I Am A Chemist: John Crabtree
My origins as a chemist go way back to high school, when I had great Grade 12 and Grade 13 teachers in the subject who really did a good job showing how everything in the world around us is chemistry, and starts with the 92 chemical elements on the periodic table. I found the laws of periodicity of the elements, which act as the foundation for all chemicals and reaction, absolutely fascinating, and still do!
I got my B.Sc. in Chemistry at the University of Toronto and followed that up with a Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry at the University of Alberta, where I began to specialise in microfabrication and microfluidics, which together have formed the backbone of my career. After a post-doc at Imperial College (UK) with Andreas Manz, one of the founders of the field, I came back to work with the Alberta Microelectronic Centre, which privatised, moved to the research park and renamed itself as Micralyne around 2000. After a few years working in industry, I discovered that there was such a thing as a P.Chem., a professional designation for chemists, and I was thrilled! My father was a chemical engineer and a proud P.Eng., so I knew this was a step in the right direction.
My career advanced at Micralyne (now Teledyne MEMS), and after 10 years, I took a position as a project manager on a large, multidisciplinary team at the University of Alberta working to develop microfluidic healthcare diagnostic devices. When that project ended, I decided to launch my own consultancy to support microfluidic and analytical chemistry product development in 2012. Up until this point, I simply maintained my P. Chem. credential, but as I branched out an met other P.Chem.s in the chemistry community in Edmonton and Alberta, I came to realise that there was more I could do and wanted to do with the ACPA to help develop our community. I joined several committees and, in 2014, joined the board for two terms, which was an excellent experience.
I am still on several committees, stay active with the ACPA, and love the engagement I have with my fellow chemists. I view it as a huge resources I can tap into, and through my service on committees and the board over the years, I have developed lots of contacts and many good friends. I still run my own microfluidics consulting business, have done several projects with my P.Chem. colleagues, and am frequently looking to generate new business with them. My company, HJC Consulting Inc., has expanded over the years to also include IP landscaping and investment due diligence investigations, all based on my background as a chemist, and I suspect that my P. Chem. credential has been enabling for landing projects as a demonstration of my commitment to professional standards. My origins as a chemist go way back to high school, when I had great Grade 12 and Grade 13 teachers in the subject who really did a good job showing how everything in the world around us is chemistry, and starts with the 92 chemical elements on the periodic table. I found the laws of periodicity of the elements, which act as the foundation for all chemicals and reaction, absolutely fascinating, and still do!
If I were to offer advice to current P.Chem. or CIT members, I would say 'lean into it'; join a committee or two, think of becoming a board member, and give a bit of yourself. You will get out of it what you put into it, and if you help the ACPA, you are helping yourself in the present, and those to come in the future, which is a good feeling. It also looks good on a resume, and can be a good discussion topic in a job interview. If I were to offer advice to younger science students in college or university, thinking about chemistry as a major, I would say this: if you have a passion for understanding how things work based on what they're made of, then the diagnosis is you're a chemist, so own it, jump in with both feet, and reach out to us early on — we can help! :-)