Company Overview:

Har-Tru, LLC is a global sports company based in Charlottesville, VA.  It is the world’s leading provider of clay court surfaces, tennis court consultation, court equipment and accessories.  The company strives to help others build and maintain the best courts in the world, leveraging its products, knowledge, and experience to meet the needs of each customer most effectively. Har-Tru is active in the industry as an advocate for the sport and sponsor of tennis related activities. 

Job Title:              Coatings Chemist

Reports To:           Sports Coatings Production Manager

FLSA Status:         Exempt

Job Summary

The Coatings Chemist is responsible for the current production and future development of indoor and outdoor sports surface coatings.  This position is responsible for running and maintaining the laboratory. This position is responsible for quality specifications to ensure field application success and the continued development of surface coatings for optimal performance. The position is responsible for ensuring all raw materials and products meet required specifications, keeping accurate records, and data entry.  This work is critical to the success of coatings and will require high organizational and analytical skills.

Company Culture - Who We Are

At our core, we’re a team of problem solvers, builders, and innovators who believe in doing things the right way. We value curiosity, hands-on ingenuity, and commitment to continuous improvement. Our culture is rooted in collaboration—engineers, technicians, and manufacturing teams working side-by-side to bring great ideas to life.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Collaboratively work with the team to design, plan, and conduct projects developing and improving current and new coating systems.
• Understanding of field application for sports coatings
• Acrylic and polyurethane coatings formulation
• Develop and maintain test plans for all raw materials. Including reviewing of all COA’s upon arrival and clear for use of materials.
• Understanding technical challenges and developing solutions to overcome problems.
• Quality Control, testing, and record keeping
• Keep extensive and accurate records of formulation and changes
• Assist with troubleshooting plant and field representatives’ issues
• Supplier interaction for raw material qualification
• Support investigation of product non-conformance and customer concerns for resolution and prevention of re-occurrence
• Ability to assist and/or perform laboratory scale and small production batches.
• Responsible for ensuring production sheets are accurate prior to and after production.
• Responsible for entering production data into the computer system to ensure accurate inventory of raw materials and products.
• Ability to pull raw materials from inventory and accurately weigh quantities on scales for production support.
• Cost reduction analysis and implementation / raw material rationalization.
• Proficient knowledge of color theory and spectrophotometers for color matching custom orders.
• Full competency in use of lab equipment and lab setup for quality control and development purposes.
• Comply with safety regulations and maintain a clean and orderly work area.
• Ability to drive a forklift is needed.
• SDS Training of team.  SDS tracking.

Experience, Knowledge and Skill Requirements

• To perform this job successfully, an individual should have knowledge of MS Office products.
• Expert level knowledge with Excel and formulation programs.  
• Ability to read and interpret documents. 
• Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from individuals or groups of employees, managers, customers, and vendors. 
• Ability to effectively deal with problems involving multiple variables in time sensitive situations.
• Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions.
• Ability to interpret an extensive variety of instructions.

Education and Training Requirements

• Bachelor's degree (B.S.) from a four-year college or university in Chemistry or related field is required.
• Five years of direct experience as a formulating coatings chemist.
• Extensive experience in the paint and coatings industry – Solvent, water, and two component technologies, experience with sports coatings formulas is a plus. 
• Working knowledge of NetSuite.
• Compensation will be directly related to skill set, knowledge base, and experience.

Core Competencies

• Safety-First Mindset: Unwavering commitment to personal and teammate safety.
• Attention to Detail: A "right the first time" approach to quality and organization.
• Problem-Solving: Ability to troubleshoot mechanical issues and suggest viable solutions.
• Teamwork: A collaborative spirit with strong communication skills and a reliable work ethic.

Working Conditions

• Will be both in an office and in production area.
• Occasional outside work, exposure to the elements
• Potential exposure to noise, dust, and varying weather conditions.
• All necessary Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is provided and required.
• Travel may require up to 5% of time.

Why you should apply:

If you are looking for a great company to work for with an excellent benefit package to include, paid holidays, PTO, affordable Healthcare plans, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, STD/LTD and 401(k) with Company Match, then you should Join our Winning Team!

*All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status. We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and an affirmative action employer.