About us:
Decibel is uncompromising in the process and craftsmanship needed to deliver the highest quality cannabis products.
Decibel Cannabis – Redefining the ultimate expression of cannabis. Formerly Westleaf Inc. and We Grow BC Ltd. For those of legal age. At Decibel Cannabis Company, the objective behind all brand expression, cultivation and extraction is to push the boundaries of quality. With a focus on craftsmanship and a commitment to perfecting the process. Decibel is defining the ultimate expression of what cannabis can be.
More information can be found at www.decibelcc.com
Our culture:
A collaborative work environment that is supportive and encouraging. We do not believe in the dated culture of a dog-eat-dog workplace – we’re all in this together and we fundamentally believe that success and learning are team accomplishments. We celebrate the collective and believe every role on the team is pivotal – regardless of years of experience.
Our current team is close knit. Anyone who joins the team will be a compliment to the positive, determined energy that flows through dB. You can expect to learn a lot quickly, from passionate and experienced individuals who are committed to supporting your growth.
We live by our “Actions to Live By”. We Grind (persistence and resourcefulness), We Craft (taking care in every detail) and We Care (inclusive and passionate about our business) We Grow (innovation and consistent improvement).
Job Title: Process Development Engineer
Reports To: Operations Manager
Pay rate: $80,000 - 90,000 annually (depending on the experience & capabilities of the candidate)
Shift: Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm
Location: Westleaf Labs, Calgary, AB
Department: Manufacturing Operations - Pre-Roll & Infused Pre-Roll (IPR)
Employment type: Full-time
About the Role
Decibel Cannabis Company is hiring a Process Development Engineer to own recipe development for our Westleaf Labs pre-roll, infused pre-roll (IPR), Vapes products range, replacing and elevating our current formulation function.
This role owns the full formulation lifecycle - drafting and maintaining recipes, monitoring raw material specs, and proactively optimizing product performance - while also carrying broader product development responsibilities more typical of a CPG product development role: supporting new SKU launches, support production scale up process, managing cost/COGS trade-offs, and running shelf-life/stability testing. As distillate, diamonds, and trim vary in potency, purity, and composition batch to batch, this person is responsible for keeping our recipes and specs aligned to hold finished product potency and performance on target, backed by data rather than instinct alone.
This is a step up from a traditional formulation engineer role: the expectation is that this person builds the tools and processes to monitor variability and optimize proactively, owns new product development from concept through commercial scale-up, and brings a cost/performance lens that the outgoing role did not carry.
What You'll Do
Recipe Development & Ownership
- Own drafting, testing, and maintaining all formulation recipes for pre-roll and IPR products across different potency and material specs.
- Adjust recipes as raw material inputs (distillate, diamonds, trim) shift, to hold finished product potency and performance within target.
- Maintain a structured, version-controlled record of all recipes and the rationale/data behind each change.
Specification & Variability Monitoring
- Track incoming raw material specs (distillate potency, diamond purity, trim cannabinoid/terpene content) against target ranges for each SKU.
- Build and maintain a live view of spec variability across suppliers/lots and its downstream impact on finished product potency and performance.
- Flag out-of-spec or trending-toward-out-of-spec material before it reaches production, ideally before a recipe needs reactive correction.
Recipe & Formulation Optimization
- Run and analyze trial batches to validate proposed recipe adjustments before they go to full production.
- Proactively identify optimization opportunities (e.g., reducing waste, improving consistency) rather than only reacting to spec changes.
Yield & Quality Root Cause
- Investigate yield or quality deviations on C1Filler and Preroll-ER runs and determine whether raw material variability or recipe drift is a contributing factor.
- Work with QA to correlate formulation/spec data against batch QA results (potency, moisture, burn performance, etc.).
New Product Development & Innovation Pipeline
- Support the end-to-end NPD process for new SKUs and line extensions - from concept and bench-scale trials through pilot runs to full commercial scale-up on C1Filler and Preroll-ER.
- Partner with Marketing/Sales on the innovation pipeline to translate product briefs (target potency, format, performance) into workable formulations and production specs.
- Lead or support stage-gate reviews for new products - assessing technical feasibility, cost, and manufacturability before a concept advance to production trials.
- Manage the technology transfer of new formulations from pilot/trial batches into standard production, including training Production on any new process steps.
Cost & Performance Analysis
- Analyze input costs (distillate, diamonds, trim) against target COGS for new and existing SKUs, and flag when formulation changes needed for performance conflict with cost targets.
- Provide data/recommendations to leadership on cost-performance tradeoffs when raw material specs or supplier options change.
Product Performance & Stability
- Own or support shelf-life and stability testing for new and reformulated products, in coordination with QA.
- Benchmark our product performance (burn, potency consistency, sensory) against competitor and internal historical data to guide optimization priorities.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Work with Procurement/Purchasing to communicate spec requirements and flag supplier variability trends.
- Work with Production and Sage X3 data to ensure formulation changes are reflected accurately in workorders and batch records.
- Partner with QA/Compliance on review and sign-off of any formulation or spec change before it's implemented in production - no formulation change goes live without QA/Compliance approval.
Documentation & Continuous Improvement
- Draft and maintain SOPs and spec sheets related to formulations and recipe adjustment protocols (subject to QA/Compliance review).
- Build simple, repeatable tools (Excel-based or otherwise) for tracking spec trends and recipe performance over time.
What You Bring
- Degree or diploma in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Food Science, or related field - or equivalent hands-on formulation/product development experience in cannabis, food, beverage, pharma, or nutraceutical/CPG manufacturing.
- 3+ years in a formulation or product development role owning recipes/products end-to-end, including experience taking a product from concept or trial through to full commercial-scale production.
- Experience with cost/COGS analysis and balancing cost against product performance targets.
- Strong data/analytical skills - comfortable in Excel (pivot tables, trend analysis); ERP experience (Sage X3 or similar) is a strong asset.
- Understanding of potency/cannabinoid math and how input variability (distillate, diamonds, trim) affects finished product specs.
- Experience working within a regulated manufacturing environment (cannabis, pharma, food) where formulation and product changes require documented QA sign-off.
- Strong cross-functional communicator - able to work between Production floor, QA, Procurement, Marketing/Sales, and leadership.
Nice to have
- Experience with pre-roll or infused pre-roll manufacturing equipment/processes (e.g., C1Filler, Preroll-ER style equipment).
- Background in CPG product development (food, beverage, cosmetics, or similar), particularly with stage-gate NPD processes and lab-to-plant scale-up.
- Statistical process control (SPC) experience.
- Shelf-life/stability testing experience.
