- Environment Primarily indoor/office work
- Education Post-secondary diploma
Career profile
Laboratory technicians work throughout the industry, setting up and conducting chemical experiments, tests and analyses on drilling results, water quality, chemical preparations and refining process among many others. They also develop and document new testing procedures as part of continuous improvement.
They often work in teams and are responsible for the quality control of chemical processes.
Oil and gas services, Oil sands, Pipelines, Exploration & production, Offshore, Carbon capture, utilization and storage, Emissions reduction, Well site decommissioning
In this occupation, activities may include
- Maintaining, cleaning or sterilizing laboratory instruments or equipment
- Setting up and conducting chemical experiments, tests and analyses using techniques such as chromatography, spectroscopy, physical and chemical separation and microscopy
- Conducting or assisting in air and water quality testing and assessments, environmental monitoring and protection activities, and developing and complying with standards
- Monitoring product quality to ensure compliance with standards and specifications
- Compiling records and interpreting experimental or analytical results
Education
- Laboratory technicians usually require completion of a one- or two-year college program in chemical, biochemical or chemical engineering technology.
Certifications
- Standard and emergency first aid
- Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS)
Licensing
- National certification for chemical technicians is available through the Canadian Society for Chemical Technology.
- Certification in chemical engineering technology or in a related field is available through provincial associations of engineering/applied science technologists and technicians and may be required by employers.
- Chemical technologists and technicians are regulated in Quebec and Alberta.
- Shiftwork/variable work hours
- Primarily indoor/office work
- Work not physically demanding
You have a strong understanding on chemical composition and of chemical processes and transformations.
- Chemistry
- Computers and Electronics
- Production and Processing
- Works Safely
- Interpreting Documents/Plans
- Writing, Technical Writing, Document Production
- Quality Control Analysis
- Systems Evaluation and Analysis
- Troubleshooting
- Attention to Detail
