Process Improvement Engineer - Essentia

LGI foundation; Dalton (GA); On-site; USD 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

Essentia North America seeks a Process Engineer to provide process expertise and drive productivity improvements at the Dalton, GA facility, with potential support for Essentia plants in Iowa (Lytton and Harlan). This role emphasizes process optimization, equipment utilization, and data-driven decision making.

You will lead plant trials, develop reporting for knowledge capture, train operators and maintenance staff, collaborate with R&D on post-start-up activities, and advance energy savings and

Qualifications

• BS in Chemical Engineering, Food Engineering, Industrial Engineering or related field.
• Three years industry experience preferred; minimum high school diploma with five years industrial processing exp.
• Experience in process control, continuous improvement, GMP, and food industry knowledge is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical expertise to resolve process and equipment issues and develop reporting to capture knowledge.
• Use data-driven CI techniques to improve existing production processes, methods, and controls.
• Plan and execute plant trials and experiments to support improvements.
• Train plant operators and maintenance staff in unit operations to support onboarding and success.
• Collaborate with R&D on post-start-up activities and evaluate process capability for ongoing sustainability.
• Support plant teams on improvements and capital project reviews; assist Essentia North America initiatives.
• Champion data-driven decisions to drive productivity and energy savings.

Skills

Process optimization

Data analysis

Continuous improvement

Cross-functional teamwork

Microsoft Excel

Education

B.S. in Chemical Engineering

Industrial Engineering or related field

Tools

CAD

Excel

Statistics software (Minitab)

Job description

The purpose of this job is to provide process expertise and enable improvement in manufacturing productivity and efficiency through process optimization, equipment utilization, cross-functional teamwork, systems utilization, data analysis, and innovation. This role provides support primarily to the Dalton, GA facility but may also support Essentia food plants in Iowa (Lytton and Harlan).

Job Qualifications

Education: B.S. in Chemical Engineering, Food Engineering, Industrial Engineering or related field and three years industry experience preferred. Minimum requirement of high school diploma (or equivalent) with at least five years of industrial processing experience.

Experience: Minimum of 3-5 years of experience in a manufacturing environment with an understanding of process control and continuous improvement is required. Working knowledge of food industry, manufacturing, food safety, and GMP is preferred. Lean Six Sigma certification (green belt or black belt) preferred, but will train as needed.

Job Duties

• Provide technical expertise and assistance to the plant in resolving process problems and equipment issues and develop appropriate reporting to enable institutional knowledge of issues.
• Using data-driven continuous improvement techniques, recommend and implement improvements to existing production processes, methods, and controls to achieve continued improvements in plant efficiency, cost reduction, and energy savings.
• Plan and execute necessary plant trials and experiments to provide support for improvements.
• Provide training on plant unit operations to plant employees, including operators and maintenance staff, in support of employee onboarding and operational success.
• In partnership with R&D, lead post-start-up commercialization activities for innovation and other R&D projects, including interfacing with the plant teams, assessing process capability and ongoing operational sustainability of the product, and conducting formal post-launch reviews as part of the Essentia Stage Gate Process.
• Work closely with the plant teams on improvement and innovation ideas, review, and provide engineering and project support for the capital process as needed.
• Support process engineering initiatives for Essentia North America, including capacity/facility expansion projects as well as internal plant projects.
• Champion the use of data and data-driven decisions in pursuit of process improvements.
• Other duties as assigned.

Job Requirements

• Solid technical background in chemical engineering or food processing, especially in basic unit operations, such as heating, evaporation, separation, drying process, liquid transporting, etc.
• Demonstrated problem-solving skills and familiarity with process capability tools to analyze complex manufacturing processes.
• Creative thought leadership that can take ideas and provide alternatives for productivity improvement and cost reduction.
• Familiarity with CAD (or engineering drawings) and demonstrated skills in Microsoft Excel and/or statistical software.
• Experience with data collection and interpretation, case study and fact establishment, troubleshooting and diagnosing, drawing valid conclusions, and the ability to apply critical thinking skills.
• Must be detail oriented.
• Strong communication skills (both oral and written) across multiple levels of the organization.
• Ability to work independently but also have the ability and aspiration to be an accountable and open-minded team player.
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Some experience in food manufacturing is preferred.

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