliance with cGMP, FDA, EMA, and global regulatory expectations, own deviation investigations, CAPAs, change controls, and engineering-related quality systems   Lead facility and utility support during internal, client, and regulatory inspections   Ensure all systems are maintained in a validated state, including qualification and requalification activities     Bioconjugation Process Support   Ensure facility and equipment design supports safe handling of high-potency compounds and complex conjugation processes   Support containment strategies, environmental controls, and cleaning systems specific to ADC and bioconjugation manufacturing   Partner with MSAT and Manufacturing to troubleshoot process-related equipment issues and optimize performance   Ensure alignment between process requirements and facility capabilities     Financial and Resource Management   Develop and manage Engineering budgets, including maintenance, capital, and contracts   Optimize resource allocation to balance cost, risk, and operational performance   Build workforce plans aligned with site growth and operational complexity   Continuous Improvement and Strategy   Establish KPIs and Tier escalation for Engineering performance   Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on reliability, efficiency, and compliance   Implement industry best practices in maintenance, asset management, and digital systems   Develop long-term infrastructure strategy to support commercial readiness and scale   Qualifications 5+ years of experience in pharmaceutical or biotechnology manufacturing, with significant experience in engineering and facilities leadership   Proven experience supporting cGMP operations, including biologics or bioconjugation manufacturing environments   Demonstrated leadership of engineering, maintenance, and facilities teams in a regulated environment   Deep understanding of GMP utilities, cleanroom design, and facility operations   Strong experience with capital project execution, including equipment and facility commissioning and qualification   Expertise in CMMS systems, asset lifecycle management, and reliability engineering principles   Strong knowledge of regulatory expectations (FDA, EMA) related to facilities and engineering systems   Ability to operate at both strategic and tactical levels, driving execution while setting long-term direction   Strong problem-solving capability with a focus on root cause and sustainable solutions   Effective communicator with the ability to influence cross-functional teams and senior leadership   FLSA:  Exempt   Abzena is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws.   This policy applies to all employment practices within our organization, including hiring, recruiting, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, leave of absence, compensation, benefits, and training.