Takeda

Takeda

Posted via Workday

Technology & Innovation Lead, Plant Equipment

Posted Oct 1, 2026

Role at a glance

Job function
Engineering & R&D Mechanical Engineering
Salary
Not Disclosed
Location
Zurich, Switzerland
Employment
Full-time
Experience
more than 12 years of relevant experience in biopharmaceutical engineering or a comparable regulated manufacturing environment.
Education
Technical, scientific or engineering degree

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Role Summary

AI-generated

The Technology & Innovation Lead, Plant Equipment sets global engineering technology direction for plant equipment, utilities, HVAC/R and clean-room systems. The role guides technology decisions and implementation across sites and major projects, from strategy and evaluation through pilots, standards and deployment.

What You'll Do

  • Set and govern global technology strategy, engineering standards and multi-year execution roadmaps for the covered systems.
  • Guide lifecycle improvement of installed equipment and systems, including reliability, capacity, energy efficiency and sustainability...
  • Scout and assess external technologies, then develop selected opportunities into value cases, pilots and deployable initiatives.
  • Provide technical direction for significant CAPEX decisions, feasibility studies, concept design, risk assessment and supplier or...
  • Lead the global Plant Equipment Community of Practice to harmonize solutions, share best practices and strengthen site expertise.

Generated from the employer's posting. Verify important details before applying.

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Qualifications

Requires a technical, scientific or engineering degree; more than 12 years of relevant experience in biopharmaceutical engineering or a comparable regulated manufacturing environment; technical authority in Drug Substance process equipment; experience developing technology strategies, global standards, value cases, pilots and scalable multi-site deployments; knowledge of cGMP and relevant ICH, FDA/EMA, ISPE and PDA guidance; ability to influence senior stakeholders and lead global matrix networks; and fluent written and spoken English.

Original job description

Content provided by the employer

By clicking the “Apply” button, I understand that my employment application process with Takeda will commence and that the information I provide in my application will be processed in line with Takeda’s Privacy Notice and Terms of Use.  I further attest that all information I submit in my employment application is true to the best of my knowledge.

Job Description

About the role

The Technology & Innovation Lead, Plant Equipment is the global engineering technology authority for plant equipment, clean and black utilities, HVAC/R and clean-room systems. The role owns the global technology strategy, engineering standards and innovation roadmap, from technology scouting and opportunity prioritization through piloting, engineering and GxP readiness, and scalable deployment. Working with site and global partners, the role translates manufacturing, facility and infrastructure requirements into engineering solutions and influences consequential technical and investment decisions across the asset lifecycle, enabling safe, compliant, reliable, sustainable and future-ready manufacturing.


How you will contribute

  • Set, own and govern the global technology vision, strategy and multi-year execution roadmap for plant equipment, clean and black utilities, HVAC/R and clean-room systems, aligning priorities with manufacturing-network, asset-management, sustainability and innovation strategies to improve network performance.
  • Govern evaluation and lifecycle improvement of installed plant equipment, utilities, HVAC/R and clean-room systems to increase reliability, operability, capacity, lifecycle value, energy efficiency and sustainability; define expected benefits and oversee realization with sites, pro-jects and partner functions.
  • Build strategic alignment across Global Engineering, sites, major projects and GSQ partner functions by integrating manufacturing and facility requirements, installed-base constraints and local needs, resolving cross-functional trade-offs and enabling adoption of global strategies, standards and technologies.
  • Lead external technology scouting, benchmarking and industry engagement for plant equipment, utility, HVAC/R and clean-room technologies; assess technical maturity, regulatory relevance, lifecycle value and scalability, and translate selected opportunities into value cases, pilots and deployable initiatives.
  • Own engineering readiness and scalable implementation of priority plant-equipment and infrastructure technologies from technical evaluation and pilot definition through standardization, concept and project integration, deployment requirements and handover to site or project execution teams.
  • Interpret evolving global regulatory guidance, engineering expectations and sustainability requirements and govern their translation into equipment and system strategies, global standards, future platform decisions and implementation requirements.
  • Act as the global engineering technology authority for plant equipment, clean and black utilities, HVAC/R and clean-room systems, providing authoritative technical direction for complex manufacturing and lifecycle challenges and governing the technical basis for significant CAPEX decisions, feasibility studies, concept design, scope definition, value engineering, technical-risk assessment and supplier or equipment selection.
  • Develop, own and govern global engineering standards, guidelines, reusable design principles and selection criteria for plant equipment, clean and black utilities, HVAC/R and clean-room systems, including decision rights and exception pathways, to ensure consistent interpretation and lifecycle application across the network.
  • Establish and lead the global Plant Equipment Community of Practice and SME capability model to harmonize technologies and system solutions, strengthen site expertise, share and apply best practices, and sustain knowledge continuity and succession.

Technical/Functional (Line) Expertise

  • Recognized authority in plant equipment, clean and black utilities, HVAC/R and clean-room design, operation and lifecycle management, with hands-on knowledge of critical utilities - Clean Steam, Water for Injection (WFI), Purified Water (PW) and process compressed air/vacuum - and black utilities such as plant steam, boilers, industrial heat pumps, wastewater, cooling/chilled water, water treatment, specialty gases, electrical generation/distribution and related facility equipment.
  • In-depth regulatory, quality and engineering expertise in biopharmaceutical manufacturing, with strong understanding of equipment reliability, lifecycle management, energy/sustainability and the interfaces between site operations, CAPEX delivery and design engineering.
  • Strong working knowledge of cGMP, FDA/EMA requirements, system validation and modern digital/connected manufacturing concepts relevant to regulated plant equipment.
  • Creates global strategies, standards, decision frameworks and scalable implementation models for a broad and business-critical technology domain.
  • Applies advanced analytical and conceptual judgment to ambiguous, high-impact problems for which established solutions may not exist.

Leadership

  • Balances diverse manufacturing platforms, site configurations, maturity levels, regulatory environments, suppliers and project contexts across the global network.
  • Resolves interdependencies and competing requirements across process intent, engineering feasibility, quality, EHS, cost, capacity, sustainability and implementation risk.
  • Excellent stakeholder, communication and change-management skills; able to influence across global functions, site engineering teams and external partners.
  • Provides functional leadership to the Plant Equipment Communities of Practice, site SMEs, internal and external engineers, project teams and suppliers; direct reports are not required for the role to deliver enterprise impact.
  • Builds technical capability, accountability and knowledge continuity across the domain and holds contributors accountable for collaboration and application of agreed standards.
  • Strong focus on delivering results with a service excellence, dependability first mindset.
  • Hands-on mentality, strong sense of ownership and accountability.

Decision-making and Autonomy

  • Operates with a high degree of autonomy within the assigned domain and makes or governs complex technical decisions within established enterprise governance.
  • Establishes technical decision frameworks, interprets global engineering standards and gov-erns domain-level exceptions within delegated authority.
  • Escalates matters with broader modality or enterprise implications with a clear recommendation and decision rationale.

Interaction

  • Shapes technology direction, global engineering standards and significant technical and investment decisions across GSQ sites and major projects.

Innovation

  • Determines which emerging technologies warrant enterprise investment and defines the evidence required for adoption and scale-up decisions.
  • Converts external intelligence and internal needs into prioritized opportunities, value cases, pilots, standards and scalable deployment roadmaps.
  • Defines risk-based plans and success measures and ensures that innovation progresses beyond proof of concept into repeatable network application.
  • Leads dialogue on industry trends with industry peers and represents the organization at relevant forums, such as ISPE and PDA.

Skills and qualifications

  • Technical, scientific or engineering degree with more than 12 years of relevant experience in biopharmaceutical engineering or a comparable regulated manufacturing environment.
  • Demonstrated technical authority in Drug Substance process equipment, supported by sustained impact across development, scale-up, commercial manufacturing, asset lifecycle management, and relevant external industry networks.
  • Proven experience creating technology strategies, global standards, value cases, pilots and scalable multi-site deployment models.
  • Strong knowledge of applicable cGMP requirements and relevant ICH, FDA/EMA, ISPE and PDA guidance.
  • Demonstrated ability to influence senior stakeholders, lead global matrix networks and make high-impact decisions under ambiguity.
  • Fluent written and spoken English.
  • Domestic and international travel to Takeda sites, vendors and service providers is expected, up to 30%.

Locations

Zurich, SwitzerlandLexington, MA

Base Salary Range:

CHF177,400.00 - CHF243,980.00


The estimated salary range reflects an anticipated range for this position. The actual base salary offered may depend on a variety of factors, including the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, specific and unique skills, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, and the location in which the applicant lives and/or from which they will be performing the job.


For information about our benefits, please click here.

Worker Type

Employee

Worker Sub-Type

Regular

Time Type

Full time
Takeda

About the company

Takeda

Large Enterprise

Takeda is a global biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, with a rich history spanning over 240 years. Specializing in the research, development, and commercialization of innovative medicines, Takeda focuses on therapeutic areas such as oncology, gastroenterology, neuroscience, and rare diseases. Committed to improving patient outcomes, the company harnesses advanced technologies and scientific expertise to deliver breakthrough therapies and enhance healthcare worldwide. Takeda's dedication to sustainability and social responsibility underscores its mission to strive towards better health for people and communities across the globe.