Applications are invited for a full-time 24-month postdoctoral KTP (Knowledge Transfer Partnership) Associate post, in collaboration between Aforce London Ltd. and Imperial College London.
Aforce London Ltd. manufactures high-quality leather components and finished goods for the automotive, fashion, aviation, and home design sectors and aims at becoming a leader in sustainable leather materials innovation.
The KTP Associate is expected to work both at Aforce London Ltd. premises and at Imperial College London South Kensington Campus.”
The core mission of this KTP project is to develop a novel recycling process that transforms high-quality leather offcuts, from the automotive and aviation industries, into sustainable thermal insulation boards, reducing landfill waste and supporting the circular economy.
The role is unique as spans materials upcycling, digital simulation, physical prototyping, manufacturing, market and IP analysis, and knowledge embedding within the business.
The KTP associate will:
- Lead all leather materials design, modelling (e.g. thermal) and chacterisation (e.g. mechanical, thermal) modelling activities.
- Manufacture and test new insulation board prototypes.
- Conduct life cycle analysis (LCA).
- Support certification (e.g., BBA approval).
- Support commercialisation.
Research Associate: Hold a PhD in materials science and engineering or a closely related discipline, or equivalent research, industrial or commercial experience.
Research Assistant: A first / masters degree (or equivalent) in Engineering, Materials Science, or a closely related discipline.
- Candidates who have not yet been officially awarded their PhD will be appointed as Research Assistant.
- Expertise in design, modelling, manufacture and characterisation of natural/synthetic polymeric materials, preferably leather.
- Creative problem-solving skills and ability to work independently
- Willingness to travel and work both based at the company (Aforce London Ltd) and Imperial College London.
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills and the ability to deal with a wide range of people.
- Shape the development of a sustainable thermal insulation board from upcycled leather waste.
- Enjoy an accelerated technical and professional development pathway with dual academic and industry mentorship.
- Gain first-hand experience in every stage of the R&D-to-market pipeline—from simulation to customer engagement and commercial roll-out.
Please note, this position is available until 31st Aug 2028.
We are hoping that the successful candidate will start her/his contract as soon as possible. The successful candidate will be supervised jointly by Dr. Emiliano Bilotti and Dr. Vito Tagarielli in the Department of Aeronautics at Imperial College and by Mr. Alla Al Masuri director of Aforce London Ltd.
If you require any further details on the role please contact: Emiliano Bilotti – [email protected].
Please note that job descriptions are not exhaustive, and you may be asked to take on additional duties that align with the key responsibilities mentioned above.
If you encounter any technical issues while applying online, please don't hesitate to email us at [email protected]. We're here to help.
Attached documents are available under links. Clicking a document link will initialize its download.
