At Lilly, we unite caring with discovery to make life better for people around the world. We are a global healthcare leader headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our employees around the world work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to our communities through philanthropy and volunteerism. We give our best effort to our work, and we put people first. We’re looking for people who are determined to make life better for people around the world.
Organization and Position Overview:
Delivery, Devices, and Connected Solutions (DDCS) sits within Eli Lilly's Product Research & Development organization. We are a diverse team of scientists and engineers responsible for discovering, designing, and developing patient-centric drug delivery solutions across a broad range of modalities — from injection devices to novel routes of administration and nanomedicines. DDCS drives the drug delivery innovation agenda across early and late development to meet the needs of an expanding portfolio that spans small molecules, biologics, and nucleic acid therapeutics.
DDCS is organized around a matrix model with strong disciplinary and functional horizontals supporting innovation and commercialization verticals. Our vision is to get our medicines to more patients faster by accelerating reach and scale, guided by three strategic pillars: Delivery Systems, Robust & Sustainable, and Patient Experience + Outcomes.
The Parenteral Packaging team within DDCS serves as a specialized horizontal capability focused on the design, development, and commercialization of filling processes and container closure systems for parenteral drug products, including vials, prefilled syringes, and cartridges. This team partners across innovation and commercialization verticals to enable clinical supply, technology transfer, and commercial manufacturing readiness for Lilly's parenteral portfolio.
We are seeking an Advisor-level Parenteral Filling & Lyophilization Process Engineer to serve as a key technical contributor within DDCS's Parenteral Packaging horizontal. This role provides advanced technical expertise in filling process development and lyophilization process engineering for parenteral packaging and Lilly's combination products. The candidate will drive development of filling processes and associated equipment across the full development lifecycle—from clinical to commercial—while collaborating closely with CMC, device design, manufacturing, and quality partners across the DDCS matrix.
Responsibilities:
Filling & Lyophilization Process Development
Lead parenteral filling and lyophilization process development projects for container closure systems (vials, prefilled syringes, cartridges) throughout Lilly's drug product development cycle.
Perform filling and lyophilization process development and machinability assessment across hand-filling lab instruments, semi-automated pilot lines, automated flexible lines, and high-speed commercial filling lines.
Develop deep understanding of equipment flow charts, critical process parameters, and process/equipment operation instructions.
Partner with Lilly SMEs, CDMOs, and OEMs to develop de-risked and viable filling equipment and process pathways for clinical and commercial manufacturing.
Container Closure & Combination Product Integration
Work closely with parenteral packaging engineers to prepare drug/placebo-filled samples for container closure suitability assessment, system qualification, and regulatory filing.
Support pharmaceutical primary packaging selection, assessment, and qualification.
Bring expertise to device-drug combination product compatibility and filling process integration.
Cross-Functional Collaboration & Vendor Management
Collaborate with Lilly internal cross-functional SMEs including Biological Formulation & Process Development, Clinical Trial Operations, DDCS Device Design & Development, Commercial Engineering, Procurement, and Quality.
Support due diligence on selection of CDMOs and fill-finish equipment manufacturers (OEMs) for clinical trials.
Manage equipment vendors including project execution and on-site testing.
Control Strategy & Technology Transfer
Work with TS/MS SMEs and statisticians to develop filling control strategy.
Support technology transfer activities between CMOs and/or within CMOs for scale-up of new or existing drug products.
Apply Quality by Design (QbD) principles; develop ICH-aligned control strategies and process validation frameworks.
Technical Documentation & Regulatory Support
Draft and review technical protocols and reports for parenteral drug product process development.
Ensure adherence to applicable regulations including FDA, EMA, ICH, GCP, GMP policies and procedures.
Support team, department, and corporate initiatives through pertinent technical input.
Innovation, Safety & Continuous Improvement
Drive exploration of state-of-the-art technologies to advance effective business solutions, improve product quality, and accelerate development timelines.
Ensure a safe working environment by following safety rules and actively participating in safety activities (audits, JSAs, hazard reviews).
Mentor and coach junior engineers on fill and finish process development.
Enhance Lilly's professional image through presentations, external conferences, and publications.
Basic Requirements:
Bachelor's degree in Chemical, Biochemical, Mechanical Engineering, or related field
10+ years of experience in pharmaceutical parenteral (solution and lyophilized sterile drug product) formulation process or fill-finish processes
Experience working effectively with cross-functional groups and external partners.
Strong technical communication and documentation skills
Cross-functional collaboration within a complex pharmaceutical R&D matrix
Regulatory and quality mindset in GMP/GxP, ICH, and/or aseptic manufacturing environments
Additional Preferences:
Master's degree in Chemical, Biochemical, Mechanical Engineering, or related field with 8+ years of experience as listed above, OR PhD with 3+ years of experience as listed above
Expert knowledge in parenteral filling and lyophilization processes and handling of sterile single-use components for various CCS in aseptic filling applications.
Previous pharmaceutical primary packaging selection, assessment, and qualification experience.
Experience with combination products, drug delivery devices, and container closure systems.
Familiarity with Quality by Design (QbD) and ICH guidelines.
Solid understanding of regulatory agency requirements (FDA, EMA, ICH).
Vendor and partner management for CDMOs and OEMs
Technology scouting and innovation orientation
Self-motivated and capable of delivering results with minimal oversight
Other Information:
Travel: Up to 25% (domestic and international)
Location: Indianapolis, IN; Lilly Technology Center – North (LTC-N)
Lilly is dedicated to helping individuals with disabilities to actively engage in the workforce, ensuring equal opportunities when vying for positions. If you require accommodation to submit a resume for a position at Lilly, please complete the accommodation request form (https://careers.lilly.com/us/en/workplace-accommodation) for further assistance. Please note this is for individuals to request an accommodation as part of the application process and any other correspondence will not receive a response.
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Our employee resource groups (ERGs) offer strong support networks for their members and are open to all employees. Our current groups include: Africa, Middle East, Central Asia Network, Black Employees at Lilly, Chinese Culture Network, Japanese International Leadership Network (JILN), Lilly India Network, Organization of Latinx at Lilly (OLA), PRIDE (LGBTQ+ Allies), Veterans Leadership Network (VLN), Women’s Initiative for Leading at Lilly (WILL), enAble (for people with disabilities). Learn more about all of our groups.
Actual compensation will depend on a candidate’s education, experience, skills, and geographic location. The anticipated wage for this position is
$126,000 - $204,600Full-time equivalent employees also will be eligible for a company bonus (depending, in part, on company and individual performance). In addition, Lilly offers a comprehensive benefit program to eligible employees, including eligibility to participate in a company-sponsored 401(k); pension; vacation benefits; eligibility for medical, dental, vision and prescription drug benefits; flexible benefits (e.g., healthcare and/or dependent day care flexible spending accounts); life insurance and death benefits; certain time off and leave of absence benefits; and well-being benefits (e.g., employee assistance program, fitness benefits, and employee clubs and activities).Lilly reserves the right to amend, modify, or terminate its compensation and benefit programs in its sole discretion and Lilly’s compensation practices and guidelines will apply regarding the details of any promotion or transfer of Lilly employees.
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