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Sterile Engineer, Specialist (On-site)

Merck

Rahway, NJFull-time$87–137K/yrSeen 3 days agoSeen in employer's feed 3 days ago

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At a glance

Compensation
$87–137K/yr
Location
Rahway, NJ
Schedule
Full-time
Work Authorization
Not specified

Olive lists jobs from US employers, including remote roles you can work from the United States.

Job overview

This Engineer provides on-site engineering support for sterile operations at Merck’s FLEx center in Rahway, supporting equipment reliability, quality engineering, capital projects, and sterile validation. The role supports Sterile 2 and Sterile 1, partnering with operations, quality, engineering, maintenance, vendors, and other teams. It also serves as a subject matter expert for sterilization and cleaning validation in a regulated pharmaceutical manufacturing environment.

Skills & qualifications

RequiredNice to have

Skills

Quality PoliciesCGMPSafety PoliciesEnvironmental PoliciesSterile Drug Product ManufacturingCMMSMechanical TroubleshootingElectrical TroubleshootingAutomation TroubleshootingOrganizational SkillsCommunicationTechnical WritingComputer SkillsMaintenance EngineeringCapital Project ManagementProblem SolvingSAP Plant MaintenanceElectronic Validation SystemsProCalPlanning and SchedulingBusiness and Financial PracticesCleaning ValidationClinical ManufacturingEngineering SupportEquipment ManagementMaintenance Management SystemsPharmaceutical SciencesPilot Plant OperationsQuality EngineeringRegulatory RequirementsSOP WritingTroubleshooting

Qualifications

Bachelor's in Engineering or Science2+ Years Related Experience

Benefits

Medical Insurance
Dental Insurance
Vision Insurance
401(k) Match
Paid Time Off

Full job description

Job Description

Job Description

This Engineer position will provide on-site engineering support of the Rahway, NJ FLEx (Formulation, Laboratory & Experimentation) center, for sterile operations within Our Company's Research Labs Pharmaceutical Sciences (Pharm Sci), Pharmaceutical Operations Engineering group (Pharm Ops Engineering). Pharm Ops Engineering is responsible for providing technical support across quality engineering, equipment reliability and maintenance, and sterilization and cleaning validation to ensure safe, compliant, and reliable operations.

The FLEx facility supports the formulation and aseptic filling of clinical, stability, and developmental sterile products, including key programs advancing through process development, scale-up, launch, technology transfer, and commercial process optimization.

This position primarily supports the FLEx Sterile 2 manufacturing area, with secondary support responsibilities for FLEx Sterile1. FLEx Sterile1 is currently operational, while FLEx Sterile2 is under construction as part of a major capital project, with a target Ready-for-Science date of Q1 2030. This position is primarily intended for 1st shift, but batch activity may necessitate some off-shift support.

The incumbent provides engineering support for Quality Engineering (QE), capital projects, equipment reliability, and sterile validation programs supporting the FLEx Sterile manufacturing facilities. This role partners closely with Operations, Quality, Engineering, Maintenance, Global Engineering Services (GES), Facilities Management (FM/GWES), OEMs, and external vendors to support ongoing operations, facility upgrades, and the installation, commissioning, qualification, and lifecycle management of manufacturing equipment and utility systems.

Key responsibilities include supporting the full equipment lifecycle from commissioning through decommissioning; authoring, executing, reviewing, and approving qualification and validation documentation; managing equipment and system changes; conducting periodic reviews; supporting investigations, deviations, Quality Notifications (QNs), and CAPAs; and maintaining GMP engineering documentation and asset records. The role applies reliability-centered maintenance principles to ensure equipment availability and support the timely manufacture of clinical, stability, and developmental products.

The position also serves as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) for sterilization and cleaning validation programs. Responsibilities include developing and maintaining validation strategies, SOPs, protocols, and reports; performing technical assessments; coordinating validation activities with third-party service providers; troubleshooting technical issues; and ensuring compliance with GMP, safety, and regulatory requirements.

Additional responsibilities include contractor and vendor oversight, work order governance, purchase order and budget support, asset management, capital project administration, equipment startup activities, and regulatory inspection support. Success in this role requires strong technical expertise, cross-functional collaboration, problem-solving skills, and the ability to support both operational and project-based objectives within a regulated pharmaceutical manufacturing environment.

Education Minimum Requirement:

  • Bachelor's degree in engineering or science plus a minimum of 2 years of related Drug Product/Sterile/Validation experience.

Required Experience and Skills :

  • Strong familiarity with Quality, cGMP, Safety & Environmental Policies and Procedures.

  • Familiarity with Sterile Drug Product manufacturing equipment and process.

  • Familiarity with Computerized Maintenance and Management Systems (CMMS).

  • Troubleshooting ability (mechanical/electrical/automation)

  • Ability to flexibly adapt to flow of the work across both Quality and Facility aspects to support the business.

  • Effective organizational skills.

  • Effective communication and technical writing skills.

  • Strong computer skills

Preferred Experience and Skills:

  • Maintenance & Engineering techniques and management and Capital Project management.

  • Independent problem- solving.

  • SAP Plant Maintenance (Gatekeeping and Work Order Prioritization)

  • eVal/Kneat - Paperless electronic validation system

  • Experience with ProCal as a Computerized Calibration Maintenance System (CCMS).

  • Familiarity with Planning and Scheduling practices as well as business/financial practices.

  • The candidate should be able to work independently and lead or facilitate tasks successfully.

EligibleforERP

Required Skills:

Capital Project Management, cGMP Guidelines, Cleaning Validations, Clinical Manufacturing, Engineering Support, Equipment Management, Maintenance Management Systems, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Pilot Plant Operations, Quality Engineering, Regulatory Requirements, Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) Writing, Technical Writing, Troubleshooting

Preferred Skills:

Current Employees apply HERE (https://wd5.myworkday.com/msd/d/task/1422$6687.htmld)

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE (https://wd5.myworkday.com/msd/d/task/1422$4020.htmld)

US and Puerto Rico Residents Only:

Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here (https://survey.sogosurvey.com/r/aCdfqL) if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

EEOC Know Your Rights (https://www.eeoc.gov/sites/default/files/2022-10/22-088\_EEOC\_KnowYourRights\_10\_20.pdf)

EEOC GINA Supplement

We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.

Learn more about your rights, including under California, Colorado and other US State Acts (https://www.msdprivacy.com/us/en/CCPA-notice/)

The primary location for this posting is:

USA - New Jersey - Rahway

Where required by law, the compensation range for this role is provided below.

The salary range for the primary location of this role is:

$87,300.00 - $137,400.00

This range reflects the Company's reasonable expectation of the base salary applicable to this role at the time of posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs. The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits .

Additional location(s): Please note the salary range above applies to the Primary Location of the position. Where a role has other listed locations, different compensation guidelines may apply. You may find the salary ranges for additional locations below. If the salary range is not listed for the location you are applying to, our Talent Acquisition team will provide further information to you relevant to your location.

Additional location(s) Compensation Information:

San Francisco Residents Only: We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only: We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully

Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

Domestic

VISA Sponsorship:

No

Travel Requirements:

10%

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Not Applicable

Shift:

1st - Day

Valid Driving License:

No

Hazardous Material(s):

n/a

Job Posting End Date:

11/17/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.

Requisition ID: R423742

How this job compares

Set against the 2,936 open Quality Engineer jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 7, 2026.

Pay
  • This posting$87–137K/yr
  • New Jersey median$90–133K/yr39 salary ranges
  • US median$90–149K/yr1,860 salary ranges

This range's midpoint, $112K, is close to the New Jersey median midpoint ($112K) — in the middle half of Quality Engineer salary ranges in New Jersey.

Openings
Olive Jobs lists 46 open Quality Engineer jobs in New Jersey and 2,936 across the US. 3% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
Hiring the most in New Jersey
Experience
This posting asks for at least 2 years of experience; Quality Engineer postings that state a minimum ask for 5 years at the median (2,388 postings).
Education
1,695 of the 2,936 open Quality Engineer jobs (58%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.

Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 7, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.

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