Albert Ferrer Ugalde

Experience

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  Clariant

  Feb 2005 - Jul 2005

  Research Scientist

  Internship contract between the University of Barcelona and Clariant Ibérica S.A. My main duty in the laboratory was the development of novel azo dyes for printing inks

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  Kiron Franchising

  Nov 2005 - Jan 2006

  Financial Advisor

  I was responsible to give financial advice to Tecnocasa's (real-estate agency) costumers in order to obtain better conditions for their mortgages.

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  Mercantile Registry of Barcelona

  Mar 2006 - Jul 2006

  Administrative Assistant

  I helped with a variety of clerical and organisational tasks that were necessary during the books of accounts campaign.

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  Ecogest

  Aug 2006 - Jan 2007

  Assistant Manager

  Manager assistant at Ecogest S. L. (real-estate consultants). I was in charge of contacting bank office directors and notaries in order to process deeds of sale.

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  ICMAB - CSIC

  Jan 2007 - May 2013

  Internship contract & Ph.D. student

  My experience as a Chemical Researcher within ICMAB-CSIC in Barcelona was mainly focused on the syntheses, purification (by column chromatography, TLC, recrystallization techniques) and characterisation of boron-enriched compounds (carborane derivatives) with photoluminescent properties for their application in biomedicine, as potential drug delivery systems and anticancer treatment based on BNCT (Boron Neutron Capture Therapy). Some of the results obtained have already been published in peer viewed journals such as Eur. Chem. J. I also have extensive knowledge of chemical properties, compositions, processes and transformations besides having good training in record keeping documents, planning and implementation of the appropriate procedure. My familiarity with chemistry includes working with Schlenk techniques (vacuum-nitrogen lines) and air-sensitive compounds and I am used to characterise them by NMR, IR, MALDI-TOF, UV-Vis, Fluorescence, among others. Show less

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  University of York

  May 2011 - Aug 2011

  Research Scientist

  Short-term BE fellowship awarded by the Generalitat de Catalunya at Liquid Crystals Group, University of York, York, United Kingdom. Carried out under the supervision of Dr. Isabel M. Sáez. During my stage in York I carried out many air-sensitive chemical reactions to obtain novel liquid crystals with ortho-carborane derivatives. I used to work with Schlenk techniques, purify the resulting compounds by recrystallization or chromatography and characterise them by different kind of spectroscopies. Then, I observed their thermal and optical properties by DSC and POM. Seven novel compounds with mesogenic properties were successfully prepared and an article is under way. Show less

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  Queen's University Belfast

  Sept 2013 - Mar 2015

  Postdoctoral Research Associate

  I was hired as a postdoc within an industrial project sponsored by PETRONAS (Malaysia), in the Oil & Gas field. The experimental work was based on the synthesis of polyalphaolefines (PAOs) using novel Lewis acids (LCCs) for their potential use as industrial lubricants. As a result of that research, a patent and 2 articles in peer-reviewed journals were published.

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  Green Lizard Technologies

  Mar 2015 - Nov 2017

  Postdoctoral Research Associate

  I was in charge of one of the main lines of research within a confidential industrial project, which was sponsored by two external multinational companies. As such, my tasks were the optimisation of technical procedures in the lab, supervision of technical staff and MSc/PhD students and reporting results to the GLT board on a monthly basis. This project is currently in its expansion phase to pilot plant and a patent was already published.

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  CSIC

  Jan 2018 - Jul 2019

  Research Scientist at Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona

  I used to work on a research project which combined boron-cluster chemistry and the use of carbon-base nanoplatforms (MWCNTs, Graphene oxide) in order to synthesise boron-rich nanohybrids for anticancer therapy. This project is part of the Severo Ochoa excellence program and I was the only scientist assigned to carry out the experimental part of it. Additionally, I had close collaborations with other teams both within the research center as well as external groups. My main tasks consisted on daily planification, experimental work and supervision of PhD students, as well as holding periodical meetings on the progress of the research project. Show less

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  VEnvirotech Biotechnology

  Jul 2019 - Jan 2021

  Polymer Research Scientist

  My main task in this project was the research direction for PHA extraction strategies at lab scale, investigating all the potential options in order to create a robust and economically viable extraction process at large scale, whilst preserving the molecular weight of the biopolymer. I was also in charge of both characterisation and formulation of the extracted polymer in order to tailor the final product to meet the customers’ needs. Additionally, I used to conduct the analysis of the extracted PHA using appropriate techniques such as FT-IR, NMR, TGA/DSC and GPC. Show less

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  REACH MONITOR SLU

  Feb 2021 - Feb 2022

  Regulatory Affairs Scientist

  As a regulatory scientist, my key duty was to help customers to meet EU REACH requirements, among others (e.g. PIC, CLP). To do so, I collaborated mainly with the European Chemical Agency (ECHA) and helped to define the best strategy for particular chemicals and to propose the right tests (basic characterization, physicochemical, environmental, ecotoxicological and toxicological information) to be carried out in different laboratories. I am used to monitor these tests and include the data in IUCLID (ECHA’s software application) to create dossiers which were sent to ECHA for the registration of the chemicals. Show less

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  Electroless Hard Coat, S.A.

  Sept 2022 - now

  R&D Project Manager

  am in charge of overseeing the R&D projects of our company. This task includes the following key duties: planning and allocating resources, preparing budgets, monitoring progress, and keeping stakeholders informed throughout the project lifecycle.