Knauf Insulation is recruiting a Head of Product Health & Safety to join the company and the public and regulatory affairs department. The role is expected to be occupied in Visé, Belgium, where the company headquarters are located or in our hub of St Helens, England or in our hub of Škofja Loka, Slovenia with regular commuting to manufacturing sites (Belgium and elsewhere in Europe)

Scope of the function

As key member of the EMEA/APAC Knauf Insulation Group Public & (Product) Regulatory Affairs team, the Head of Product Health & Safety is responsible of health and chemicals regulatory compliance matters, throughout Knauf Insulation’s products’ life cycle.

Reporting directly to the Group Public & Regulatory Affairs Director and participating in regular team and department meetings, the candidate will support the Department by (non-exhaustive):

• Advising the business as a technical regulatory affairs expert, managing the regulatory environment by striving to achieve a safe and sustainable by design product portfolio.
• Overseeing the regulatory environment related to chemicals, raw materials, and finished goods and works in close collaboration with the product stewardship team to derive actionable solutions for the business and its operations.

The successful individual will be an accomplished technical executive with a strong track record of success in delivering and implementing a regulatory affairs programme for international business(es) (e.g., chemical industry, metallurgical industry).

The candidate has a thorough understanding of the REACH and CLP regulations, occupational hygiene requirements, and global frameworks such as Global Harmonisation Standards, as well as REACH like framework (UK, Korea, etc.) and understands the intrinsic scientific implications of existing work streams in relation to regulatory requirements. The successful person can also perform informed impact assessment on the business implications of regulatory developments. Such an assessment and derived solutions are fed back in various internal workflows from R&D to production. The candidate would also be instrumental in mergers and acquisitions processes and would support the business strategy in this regard. The suitable applicant would ideally understand the science pursuing to fibres and can perform impact assessment on occupational exposure.

This person will be a well-rounded team player and strategic executive with strong regulatory affairs capabilities. The candidate will aim to provide regulatory affairs guidance and advice to internal stakeholders whilst ensuring Knauf Insulation position’s is well formulated and articulated in various trade associations. This role is key in ensuring that Knauf Insulation remains at the forefront of scientific and regulatory developments pursuing to health and safety.

The person who will take on the role will be based in the Visé office (HQ of Knauf Insulation) hub and/or Brussels, with regular commuting to manufacturing sites (Belgium and elsewhere in Europe).

Missions and responsibilities

• Acts as the central reference for all products regulatory compliance matters specific to hazard, health and chemicals, and advises the business accordingly;
• Manages the company REACH Dossier (i.e., technically, strategically) and is able to identify and derive an action plan to maintain the company compliance with the regulatory framework, whilst contributing to the scientific discussion revolving around REACH compliance at company and industry level (i.e., industry REACH consortium);
• Develop and deploy together with the Product Stewardship Manager a substance risk assessment in line with the Group sustainability programme whilst supporting the business to identify alternative solutions where possible;
• Monitors the development of all relevant legislation, globally, for example EU OSH legislation, GHS, REACH, CLP (Classification, Packaging and Labeling), informs and advises the business accordingly and throughout EMEAC and APAC;
• Equips Knauf Insulation R&D teams with the regulatory knowledge necessary to evaluate, and proposes solutions without compromising on the environmental and human related risks of substances and articles;
• Works closely with the Products Stewardship Team and supports the implementation of the product and substance risk management policy and instruction to managers on legal requirements, scientific understanding and precautionary procedures, and labeling and packaging;
• Works closely with the R&D, Legal, HSEEQ, Marketing, Sustainability, Industrial Performance Departments to deliver the regulatory expertise and tailor-made internal advice.
• Formulates technical risk assessment whilst supporting and advising Knauf Insulation’s Management team in situation of crisis communication.
• Represents the business in trade associations and other regulatory bodies on behalf of Knauf insulation (EURIMA, EUCEB, etc.).
• Interact with regulatory bodies and policy makers in order to maintain a level playing field together with the Group Public & Regulatory Affairs Director.
• Call for scientific / health external expertise, when such support is needed in order to assist Knauf Insulation in decisions, and manages external consultants where needed;
• Team Management: the position requires to manage a team of two experienced Product Stewardship Managers.

Your profile

Experience required

• Master’s degree and/or PhD in a technical or scientific discipline (chemistry, toxicology, etc.) with a relevant professional experience (at least 5-10 years);
• Team management experience in a company, preferably;
• Knowledge of the processes and substances used within the chemicals or building industry; knowledge of (mineral) fibres is a plus for this position;
• Thorough understanding of relevant regulatory framework at the heart of the business, REACH and CLP mandatory, any other (e.g. GHS, IARC Monographs, etc.) is an asset;
• Fluency in English, as well as in another European language preferably (German, French, or Spanish);
• Internationally mobile: up to 30%.

Soft Skills

• Ability to operate under pressure and communicate succinctly and yet accurately to senior management;
• Excellent written and oral communication skills with strong networking skills to partner internally and externally;
• Assertive and self-confident when presenting and supporting conclusions;
• Agile with multi-tasks and work prioritization (multiple projects), able to stand business strain;
• Structured, well organized, persistent, pragmatic and result-driven;
• A strong interest in the manufacturing, construction and energy efficiency sector, and the ability to work in a changing environment.

Health – Safety – Environment – Energy -Quality

Every worker has the obligation to take care of his / her safety and health, as well as that of his colleagues, including subcontractors. The worker also ensures the respect of the Values, knows and respects the rules and contributes to the objectives of the site and the group with regard to HSEEQ.

Any team leader needs to update the entity's HSEEQ indicators and actively participate in the improvement of the entity's HSEEQ indicators. He is also the guarantor of the respect of these rules with his team.

About Knauf Insulation

Knauf Insulation products save energy, cut emissions and make sure buildings are good for the environment and keep people healthy, safe and well.

With over 40 years of experience in the insulation industry, we now employ nearly 6,000 people across more than 40 countries. We have with 29 manufacturing sites in 15 countries.

Knauf Insulation (KI) is part of the Knauf Group, which employs about 40,000 people worldwide, operating more than 300 factories, generating sales in excess of 12.5 billion Euros.

The Knauf Group was founded in 1932 and is a family-owned company driven by the values of Menschlichkeit (Humanity), Partnership, Commitment, and Entrepreneurship.

These values and the fast-moving environment in which we evolve allows us to take initiative and implement new processes or structures, working together and taking care of the others. We have lots of opportunities inside the company who allows you to consider to make your career with us.

Our Belgian site in Visé is representing the biggest Glass Mineral Wool Plant in Europe and is location of Knauf Insulation Head Office. Today there is a strong focus on such topics, as sustainability, energy efficiency and waste reduction. Knauf Insulation brings one of the solutions to climate change and that’s why we are proud to be working as leader in the insulation industry.

In 2020 we launched our sustainability strategy For A Better World with a focus on four key goals: Put People First, Achieve Zero Carbon, Deliver A Circular Economy and Create Better Buildings. To ensure these words were translated into concrete action we set mid-term targets for 2025 that everyone can start achieving now.

** We encourage and welcome all applications **