A day in the life of a... Chemist
Vicky Sayer - ColorMatrix
When I tell people I’m a chemist they sometimes think I sell aspirins and dispense prescriptions.
But a real chemist plays with the building blocks of the earth – from metals to air and water – to create exciting new materials with millions of uses. Worldwide the industry converts these raw materials into something like 70,000 different products! Not many people know that.
My own company – ColorMatrix in Liverpool – uses chemicals to make additives and colorants for the plastics industry. Boring? Not a bit of it. Not unless you think flying off to Shanghai to speak at an international conference is boring.
Of course I know that’s going to happen and have to find time to prepare for it. But the rest of the day can throw up all kinds of interesting challenges. So here we go...
Victoria is a regulatory affairs manager for ColorMatrix. She took relevant A levels and gained an MChem degree is chemistry, life systems and pharmaceuticals, then spent three years as a research and development chemist.
9.00am. Log into PC and check emails. Discover how busy my colleagues in America and Asia have been while I was asleep. Answer: very busy! Lots of queries to answer. Some I can pass on. Others will need a spot of research. Speaking of which...
9.30am. ColorMatrix products go into packaging materials that may finish up in a plastic bottle for food or consumer goods. As you might expect there are strict laws covering these uses. A lot of work goes into showing that the chemicals involved are OK to use. Today we’ve got samples of three new chemicals that might be useful for our clients so I have to check that they’re completely safe. And that means safe for us, too. I have to ensure that our research and development guys take all necessary precautions as they experiment with the new chemicals.
11.00am. Meeting with important customer who manufactures packaging for well known household brands. Naturally he wants to know all about the chemical nature of the products we supply him with. I also describe the work we do to meet safety and legal requirements. He wants to know that, too.
12.30pm. Panic! Call from a sales manager who is meeting a customer in 30 minutes and needs written confirmation that all the stuff we send them is OK for using in plastics drinks bottles. So I pull all the relevant info off the computer and whiz it off to him. Thank goodness for emails.
1.00pm. Time for lunch. Time to chat about what my colleagues are up to – in and out of work (well, fancy that about old so-and-so!).
2.00pm. The Chinese have published a new list of chemicals they’ll allow in food packaging. And we’ve got literally hundreds of materials that do just that. So I have to check how these new rules affect us – whether our materials are on the list or not. This will take weeks, but at least I can make a start.
2.30pm. Next job is in-house. We’re trying out a new type of container for our liquid chemicals. And you’ve guessed it - more rules and regulations! There are strict laws covering what packaging can be used for different materials – even the way they travel. So I need to ensure the new containers are legally OK.
3.00pm. Into the lab – the best part of the day!; This is the sharp end of the chemical business – actually playing with the stuff. We’ve been offered an alternative supply of one of our raw materials, but before we take it on we have to carry out chemical analysis to make sure it’s pure enough for our needs.
4.00pm. That Shanghai conference is looming. I’m talking about the complexity of international rules covering chemicals and how companies such as ColorMatrix comply with them in many different countries.; Time to get cracking on the talk.
5.00pm. Finally a stroll through the factory to make sure our staff are following correct safety procedures when handling chemicals. Are they using the right safety equipment and clothing, from goggles to lab coats.
5.30pm. Time to go home. Time to reflect on the day’s happenings. Time to tell myself yet again what a great job I have in manufacturing.