Data Engineer

Sika Data Science is a young and growing division of Sika UK. Having begun as an arm of the UK R&D department, it has rapidly developed into a team that works on a much larger and more diverse scale: ranging from using traditional data science techniques to optimise the efficiency of operations and monitoring product quality and consistency, to harnessing the power of state-of-the-art AI solutions to identify novel construction materials and service Sika global with LLM technologies. The objectives of the team have evolved equally rapidly: we now aim to use data science to improve the productivity and sustainability of every Sika department.

Purpose of the Role

Globally, Sika R&D is undergoing a significant transformation in our approach to data recording and storage, which demands the expertise of a Data Engineer who is skilled in change management. This transition exposes significant opportunities for the application of data science to R&D on both the small and large scales; six-sigma approaches can be used to expedite individual development pipelines, and, over the long term, structured data portions can be identified as key candidates for Data Engineering and the training of machine learning solutions. As the Data Science team seeks to contribute more to Sika global, such deployments will become increasingly valuable for product catalogue optimisation with the ever-growing pool of R&D data.

What’s In it for You?

The Opportunity:

• You will steward the transition of Sika Concrete R&D into our new approach to data management, providing bespoke support, data cleaning and infrastructure engineering services.
• You will actively seek further data sources which can be valorised through common data science initiatives, and support in the construction of large-scale solutions to harness these repositories.
• You will provide support to Sika’s global R&D community by accelerating R&D processes through data science approaches, such as design of experiments, simple modelling and six-sigma methodologies.

The Rewards:

You will be rewarded with a competitive salary, and a sweep of great benefits. We pride ourselves on our total reward package:

• Bonus Scheme
• Holiday 25 days rising to 28 days with service, plus bank holidays
• Hybrid Working
• Core Hours Working
• A company pension contribution of up to 10%
• Private healthcare for you, with option to add family
• Group life cover at 6x your annual salary
• Global Income Protection (PHI)
• Enhanced maternity and paternity pay
• Staff discount platform & Cycle to Work scheme
• Dedicated Service Awards for reaching key milestones

The Support:

As this role requires a deep knowledge of Sika’s data infrastructure platforms, you will be trained to the point of excellence in these systems, with full support from our existing team. We are a small team who prioritise satisfaction and excellence in our work, and we will do our utmost to ensure that you are content in your role, accommodating for your needs. We aim to foster an honest and democratic culture, where all voices are equally important, and everyone is treated with respect.

The Skills:

This role requires a significant commitment to professional and personal development from day one. You must be hungry to learn and eager to expand both your technical and interpersonal skillsets, focusing on the nuances of platform-specific functionalities and managing team-specific approaches. You’ll need a keen nose for where data science can be harnessed to drive productivity, both in the small and large scales, and where new sources of information can be harnessed and centralised. To these ends, your affinity for organisation and structure needs to be unmatched, and we’ll require that your attention to detail is scrupulous.

The Future:

Potential Career Routes: Data Scientist, Data Science Team Leader

Working at Sika bestows you with the opportunity to progress within a global company across a variety of business areas. You’ll learn about different sectors of the business, getting the chance to build networks with various departments across the world. As your technical and interpersonal skills develop, you will increasingly contribute more to global scope, business-transformative initiatives, which will yield you the opportunity to rise through the ranks of Sika.

Your expertise - Our strength

What we need from you?

• Highly flexible approach to communication, able to perceptively understand and deftly adapt to the different approaches of different teams.
• Scrupulous attention to detail and precise, meticulous approach to data organisation.
• 2+ years of experience in Data Engineering and Python scripting are mandatory for this role.
• Experience in change management and application of data science solutions to scientific experimentation are ideal but not essential.
• Experience with data systems such as SCADA peripheries and SAP is valuable.

About Sika

Sika is a specialty chemicals company with a leading position in the development and production of systems and products for waterproofing, bonding, sealing, damping, reinforcing, and protecting in the building sector and motor vehicle industry. Sika has subsidiaries in 101 countries around the world and manufactures in over 300 factories. Its more than 27,000 employees generated annual sales of CHF 9.3 billion in 2021.