Kyle Vandermolen has built a solid career over 18 years as a Chemical Engineer focusing on safety, industrial hazardous materials management, and chemical spill response. Throughout his professional journey, he has held roles at prominent chemical facilities, worked within the steel industry, and contributed to specialty chemical processing companies. Additionally, he has participated in various panel roles on the Hydrogen Fluoride Panel, which the American Chemistry Council supports.
His expertise centers on the best practices and safe handling of Hydrogen Fluoride, known as hydrofluoric acid. This technical chemical plays a crucial role in several industrial processes, including metal pickling, glass etching, and semiconductor etching, and serves as a chemical precursor for other industrial compounds.
Originally from Wentzville, Missouri, Kyle graduated from Michigan Technological University in 2004 with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering. While at Michigan Tech, he was recruited into Phi Kappa Theta Fraternity, where he remains an active member. His university years were marked by involvement in many extracurricular activities. He served on the Michigan Tech Judicial Board, participated in the Michigan Tech Student Foundation, and engaged in student activities such as the football team and New Innovations in Tech Entertainment (N.I.T.E.).
Mr. Vandermolen’s professional experience began at a US Steel Corporation Coke Plant, where he worked as a Chemicals Coordinator. In this role, he was a front-line shift manager responsible for supervising a team of six union employees. He advanced quickly, becoming a Departmental Supervisor overseeing four shift managers and over 30 union employees. This experience gave him a solid foundation in managing teams and operations within a complex industrial environment.
Between 2013 and 2016, he returned to US Steel Corporation as a Process Manager at their Granite City, Illinois plant. His responsibilities included overseeing the Process Safety Management (PSM) Program and the Isolation, Purging, and Reintroduction (IPR) Program. Additionally, he coordinated and planned responses to plant outages and chemical spills, ensuring operational safety and compliance.
Following his time at US Steel, Kyle took on the role of Facilities Process Engineer and Project Manager at Cathay Pigments. There, he contributed to the planning and installation of a new color pigmentation line and managed several facility improvement and expansion projects at the Valparaiso, Indiana, plant. His work helped to enhance the plant’s capabilities and efficiency.
Among other roles, Kyle served as Operations Manager at Koch Industries KCBX Terminals in Chicago, Illinois. In this capacity, he led the operational and logistical planning for the company’s distribution workforce, focusing on reducing downtime and improving efficiency. He also worked as a Production Engineer for Innophos Inc., where he managed and planned capital projects to minimize factory downtime, increase product reliability, debottleneck process lines, and oversee various facility improvements.
Kyle has been recognized throughout his career for his contributions to safety and excellence. He is a member of the American Chemistry Council's Hydrogen Fluoride Panel and has received the United States Steel Award for “Safety Excellence in Hazard Identification & Elimination.”
Outside of his professional life, Kyle is a dedicated husband and father with a strong passion for water-related activities. He enjoys scuba diving, cave diving, and exploring underwater shipwrecks. As a technical scuba diver, he has been trained to use rebreathers, allowing extended and deeper dives. He frequently shares his enthusiasm for the outdoors with family and friends, spending weekends hiking, fishing, or hunting.
Kyle also enjoys cooking, grilling, and baking. He often entertains guests with dishes inspired by various cultural recipes, which he experiments with until satisfied with the results. He sees a connection between the methodical principles he learned as a chemical engineer and the processes involved in cooking. When preparing new recipes, he carefully selects ingredients and considers fundamental elements such as heat, fat, salt, and acid. This approach mirrors the scientific method applied in his professional work.
More than anything, Kyle values time spent with his family. He finds joy and comfort in sharing stories from his latest dives or teaching his child new recipes in the kitchen, which serves as the heart of their home. Whether discussing local news or national events, the kitchen is where they connect.
Kyle Vandermolen believes that faith, health, and family are life's three most essential things. He devotes himself to nurturing and protecting all three and hopes that his child will choose a path in life that brings the most happiness and fulfillment.