Acknowledgement of Country
CSIRO acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land, sea and waters, of the area that we live and work on across Australia. We acknowledge their continuing connection to their culture and pay our respects to their Elders past and present. View our vision towards reconciliation.
Role highlights
- Manufacture biologic therapies in CSIRO’s GMP pilot-scale facility supporting early-stage clinical trials.
- Operate end-to-end manufacturing process, from cell culture through to bulk drug substance.
- Deliver safe, high-quality outcomes through GMP compliance, accurate documentation and continuous improvement.
About CSIRO
As Australia's national science agency, CSIRO is solving the greatest challenges through innovative science and technology. Many of our iconic innovations were once considered impossible until someone, just like you, joined us and took on the challenge.
Visit CSIRO.au for more information.
The opportunity
The role of Research Technician will play a key role in CSIRO’s GMP pilot-scale manufacturing facility, supporting the production of biologics for Phase 0, I and II clinical trials. The facility serves Australian and international researchers, as well as biotechnology and biopharmaceutical organisations, contributing to the development of innovative biologic therapies and the growth of the biotechnology sector.
The role encompasses activities across both upstream and downstream processing. Upstream responsibilities include media and reagent preparation, cell culture operations, scale-up to stirred-tank bioreactors, and filtration processes. Downstream responsibilities include buffer and solution preparation, chromatography, viral reduction, tangential flow filtration, and bioconjugation activities.
Working within a GMP-regulated environment, the Research Technician will contribute to the safe, efficient, and compliant manufacture of high-quality biologic products while supporting process development, technology transfer, and continuous improvement initiatives.
Your high-level duties will include:
- Execute GMP manufacturing activities to support the manufacture of biologics and biopharmaceutical products in a regulated cleanroom environment.
- Operate and monitor manufacturing processes including cell culture, purification, filtration, formulation and related manufacturing activities.
- Follow approved batch records, SOPs and manufacturing schedules to ensure safe, efficient and high-quality manufacturing outcomes.
- Complete accurate production and quality documentation, maintaining compliance with cGMP, quality systems and regulatory requirements.
- Support quality investigations, CAPA activities, risk assessments, audits and continuous improvement initiatives.
- Assist with the operation, maintenance, validation and troubleshooting of manufacturing equipment, facilities and systems.
- Contribute to technology transfer, project implementation and process improvement activities to support operational objectives.
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams while promoting a strong culture of safety, quality, teamwork and operational excellence.
Role particulars
Location: Clayton, Melbourne VIC
Salary: AU$100k - AU$113k per annum + 15.4% superannuation
Tenure & work schedule: Indefinite, Full-time
Reference: 103933
As the successful candidate, you will bring:
Essential
- Bachelor’s degree or equivalent relevant work experience in Biotechnology, Cell Culture, Purification or process engineering
- A minimum of 3 years' experience operating cGMP-regulated pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical, or biologics manufacturing facilities, with a strong understanding of GMP requirements and experience working with production plant, process equipment, and associated documentation systems.
- Proven experience in recombinant protein production using mammalian cells at bench scale and industrial bioreactor scale
- Strong interpersonal and teamwork skills, with a demonstrated ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams to achieve operational, production, and quality objectives
Desirable
- Demonstrated understanding of Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) and United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory requirements relating to current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) manufacturing of biological and pharmaceutical products.
- Demonstrated knowledge of process development and the transition of processes from development to GMP manufacturing environments
- Ability to investigate complex problems, identify root causes and develop the most appropriate response by adapting, creating and testing alternative solutions.
- Demonstrated experience in a regulated environment with experience of cGMP standards, including electronic quality management systems (eQMS).
- Experience operating ÄKTA Ready or ÄKTA Pilot chromatography systems and/or proficiency in the use of UNICORN software for chromatography process control, monitoring, and data management.
- Demonstrated experience operating and maintain single use bioreactor systems such as Cytiva Wave and Xcellerex platforms.
- Demonstrated knowledge and practical application of contamination control strategies and aseptic handling procedures within regulated manufacturing environments.
For full details about this role, and other criteria, please review the Position Description.
Not sure if you meet all the criteria?
While it is CSIRO policy that the successful candidate must meet all the essential criteria, there are many ways to demonstrate this. Don’t let the list discourage you. If you are unsure about applying, please reach out to the contact person in the Position Description.
Setting you up for success
We are committed to providing a recruitment process that is fair, equitable and accessible to everyone. We recognise that it may be helpful for us to adjust our process to make it equitable for your individual situation. Please contact Laura Mason via
[email protected] and let us know how we can support you.
Life at CSIRO and flexible work arrangements
CSIRO offers a range of leave entitlements, benefits and career development opportunities. To find out more, visit Careers at CSIRO.
Inclusion and belonging
Solving Australia's greatest challenges takes a diversity of minds and lived experiences. We know diverse teams are more effective and deliver more innovative outcomes. As an equal employment opportunity organisation, we are committed to creating diverse and inclusive teams where people feel they belong. We recognise true diversity encompasses all ages, abilities, cultures, faiths, levels of education, genders, sexualities, diversity of thought and much more. We focus on hiring people who share our values of People First, Further Together, Making it Real and Trusted.
CSIRO holds Gold Status for the Australian Workplace Equality Index for LGBTQIA+ inclusion, and a Science in Australia Gender Equity Bronze Award.
Eligibility
Applications for this position are open to Australian/New Zealand Citizens, and Australian Permanent Residents. Appointment to this role is subject to provision of a national police check and may be subject to other security/medical/character requirements.
Child safety
CSIRO is committed to the safety and wellbeing of all children and young people involved in our activities and programs. View our Child Safe Policy.
How to apply
Please apply online and submit a CV and cover letter (maximum 2 pages) that demonstrate your motivation and ability to meet the selection criteria of this role.
Applications close
9 September 2026, 11:00pm AEST
