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SGS Company Information
What does SGS do?
Why SGS and not the competition?
Is there any kind of family incentives for employees through the company?
Careers & Application Process at SGS
What careers are available?
How do I apply for a position at SGS?
Working at SGS
What will my day to day work experience be like?
What will I expect in my first year?
What is the working environment?
What are my hours of work?
What about lab and site safety?
Is there technical mentoring? How much would I interact with managerial and executive-level people?
Location
Where is Peterborough located?
How would I get there?
Graduate Recruitment & Co-op
With regards to transportation, what do you pay for?
Where would I live in the first week?
Where would I live for extended periods of time?
What kinds of Co-op Opportunities are available at SGS?
Travel
What kinds of travel opportunities are available?
How often will I be out of my main office for business travel?
How would I be looked after if I traveled? How often would I go someplace?
Can I take holidays in places I have traveled?
Continuing Education
What are the continuing education possibilities?
What about learning a second language?
What are the opportunities for advancement?
Do you have an Engineer in Training program?
SGS Company Information
What does SGS do?
SGS is a global business-to-business company. We are not retail or consumer based company, but focused directly onto industry.
We provide testing, inspection, certification and verification services to many industries. In Canada, this includes the minerals, oil and gas, oil sands, agriculture, life science, pharmaceutical and environmental sectors. Our testing and certification services ensure that when our clients buy or sell products or services anywhere in the world, they are sure of what they are getting – we reduce risk related to business transactions.
SGS is a public company of 50,000 people, located and active in 140 countries, headquartered in Geneva, listed on the Swiss stock exchange and is worth $3.8B Canadian dollars. We have no debt. In Canada, we have over 1000 employees, 30 locations (18 labs) in 9 provinces, with 9 offices in Ontario alone including Toronto – 4, Lakefield, London- Environmental, Sudbury, Red Lake - Minerals, and Sarnia – Oil Gas & Chemicals.
The global headquarters for our Metallurgy and Geochemical businesses are in Ontario (Toronto and Lakefield) and we are the acknowledged market leaders in these fields. SGS McMurray Resources located in Fort McMurray, provides analytical, environmental, geological and geotechnical services to the oilsands. Our Environmental group analyses 40% of the drinking water in Ontario from our labs in Lakefield and London. We have several labs that are ISO accredited and have the largest scope of testing for any business in Canada.
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Why SGS and not the competition?
Our company offers a variety of experiences rather than a single static role. We offer
- a Engineer in Training program
- a wide range of career opportunities in many areas of the company
- international exposure and traveling opportunities (to Australia, Chile, South Africa, Mexico, Russia, England, Vancouver, Toronto, Fort McMurray and Lakefield) because SGS is a global company, with offices worldwide
- second-language courses and specific professional training
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Is there any kind of family incentives for employees through the company?
Family incentives for employees varies by site and country. Often larger sites will have a program to offer summer jobs to senior high school and university age students of staff. Work opportunities vary depending on skill set and corporate requirements.
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Careers & Application Process at SGS
What careers are available?
At SGS there are junior positions available in chemistry, metallurgy and process engineering, as well as careers for professionals with 5-10 years of work experience.
In addition to these positions there other potential areas that it would be possible to work in such as the diamond and environmental labs. Positions and exact job titles vary depending on the projects currently running at SGS and staffing needs of specific labs.
To see where you might fit into the SGS family, view our Career Opportunities chart.
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How do I apply for a position at SGS?
The best way to submit a resume to SGS is through our Applicant Tracking System (ATS). Our ATS matches candidates to current openings or you can also submit a general application for future consideration.
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Working at SGS
What will my day to day work experience be like?
Our junior positions contain a mixture of lab work and other duties. Some labs are multidisciplinary in larger locations while smaller ones may be single-discipline.
You will most likely be doing test work for a larger pilot plant or project which is directed by a senior project manager. Projects such as these involve lab work which uses a number of different chemistry and metallurgical procedures. These include such things as traditional ‘wet’ chemistry methods such as titrations, gravimetric finishes, electroplating, and volumetric analysis, as well as flow-sheet development, grinding, flotation technologies, gravity, magnetic and electrostatic separation and leaching.
In addition to this, physical construction of pilot plants and office report work will also be part of your job.
The finer details of working arrangements depend on the nature and scale of the project, as well as which processes are involved.
Use of computer software and databases such as LIMS will most likely also be a daily part of your job.
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What will I expect in my first year?
New employees can expect to learn about the aspects of their position, as well as learn about SGS policy and procedures. You will receive various levels of support from your direct supervisor and co-workers. Responsibilities will increase on a month-to-month basis as you become more comfortable in your position. To read how your career path may develop at SGS, please visit the Career Path planner chart.
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What is the working environment?
If you are in the chemical lab, there is a typical laboratory environment. You will wear white or blue lab coats, safety glasses, safety shoes, jeans or pants and a t-shirt or sweater.
If you are in the metallurgical section, it is a plant environment which tends to be more industrial. You will wear safety shoes, a hard hat, safety glasses, and overalls.
Safety is very important at SGS, that’s why there is a $100 allowance towards the purchase of safety shoes. Safety glasses and hard hats are supplied by SGS. Lab coats and overalls are supplied by SGS and are washed and maintained on site.
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What are my hours of work?
Hours of work vary by site and by project. For non-shift work, a work day is 8 hours. Mornings start at roughly 7:30-8 and go until 3:30-4. However, depending on the task and needs of the employee, project or senior engineer, hours can be slightly more flexible.
Certain high-volume positions at SGS require a shift work schedule. Also, if major pilot plants are running, shift work is also used.
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What about lab and site safety?
Safety is a top priority at SGS.
SGS has specially trained emergency response teams (ETR) to respond to any problems, accidents or serious safety concerns on-site. In addition, each site has personnel who are certified as safety advisors.
WHMIS training is provided to all new employees. Regular safety meetings are held where employees can voice lab and site concerns to project managers and senior project managers. Hazop meetings are held before all pilot plants.
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Is there technical mentoring? How much would I interact with managerial and executive-level people?
Yes, there will be technical mentoring with senior metallurgists, other project managers/supervisors, and other employees. Depending on the project and your role in the project, a new employee will have a mentor for a variety of different roles.
The majority of technical learning and skills training will be hands-on with actual interaction between employees and project managers.
Depending on the position of work, mentoring can occur weekly to even daily.
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Location
Where is Peterborough?
Peterborough is approximately 130 kilometres north-east of Toronto, or about 250 kilometres south-west of Ottawa. It is located in the central part of Ontario.
Peterborough is a friendly city of around 70,000 people located in the Kawartha - Highlands - a popular cottage destination. There are over 134 lakes in the area surrounding Peterborough, creating a great natural environment perfect for exploring, hiking and boating. In winters, snowmobiling, ice-fishing and cross-country or downhill skiing are all nearby. Peterborough boasts a very safe city environment, and has a trendy downtown complete with boutiques, pubs, nightclubs, restaurants and various other shops. In addition to the independent shops, nearly every major food, retail and entertainment chain operates at least one location somewhere in Peterborough. The city has little to no problems with traffic and for those without a vehicle; Coach Canada operates a shuttle which runs three times a day between Peterborough and Lakefield where the SGS lab is located.
For workers of student-age at SGS; Trent University and Sir Sanford Fleming College are located in Peterborough, ensuring that there will always be ample amounts of student nightlife in the city and something new to do every evening.
Toronto is easily accessible from Peterborough. The most popular route is along Highways 401 and 35/115. Highway 401 is a major auto-route with a minimum of 4-6 lanes at all times. Highway 35/115 is a divided 4 lane highway.
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How would I get there?
Driving from Toronto’s Pearson International Airport, take Highway 401 eastbound through Toronto (approx. 1 hour) until exit 436 which is Peterborough/Lindsay (Highways 35/115). Follow 35/115 for approximately 45 minutes until Peterborough.
Driving from Ottawa International Airport, take the Airport Parkway north until highway 417 westbound. Follow the 417 past Kanata (15 minutes) until exit 145 which is Highway 7 southbound. Follow Highway 7 for roughly three hours until Peterborough. Lakefield is sign posted both ways on Highway 7.
If flying into Toronto’s Pearson International Airport, it is possible to have an airport shuttle take you to Peterborough. This must be arranged in advance.
From downtown Ottawa and Toronto, it is possible to take a Greyhound bus to Peterborough. It is also possible to take VIA Rail from both cities to Cobourg, where it is a 45 minute drive to Peterborough.
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Graduate Recruitment & Co-op
What do you pay for with regards to transportation?
In general, SGS will pay for the 1-way transportation costs (typically airfare) from our site to your home or school. Moving allowances are also common. This is negotiated individually on an applicant by applicant basis and will be included in your personal offer letter.
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Where would I live in the first week?
SGS will help you find a bed and breakfast in the village of Lakefield or in Peterborough and in general cover the costs for at least the first week of your stay. Finer details of cost-coverage will be negotiated individually in your personal offer letter.
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Where would I live for extended periods of time?
Peterborough and Lakefield have a multitude of possible living arrangements. There will almost always be an option available which best fits your budget. There also exists a housing database with listings for Peterborough on the internet.
In the village of Lakefield, it is possible to find single rooms, apartments, and bed and breakfasts. Peterborough, being a larger city, has a wider variety of housing options. Checking the local listings and classifieds will reveal a multitude of apartments, houses, rooms, and bed and breakfasts all available for rent in the city. At SGS Lakefield, there are no on-site dormitories or apartment buildings for employees.
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What kinds of Co-op Opportunities are available at SGS?
SGS provides 4 and 8 co-op placements per term, as well as 12 to 16 month internships. Students will work as either Metallurgical or Analytical Laboratory Technicians. Applicants studying metallurgy, mineral processing or chemical engineering as well as science students in biology, chemistry, earth sciences, geology or environmental science are encouraged to submit resumes for co-op positions. Our range of technologies are described on www.sgs.com/met, www.sgs.com/geochem, www.sgs.com/oilsands. To apply for co-op positions, please visit our Applicant Tracking System.
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Travel
Where could I travel to?
If a position is taken in metallurgy, the possibilities are:
Chile, South Africa, Australia, Russia, Mexico, Vancouver, Toronto, Cornwall, Fort McMurray, Lakefield.
If a position is taken in chemistry, it is possible to go to any of the above places as well as labs in 20 additional countries worldwide.
It is also possible to travel to client sites to do work. Clients come from all corners of the earth so the possibilities are abundant.
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How often will I be out of my main office for business travel?
Junior staff may travel for limited periods of time to meet with clients and can visit other SGS offices for longer periods of time for professional development. Senior level staff can expect to travel more frequently depending on projects and the nature of your work.
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How would I be looked after if I travelled? How often would I go someplace?
If the duration of the visit is one month or less, the company pays for transportation,meals and hotel-type accommodation.
If the duration of the visit is more than one month, the company will pay for round-trip travel and will grant the employee a living allowance to cover meals and accommodation.
The frequency of travel depends on the skill set of the employee, and the needs of the company at the time. There could be years where no travel is done or might happen 1-2 times a year.
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Can I take holidays in places I have travelled?
Yes it is possible to have holidays in a foreign country during or after the period of company-paid work time. Such holidays must be paid and organized by the employee like a regular holiday. A prior agreement of the dates of the holiday must be arranged with the company.
Example: If in Australia and working in Perth, the employee can travel to Sydney provided it does not conflict with the work schedule and is paid by the employee.
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Continuing Education
What are the continuing education possibilities?
There are continuing education possibilities throughout SGS which depend on your needs and the needs of the company. Everything from a forklift course which lasts one day to a full e-education can be paid for by the company. The application for continuing education follows the internal policy of the company and must be applied for through SGS.
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What about learning a second language?
Yes, since SGS is a globally-oriented company, the opportunity to learn a second language is welcomed. Spanish is the most widely-suggested second language for use at SGS, but Russian and Portuguese are also possibilities. Paid instruction in these languages can be offered by SGS.
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What are the opportunities for advancement?
At SGS, there is upward mobility. Depending on the discipline you are in, the timeline towards advancement within the company changes.
In metallurgy, a new graduate can expect to supervise small or intermediate projects within a year, and if progression and capability are shown, more possibilities become available.
In chemistry, roughly the same path to advancement is used as metallurgy. However, the lab structure in chemistry can make for a slightly longer period of time until a new graduate can supervise an entire analytical department, unless one is willing to move.
Typically, a new graduate will work under close supervision for the first year at the company, and then will be granted more freedom as they get used to our environment, practices and procedures.
After one year, the opportunities to work on more complex problems, more advanced procedures or become more involved in the project process is available to the employee that shows abilities required to advance.
For more details visit the new graduate career path page.
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Do you have an Engineer in Training program?
SGS Canada values supporting new or recent engineering graduates in attaining their accreditation. That’s why we have developed a comprehensive EIT program to attain your Professional Engineer designation.
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