Assistant/Associate Professor in Circular Supply Chains

Want to perform top-quality research in the field of circular economy?

The Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management (TPM) invites applications for a tenure-track position as assistant professor in Circular/Sustainable supply chains. The position is established within the department Engineering Systems and Services (ESS), more specifically in the Energy and Industry (E&I) section, where the research on designing system solutions for sustainable industry, energy transitions and circular economy takes place.

The ESS department aims to contribute to the scholarly debate at the highest international level, and is rooted in design, engineering and social sciences. It hosts energy system experts, industry (decarbonisation), mobility (passenger as well as freight) and ICT experts (cyber, distributed systems, IT architectures), as well as modelling and decision making scholars. This combination of expertise guarantees that the cross-sectoral and socio-technical characteristics of sustainability challenges are addressed in, involving e.g. shift to a fully circular economy, carbon-neutral fuels and chemicals, renewable energy and sustainable mobility.

Even with a high end-of-life recycling rate, the increase in the annual use of primary resources as copper, cobalt and lithium is estimated to be much higher as the annual use of these metals without an energy transition. The emergence of large-scale hydrogen value chain from renewable power sources to large-scale adoption in different sectors and by a variety of end-users can be seen as an exemplary topic. Another example can be found in relation to the electrification of the global transport sector and increasing demand for lithium-ion batteries.  The environmental cost of battery production and usage – energy use, mineral extraction and waste – increases parallel to the demand for EVs. The same applies to the environmental cost of electrolysers for the sustainable hydrogen production. The concept of circular economy takes on greater significance in the energy and industry sectors where recovering rare raw materials, transforming waste into a resource and extending lifespan should be taken into account in the early design phase of proposed solutions for energy transition.

In this position, you will be expected to:

• perform top-quality research in the field of circular economy, with the focus on designing system solutions for smart industry and supply chain innovation for better resource planning and utilization;
• implement circular strategies and practices in the design and social deployment of new technologies for smarter maintenance and life extension
• exploit new production technologies and develop new business models for the transition to sustainable and resilient production;
• investigate supply chains to identify and intervene on systemic risks
• coordinate between technical fields and social needs through the interaction and collaboration with other design specialists in academia and industry;
• develop courses and conduct teaching at undergraduate and post-graduate levels;
• be an inspiring member of our staff and have excellent communication skills.     

We are looking for a candidate with an interdisciplinary track record, who is able to integrate an engineering, environmental and social science perspective in system design for circularity. We expect you have appreciation of design, engineering and social challenges of implementing circular/sustainable frameworks and business models, preferably in combination with economic and/or policy analysis expertise or affinity. Knowledge of relevant tools including lifecycle assessment, risk assessment methodologies, network analysis, material flow mapping, supply chain technologies and frameworks (i.e. SCOR), regulatory frameworks and optimization is expected. You have a proven background in an engineering or in a science domain demonstrated by a PhD degree in, for example, Circular Economy, Complex Systems Engineering and Management, Industrial Ecology, Industrial Engineering, Economics and Management.     

We offer talented academics a clear and attractive career path with the expectation that you will have the potential to grow into a full professor position in the future. If you perform well, the intention is to convert your contract into a permanent one. At the start of your employment, agreements will be made about this based on our performance indicators.

During the selection procedure, it will be determined, depending on your background and experience, whether you are eligible for an assistant professor Tenure track (tudelft.nl) position or an associate professor.

Inspiring, excellent education is our central aim. We expect you to obtain a University Teaching Qualification (UTQ) within three years if you have less than five years of teaching experience. This is provided by the TU Delft UTQ programme.

TU Delft sets high standards for the English competency of the teaching staff. The TU Delft offers training to improve English competency. If you do not speak Dutch, we offer courses to learn the Dutch language within three years.

The TU Delft sets specific standards for the English competency of the teaching staff. The TU Delft offers training to improve English competency. Inspiring, excellent education is our central aim. If you have less than five years of teaching experience and do not yet have your teaching certificate, you get the chance to obtain this within three years.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (salary indication for Assistant Professor: € 3.974 - € 6.181. Salary indication for Associate Professor € 5.506 - € 7.362).

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, a discount for health insurance and sport memberships, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

Coming to Delft Service and Partner Career Advice can support with advice for you and your accompanying partner about your individual settling needs in the Netherlands. Once arrived you can be supported with individual consults and diverse workshops. Located on Campus are the International Children’s Centre and an international primary school, which are subject to availability as well as several bilingual schools in the nearby surrounding.

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

With its excellent education and research at the intersection of technology, society and policy, the Faculty of TPM makes an important contribution to solving complex technical-social issues, such as energy transition, mobility, digitalisation, water management and (cyber) security.
We combine insights from the engineering sciences, the social and the humanities. We develop robust models and designs, are internationally oriented and have an extensive network with knowledge institutions, companies, social organisations and governments.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management.

For more information about this vacancy, please contact Prof.Dr. Zofia Lukszo, e-mail: [email protected].

For information about the application procedure, please contact Olivie Beek, HR advisor, e-mail: [email protected].

Please submit your application online no later than October 1st, 2022. You can only apply via the application button 'Apply now'; applications sent to one of the mentioned email addresses will not be processed. 

To apply, please submit the following:
•    An application/motivation letter (max. 2 pages)
•    A complete curriculum vitae, including a list of publications
•    A research and teaching vision statement with a maximum of 1 page each   

Want to perform top-quality research in the field of circular economy?

The Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management (TPM) invites applications for a tenure-track position as assistant professor in Circular/Sustainable supply chains. The position is established within the department Engineering Systems and Services (ESS), more specifically in the Energy and Industry (E&I) section, where the research on designing system solutions for sustainable industry, energy transitions and circular economy takes place.

The ESS department aims to contribute to the scholarly debate at the highest international level, and is rooted in design, engineering and social sciences. It hosts energy system experts, industry (decarbonisation), mobility (passenger as well as freight) and ICT experts (cyber, distributed systems, IT architectures), as well as modelling and decision making scholars. This combination of expertise guarantees that the cross-sectoral and socio-technical characteristics of sustainability challenges are addressed in, involving e.g. shift to a fully circular economy, carbon-neutral fuels and chemicals, renewable energy and sustainable mobility.

Even with a high end-of-life recycling rate, the increase in the annual use of primary resources as copper, cobalt and lithium is estimated to be much higher as the annual use of these metals without an energy transition. The emergence of large-scale hydrogen value chain from renewable power sources to large-scale adoption in different sectors and by a variety of end-users can be seen as an exemplary topic. Another example can be found in relation to the electrification of the global transport sector and increasing demand for lithium-ion batteries.  The environmental cost of battery production and usage – energy use, mineral extraction and waste – increases parallel to the demand for EVs. The same applies to the environmental cost of electrolysers for the sustainable hydrogen production. The concept of circular economy takes on greater significance in the energy and industry sectors where recovering rare raw materials, transforming waste into a resource and extending lifespan should be taken into account in the early design phase of proposed solutions for energy transition.

In this position, you will be expected to:

• perform top-quality research in the field of circular economy, with the focus on designing system solutions for smart industry and supply chain innovation for better resource planning and utilization;
• implement circular strategies and practices in the design and social deployment of new technologies for smarter maintenance and life extension
• exploit new production technologies and develop new business models for the transition to sustainable and resilient production;
• investigate supply chains to identify and intervene on systemic risks
• coordinate between technical fields and social needs through the interaction and collaboration with other design specialists in academia and industry;
• develop courses and conduct teaching at undergraduate and post-graduate levels;
• be an inspiring member of our staff and have excellent communication skills.     

We are looking for a candidate with an interdisciplinary track record, who is able to integrate an engineering, environmental and social science perspective in system design for circularity. We expect you have appreciation of design, engineering and social challenges of implementing circular/sustainable frameworks and business models, preferably in combination with economic and/or policy analysis expertise or affinity. Knowledge of relevant tools including lifecycle assessment, risk assessment methodologies, network analysis, material flow mapping, supply chain technologies and frameworks (i.e. SCOR), regulatory frameworks and optimization is expected. You have a proven background in an engineering or in a science domain demonstrated by a PhD degree in, for example, Circular Economy, Complex Systems Engineering and Management, Industrial Ecology, Industrial Engineering, Economics and Management.     

We offer talented academics a clear and attractive career path with the expectation that you will have the potential to grow into a full professor position in the future. If you perform well, the intention is to convert your contract into a permanent one. At the start of your employment, agreements will be made about this based on our performance indicators.

During the selection procedure, it will be determined, depending on your background and experience, whether you are eligible for an assistant professor Tenure track (tudelft.nl) position or an associate professor.

Inspiring, excellent education is our central aim. We expect you to obtain a University Teaching Qualification (UTQ) within three years if you have less than five years of teaching experience. This is provided by the TU Delft UTQ programme.

TU Delft sets high standards for the English competency of the teaching staff. The TU Delft offers training to improve English competency. If you do not speak Dutch, we offer courses to learn the Dutch language within three years.

The TU Delft sets specific standards for the English competency of the teaching staff. The TU Delft offers training to improve English competency. Inspiring, excellent education is our central aim. If you have less than five years of teaching experience and do not yet have your teaching certificate, you get the chance to obtain this within three years.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (salary indication for Assistant Professor: € 3.974 - € 6.181. Salary indication for Associate Professor € 5.506 - € 7.362).

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, a discount for health insurance and sport memberships, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

Coming to Delft Service and Partner Career Advice can support with advice for you and your accompanying partner about your individual settling needs in the Netherlands. Once arrived you can be supported with individual consults and diverse workshops. Located on Campus are the International Children’s Centre and an international primary school, which are subject to availability as well as several bilingual schools in the nearby surrounding.

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

With its excellent education and research at the intersection of technology, society and policy, the Faculty of TPM makes an important contribution to solving complex technical-social issues, such as energy transition, mobility, digitalisation, water management and (cyber) security.
We combine insights from the engineering sciences, the social and the humanities. We develop robust models and designs, are internationally oriented and have an extensive network with knowledge institutions, companies, social organisations and governments.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management.

For more information about this vacancy, please contact Prof.Dr. Zofia Lukszo, e-mail: [email protected].

For information about the application procedure, please contact Olivie Beek, HR advisor, e-mail: [email protected].

Please submit your application online no later than October 1st, 2022. You can only apply via the application button 'Apply now'; applications sent to one of the mentioned email addresses will not be processed. 

To apply, please submit the following:
•    An application/motivation letter (max. 2 pages)
•    A complete curriculum vitae, including a list of publications
•    A research and teaching vision statement with a maximum of 1 page each