The position is based in Lusaka, Zambia. The person should have a valid driving license as this position requires frequent field travels to the rural areas in different provinces in Zambia.

Specific duties:

• Assess new and existing farm machinery and other technologies, collect user feedback, prepare reports; and improve machinery in partnership with local manufacturers.
• Conduct second-generation engineering to improve machinery and develop and analyze CAD models using SolidWorks® and guidelines for local manufacturing;
• Assess and recommend appropriate models of farm machinery and irrigation equipment suitable for the service providers and assist in the procurement process;
• Develop experimental protocols, prepare machinery, and establish and monitor on-station and on-farm mechanization and irrigation trials/demonstrations and collect and organize machinery, soil, and agronomic data as per the protocols and instructions provided;
• Support the establishment of mechanization and irrigation service providers in the project areas and provide technical support;
• Develop training modules and train service providers, operators, manufacturers, mechanics, dealers, etc. on farm machinery and irrigation equipment;
• Collect, analyze, and report mechanization business/income, expenditure, and repair and maintenance data of service providers;
• Prepare technical bulletins, leaflets, and other promotional materials;
• Assist the project teams in research activities, including development of machinery and survey focused research data collection in collaboration with farmers, agricultural service providers, and the public and private sector.
• Candidates must have valid driving license.

Requirements

• BSc in Agricultural Engineering with minimum three years of relevant experience or MS in Farm Machinery/Mechanization or related field with one year of relevant work experience.
• Have experience in establishment and monitoring of research experiments involving two-wheel tractor operated seeders and other smallholder machinery.
• Skilled in development, analysis, and simulation of CAD models using SolidWorks®.
• Experience working with smallholder mechanization projects and in the establishment of on-farm mechanization research and demonstration trials, data collection, and conducting technical training of farmers, mechanization service providers, and manufacturers.