Since 1929, ESTEVE has been driven by a clear and powerful purpose: improve people’s lives. Headquartered in Barcelona, we are a global pharmaceutical company with affiliates in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany, France, the UK, and the USA, as well as world-class production sites in Mexico and China supporting our global CMO business.

We are on an exciting growth journey, transforming into a leading international specialty pharma company, focused on highly specialized medicines that address unmet medical needs. At the heart of everything we do are our core values: people matter, transparency, and accountability.

We care, we do: Our commitment goes beyond medicine. We care about making a positive impact on people, the environment, and the way we do business.

Purpose of the role:

To design and execute early-stage development activities for spray drying processes using laboratory-scale equipment (e.g., Buchi Mini Spray Dryer), focusing on formulation screening, solvent selection, polymer compatibility, and prototype generation. The specialist will ensure robust characterization of prototypes and provide scientific rationale for formulation decisions.

Key Responsabilities:

• Design and perform solvent screening studies to identify optimal solvent systems for spray drying.
• Select appropriate polymers based on target product profile and physicochemical properties.
• Determine optimal API-polymer ratios to ensure stability.
• Operate Buchi spray drying equipment to produce lab-scale prototypes.
• Adjust process parameters to optimize particle characteristics.
• Conduct physical and chemical characterization of spray-dried powder (e.g. particle size, morphology…).
• Apply scientific judgment to select the most promising formulations for scale-up.
• Design and perform supporting studies at lab scale: solution stability, wet SDD stability, others (reprocessing, formulation challenges, secondary drying optimization).

Qualifications & skills:

• Degree in Pharmacy, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related field (Master’s or PhD preferred).
• Hands-on experience with spray drying equipment, ideally Buchi.
• Strong understanding of formulation science, especially solid dispersions and amorphous systems.
• Familiarity with analytical techniques (e.g., DSC, TGA, XRPD, SEM).
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a multidisciplinary environment.
• Excellent documentation and communication skills.
• Inherent motivation for learning and innovation (proactive in proposing improvements and being self-taught).

Preferred Experience:

• Experience in early-phase pharmaceutical development.
• Experience with scale-up or tech transfer.
• Experience with modeling (scale-up tools).

Ready to join us on our purpose to improve people’s lives?  Become part of a team where your passion can make a real difference.