Laboratory Technician - Physics/Chemistry

Role Overview

This position keeps the department's teaching and research laboratories running reliably, safely, and to a consistent technical standard. On a typical day you will be setting up practical sessions before students arrive, diagnosing an instrument that has drifted out of calibration, tracking consumable stock before it runs out, and coaching learners through correct technique at the bench. The role matters because the quality of every experiment performed in the facility — whether it is an undergraduate practical, a postgraduate study, or a consultancy sample — depends on the preparation, maintenance, and safety discipline you bring to it.

Key Responsibilities

• Assemble and prepare apparatus, reagents, chemicals, standards, and biological or physical specimens ahead of practical classes, demonstrations, and research runs.
• Operate analytical and general laboratory instruments, carrying out calibration, fault-finding, and scheduled servicing so that equipment stays within acceptable performance limits.
• Track stock levels of chemicals, consumables, glassware, and spare parts, and raise procurement requests in time to prevent disruption to scheduled work.
• Enforce health, safety, environmental, and biosafety requirements, including correct labelling, segregated storage, and compliant disposal of hazardous and chemical waste.
• Provide hands-on technical assistance to academic staff, researchers, and students during experiments, projects, and practical assessments.
• Keep equipment logs, stock registers, safety records, and other laboratory documentation current and audit-ready in line with institutional policy.
• Contribute to quality assurance and quality control systems, helping to develop, apply, and monitor procedures that keep results traceable and reproducible.
• Inspect facilities on a routine basis and flag damaged or failing equipment for repair, servicing, or replacement before it halts teaching or research activity.
• Instruct students and other laboratory users in safe equipment handling, standard operating procedures, and good laboratory practice.
• Extend technical laboratory support to research, consultancy, innovation, and community outreach work, and take on other duties assigned by the supervisor.

Requirements & Qualifications

• A Diploma in Science Laboratory Technology, Analytical Chemistry, or a closely related discipline such as physics, from a recognised institution.
• Registration with the relevant professional body where this is applicable.
• At least three years of hands-on laboratory experience gained in a university, research institution, or accredited analytical laboratory.
• Demonstrated ability to operate, calibrate, maintain, and troubleshoot analytical instruments — for example UV-Vis spectrophotometers, FTIR, HPLC, GC-MS, AAS, or ICP-OES.
• Working knowledge of laboratory quality management systems, including Good Laboratory Practice, ISO/IEC 17025 requirements, laboratory safety, chemical waste handling, and risk assessment.
• Practical experience preparing reagents, supporting practical classes, managing laboratory inventories, and maintaining laboratory records.
• Comfort with standard computer applications and laboratory data management systems.