Containment Engineer

At Bavarian Nordic, we are driven by one powerful mission — to protect and save lives through innovative vaccines. Every team member plays a vital role in ensuring the quality, safety, and security of our products and our people. As we continue to expand our global production capabilities, we are now looking for a Containment Engineer to join our dedicated Biorisk Management (BRM) team.

Join Bavarian Nordic as our first Containment Engineer – and help define the role from the ground up.

This is a newly created position that offers a rare opportunity to shape how containment is managed at our manufacturing facility. As our Containment Engineer, you will be instrumental in building the framework, structure, and processes that ensure our high-containment systems operate safely, efficiently, and in full compliance with biosafety, biosecurity, and GMP standards.

You will work at the crossroads of biosafety and engineering, collaborating closely with the local engineering teams and a wide range of stakeholders. Your role will be key in designing, qualifying, and optimizing the equipment and facilities that enable safe vaccine production — and in embedding a strong containment and risk management culture at Bavarian Nordic.

If you are motivated by the chance to build something new, influence best practices, and make a tangible impact on biosafety and engineering collaboration, this is your opportunity to do so in a global biotech environment.

Key Responsibilities

In this role, you will take the lead in ensuring that biosafety principles are fully integrated into Bavarian Nordic’s engineering and operational landscape. You will conduct comprehensive biorisk assessments for both new and existing equipment, processes, and facility modifications, ensuring that every change supports safe and compliant operations. A key part of your work will be to embed biosafety thinking into the design and operation of stainless-steel bioprocess systems such as bioreactors, CIP/SIP units, and filtration systems.

You will also play a central role in commissioning, qualification, and validation (CQV) activities for our high-containment facilities and systems, including FAT, SAT, IQ, OQ, and PQ stages. Ensuring that all systems comply with international biosafety and biosecurity standards—such as ISO 35001, WHO guidelines, and EU GMP Annex 1—will be an essential part of your mandate.

Collaboration will be key to your success. You will work closely with colleagues across engineering, R&D, and operations to develop and implement risk-based containment strategies and drive process optimization. You will oversee the testing and maintenance of critical systems, including HVAC, HEPA filtration, pressure cascades, decontamination units, and waste inactivation systems, as well as support the integration of physical security solutions like access control, CCTV, and intrusion detection.

Finally, you will act as a trusted advisor and trainer, sharing your expertise in biosafety engineering and containment controls to strengthen our collective knowledge and ensure a culture of safety across the organization.

About You

You are a proactive and technically skilled engineer with a deep interest in biosafety and containment technologies. You thrive in a collaborative, cross-functional environment and are motivated by the impact your work has on health and safety.

Qualifications and Competencies

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Biochemical Engineering, Biosafety Engineering, Biotechnology, or related field.

Experience from the pharmaceutical or biomanufacturing industry, preferably vaccine production.

Solid understanding of biosafety risk assessment, containment strategies, and GMP environments.

Familiarity with stainless steel systems and cleanroom operations.

Excellent communication and collaboration skills across multidisciplinary teams.

Preferred Skills

Experience with automated CIP/SIP systems and aseptic processing.

Hands-on experience with CQV in high-containment or GMP-regulated environments.

Knowledge of security systems integration and HVAC testing.

Project management experience and/or certification in commissioning or validation (ISPE C&Q, NEBB).

Why Join Us?

At Bavarian Nordic, you’ll be part of a purpose-driven company where your work directly contributes to global health. We offer a dynamic and inclusive environment where innovation, integrity, and collaboration are at the heart of everything we do.

Ready to make a difference? Apply now!

Apply by clicking the ‘APPLY’ button. We are interviewing on an ongoing basis and look forward to receiving your CV. A cover letter is not required.

Applications submitted via email will not be considered.

We kindly request that headhunters or recruitment agencies refrain from contacting us regarding this position.

Founded in 1994, we have +30 years of experience developing life-saving vaccines. We are a global leader in smallpox and mpox vaccines. Our commercial product portfolio contains market-leading vaccines against rabies, tick-borne encephalitis, cholera, typhoid, and Ebola. We are headquartered in Denmark and have manufacturing, research, and sales offices across Europe and North America. Our values – our Bavarian Nordic DNA, as we like to call it – are what guide our actions every day. We act as persistent pioneers, embrace change, value being boosted by the team, and believe in protecting lives every day. If that is also a part of your DNA, we invite you to join us in Bavarian Nordic! Bavarian Nordic is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applications will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against based on race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status.

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