Meet Kim, Senior Project Engineer in Loyalist, Canada
When Kim De Jonge graduated, she knew exactly where she wanted to work. The Belgium native had heard about Umicore throughout her engineering studies, and was drawn to the sustainability factor of our closed loop business model and creating a circular materials process.
“I remember my interviews early on,” says Kim. “I met a plant Manager and did a tour of the Hoboken plant, in Belgium, and I saw a column painted all around with Umicore’s values. I remember feeling like I just fit here.”
Every engineer's dream
Thirteen years later, when an opportunity arose to be part of the new first-of-its-kind electric vehicle (EV) materials plant being built in Bath, Ontario, Canada, she jumped at the chance to join the team.
"It's every engineer's dream, or mine anyways, to be part of a big site like this. It felt like a once in a lifetime opportunity."
The site, located west of Kingston, in Loyalist Township, will house the first-of-its-kind battery materials production facility in North America, combining large-scale cathode and precursor materials manufacturing in one site. These materials are essential components in EV batteries.
“It’s important to me, to be part of the future,” says Kim.
The plant will be a critical part of North America’s EV supply chain, supporting a low-carbon future and bringing environmentally sustainable economic growth to the region. In addition, the facility will be carbon neutral from day one, thanks to renewable energy.
Relocating to Canada
Kim was also excited about the opportunity to move. “To take on this challenge and get to experience a new country, was something my family and I had talked about and hoped for.”
Kim, along with her husband and two young children, made the move to Canada last year. Now, in her role as Project Engineer, Kim is part of the development of the new Loyalist facility. The role allows her to interact with a wide variety of disciplines every day, from procurement and transportation, to operations and maintenance, process development and communications.
“It’s amazing to be part of such a great and close-knit team where everyone has the same drive and goal,” says Kim. “It makes me excited to be part of the push towards a renewable energy and clean mobility future.”
Umicore Battery Materials Canada is currently looking for more engineers to join the team at Loyalist. To learn more about open positions, please visit our careers page.