Title of the position: Industrial implementation of recycled composites in sport equipment: from design to production

Host organization & PhD awarding (country): Head Sport & Politecnico di Milano (Austria)

Duration: 3 years

Description

The FibReLoop project is a Marie Sklodowska-Curie (MSCA) Doctoral Network that aims to promote the industrial implementation of circular economy strategies for composites. Lightweight fibre-reinforced composites, which are used in performance oriented sporting goods, are challenging to recycle and most of them are still incinerated or landfilled. The aim of this PhD project is to contribute to the know-how of recycled composite materials and its use in sporting goods like skis or rackets. Simulation and characterization in combination with processability of recycled fibers should lead to more sustainable products without limiting their performance.

The work will be performed at HEAD Sport GmbH (Kennelbach, Austria) supported by participating universities, especially Polimi (Milano, Italy), where the student will also take part in training courses and events. Two secondments are planned.

Task

• Research on the industrial implementation of recycled composites in sport equipment from design to production
• Acquire leading-edge knowledge of recycled composites and their behaviour
• Develop an improved and more realistic assessment procedure to take into account the effect of recycling on conditioned and/or fatigued materials to allow the implementation in serial products
• Participate in the dedicated training program organised by FibReLoop (including technical, communication, career management and business skills) and in six-monthly project meetings
• Write scientific papers for publication in top-level journals in materials science/mechanics
• Present the research in project meetings, international conferences and outreach events
• Close collaboration with supervisors while being the driving force for the own PhD

Profile

• Master degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aeronautics, Material Science or similar and strong background in material science, composite mechanics and/or solid mechanics
• A passion for our sports
• Interested in a mix of experimental and computational activities
• Technical skills and experience with material modelling e.g. FEM
• Strong written and oral communication skills in English as well as in German (language requirements for PhD enrolment at Politecnico di Milano see https://www.dottorato.polimi.it/en/prospective-phd-candidates/before-applying)
• Enthusiastic and self-motivated person with a mindset for personal development
• Not yet a PhD degree at the start of the assignment
• Not have resided or worked in Austria for more than 12 month in the last 36 month before the date of recruitment

Procedure

Applications can only be considered if the following documents are submitted:

• Detailed CV
• Cover letter explaining the motivation for the position
• Detailed exam results
• Level of English equivalent TOEIC

Based on the CV and cover letter, we will invite shortlisted applicants for an online-interview.

Offer

• Full-time PhD scholarship with a duration of 3 years with full social security
• Supervised by a joint team of HEAD and Polimi
• Work closely with HEAD’s R&D team
• Sports facilities and sporty colleagues
• Employee shop with top sports equipment
• Collective accident insurance

Contact

Mrs. Lampl is looking forward to receiving your online application at www.head.com/jobs
In case you apply via e-mail please add the label FibReLoop DC11 to v.lampl@head.com

The description of the job can also be downloaded below as pdf: