Main Purpose of the Job

Provide a technical support service to laboratory staff in the COVID testing labs and wider Institute. Support the smooth and efficient running of the laboratories ensuring sufficient supplies of consumables, appropriate disposal of waste materials and maintenance and cleanliness of equipment and facilities.

Key Relationships

The post holder will work together with another technician or across collegues working on different shifts, and work closely with the COVID Testing Manager

Main Activities & Responsibilities

Provide a technical service to the COVID testing labs and ensure a joined up approach with the labs across wider Institute

Assist the COVID testing manager and EI Lab Manager with the organisation and smooth operation of the laboratories

Effectively organise laboratory consumables, reagents and waste disposal

Carry out general, chemical and clinical waste disposal using appropriate labelling and safety procedures

Checking with purchasing for the arrival of supplies and distributing to appropriate areas

Maintain levels of reagents and consumables for laboratory usage as required

Transport of specimens to and from the testing facility as required

Liaise with the COVID testing Manager and Lab Manager and Facilities department regarding the maintenance of services and facilities in the labs

Disposal of clinical samples etc. as instructed by lab staff and in accordance with the Institute’s safety policies

Clean lab glassware and containers as required

Collection, decontamination and processing of lab coats

Maintain cleanliness of equipment, bench surfaces and lab sinks

As agreed with line manager, any other duties commensurate with the nature of the role

Education & Qualifications

Requirement

Importance

Three A levels grades A-D, including Biology or similar subject OR substantial experience of working in a scientific research environment

Essential

BSc in biological science, or similar subject

Desirable

Specialist Knowledge & Skills

Requirement

Importance

Good time management skills

Essential

Accurate record keeping ability

Essential

Relevant Experience

Requirement

Importance

Proven, recent experience in technical aspects of a scientific laboratory

Essential

Experience in using an autoclave and glass washer

Desirable

Experience in handling biological and clinical waste

Desirable

Interpersonal & Communication Skills

Requirement

Importance

Ability to learn quickly

Essential

Good interpersonal skills, with the ability to work well as part of a team

Essential

Good communication skills, both written and verbal

Essential

Additional Requirements

Requirement

Importance

Attention to detail

Essential

Promotes equality and values diversity

Essential

Willingness to embrace the expected values and behaviours of all staff at the Institute, ensuring its a great place to work

Essential

Able to present a positive image of self and the Institute, promoting both the international reputation and public engagement aims of the Institute

Essential

Earlham Institute

Earlham Institute is a vibrant, contemporary research institute and registered charity, working in an area of rapid technological development and innovation.

Earlham Institute is strategically funded by the BBSRC to lead the development of a skill base in bioinformatics and a genomics technology platform for UK bioscience. The Institute is located on the Norwich Research Park, together with its partners: the John Innes Centre, the Institute of Food Research, The Sainsbury Laboratory, the University of East Anglia and the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital. The research park has an excellent reputation for research in plant and microbial sciences, interdisciplinary environmental science and food, diet and health, to which Earlham Institute contributes strengths in genomics and bioinformatics. Close links exist between the NRP partners and new opportunities for collaboration in exciting new initiatives are under development. The NRP recently received £26M of government investment to facilitate innovation and further develop infrastructure to attract science and technology companies to the Park to enhance the vibrant environment and realise economic impact from research investment.

Earlham Institute is a UK hub for innovative Bioinformatics through research, analysis and interpretation of multiple, complex data sets. It hosts one of the largest computing hardware facilities dedicated to life science research in Europe. This has been boosted recently by an e-Infrastructure grant to expand the data storage capacity to a multi-petabyte unit, deploying a high performance cluster and large-memory server enabling the allocation of processes requiring several terabytes of computing memory.

Earlham Institute’s state of the art DNA sequencing facility operates multiple complementary technologies for data generation that provide the foundation for analyses furthering our fundamental understanding of genomes and how they function. We aim to be at the forefront of technological advances and are developing and implementing technologies to generate and analyse new types of data. We also develop novel platforms to provide access to computational tools and processing capacity for multiple academic and industrial users and promoting applications of computational bioscience. Earlham Institute has one fully owned subsidiary, Genome Enterprise Ltd (GEL) via which it offers genomic and bioinformatics services on a trading basis and works with commercial providers on a partnership basis. Earlham Institute also receives specific funding to enable knowledge exchange programmes which are supported across the institute teams.

Department

Operations

Advert Text

Applications are invited for a Laboratory Technician to support the Covid-19 testing labs at the Earlham Institute.

The role:

This important role will provide a technical support service to laboratory staff in the Covid-19 testing labs and wider Institute. The post-holder will support the smooth and efficient running of the laboratories ensuring sufficient supplies of consumables, appropriate disposal of waste materials and maintenance and cleanliness of equipment and facilities.

We have two vacancies available. The working hours of each vacancy are yet to be confirmed but are expected to be 7am-3pm for one and 3pm-11pm for the other. Both roles are fulltime and will require some weekend working.

Salary on appointment will be within the range £19,505 to £23,790 per annum depending on qualifications and experience.  Both roles are offered on a 12 month basis.

The ideal candidate:

Candidates should have proven, recent experience of working in a technical role in a scientific laboratory. They should have three A Levels, including a scientific subject, or possess substantial experience of working in a scientific research environment. Experience of using autoclaves and handling biological waste is desirable.

Additional information:

Please note, this post does not meet UKVI requirements to provide visa sponsorship.

As a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee to offer an interview to all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for this vacancy.