Process Engineer (Sauce Plant)

Pedros Chicken; KwaZulu-Natal; On-site; ZAR 800,000 - 1,200,000; Full time

Job summary

Pedros Chicken is seeking a hands-on Process Engineer to manage end-to-end sauce production from cooking to packaging at the KwaZulu-Natal site. You will diagnose faults, improve process efficiency and reduce external supplier reliance while maintaining food safety and safe operation.

You will own process and utility performance, troubleshoot breakdowns, and optimize batch processing. Expect interaction with maintenance teams and OEMs to ensure continuous improvement on the shop floor.

Qualifications

• Degree in Mechanical, Chemical, Electrical or Mechatronics engineering.
• 3–5 years post-graduate hands-on engineering experience in a food, beverage or FMCG plant.
• Experience with batch heating/cooling, hygienic product transfer, storage, filling/packaging and CIP.
• Utilities experience: steam/boiler systems, chillers, cooling towers, compressed air and water systems.
• Knowledge of PLC/HMI/VSD fault finding and instrumentation; exposure to LS, Festo or Siemens is advantageous.
• Ability to read P&IDs, electrical/control schematics and OEM manuals.

Responsibilities

• Take day-to-day ownership of process and utility performance across cooking, cooling, transfer, storage, filling and packaging.
• Troubleshoot breakdowns and chronic faults; coordinate with OEMs or contractors as needed.
• Optimize sauce batch processing to improve cycle time, consistency and yield.
• Maintain and troubleshoot plant utilities including steam, chillers, water systems, and compressed air.
• Lead root-cause analysis for recurring issues and implement corrective actions.
• Build preventive-maintenance plans, job cards, spares lists and calibration schedules.
• Support commissioning, FAT/SAT, IQ/OQ and vendor coordination.

Skills

Hands-on engineer

Troubleshooting

Process optimization

Root-cause analysis

Hygienic design

PLC/HMI fault-finding

P&ID reading

Vendor coordination

Safety compliance

Team communication

Education

BEng/BSc in Mechanical/Chemical/Electrical/Mechatronics

Diploma/Tech qualification

Tools

Siemens PLC

Festo automation

LS electrical

Industrial instrumentation tools

Job description

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. The Process Engineer is a hands-on, site-based engineering role responsible for process performance, plant utilities, automation and equipment reliability across the Pedros Sauce Plant. The role supports end-to-end sauce manufacture from ingredient addition, cooking, mixing/emulsification and cooling through product transfer, storage, filling, capping, labelling, packing and CIP. The engineer is expected to diagnose faults personally, improve process efficiency, support production and maintenance teams, and reduce reliance on external suppliers while maintaining food safety and safe operation
2. Take day-to-day technical ownership of process and utility performance across cooking, cooling, transfer, storage, filling and packaging
3. Act as first-line engineer for breakdowns and chronic faults; personally troubleshoot mechanical, electrical, process and control issues before escalating to OEMs or contractors
4. Optimise sauce batch processing - heat-up, ingredient addition, agitation, emulsification, cooking/hold, transfer and cooling - to improve cycle time, consistency and yield
5. Maintain and troubleshoot plant utilities including steam generator/boiler, steam distribution/PRS/traps, condensate, chiller, cooling tower, water treatment/softening, compressed air, dryer and receiver
6. Own CIP technical performance including flow, temperature, chemical concentration/conductivity, contact time, spray devices, return flow, recovery, dosing and cleaning validation
7. Troubleshoot sanitary and utility pumps including lobe/positive displacement, centrifugal, multistage and dosing pumps; inspect and replace mechanical seals, bearings, couplings and related components
8. Support heat-transfer systems including plate and tubular heat exchangers, hot/chilled-water circuits, control valves and temperature/flow instrumentation
9. Use PLC/HMI and VSD systems for fault diagnosis - alarms, I/O, interlocks, permissives, recipes, sensors and actuated valves - and coordinate software changes/backups with approved specialists
10. Support filling and packaging equipment including net-weight filler/capper, conveyors, labeller, coder and ancillary packaging equipment; assist with changeovers, calibration and downtime reduction
11. Build and maintain preventive-maintenance plans, job cards, critical-spares lists, lubrication routines, calibration schedules and equipment history
12. Lead root-cause analysis for recurring breakdowns, process deviations and utility failures; implement and verify corrective actions
13. Track engineering/process KPIs including uptime, MTBF/MTTR, batch and cooling time, CIP performance, utility consumption, yield/product loss, filler performance and downtime
14. Support hygienic engineering, GMP and food-safety requirements; ensure maintenance work does not introduce contamination and enforce LOTO, guarding and safe-work practices
15. Manage OEMs, contractors and service providers: define scope, supervise work, verify quality, close punch-list items and control technical documentation
16. Support commissioning, modifications and continuous-improvement projects including FAT/SAT, IQ/OQ, P&ID review, trials, operator training and final handover
17. Steam generator/boiler, steam distribution, PRS, steam traps and condensate systems
18. Chillers, cooling towers, plate/tubular heat exchangers and chilled/hot-water circuits
19. Compressed-air systems, air dryers, receivers and pneumatic equipment
20. Automated CIP systems, chemical dosing, conductivity and CIP validation
21. Sanitary lobe/PD, centrifugal, multistage and dosing pumps; mechanical seals and valves
22. PLC/HMI, VSDs, industrial sensors, instrumentation, actuated valves and fault diagnostics
23. Filling, capping, conveyors, labelling, coding and packaging-line equipment
24. Preventive maintenance, reliability, critical spares, RCA/CAPA and calibration
25. P&IDs, commissioning, IQ/OQ, vendor management and hygienic engineering

REQUIREMENTS:

1. BEng or BSc Engineering degree in Mechanical, Chemical, Electrical or Mechatronics Engineering. National Diploma, BTech, N6, recognised technical qualification or relevant trade qualification will also be considered
2. Minimum 3-5 years post-graduate, hands-on engineering experience in a food, beverage or FMCG manufacturing plant; sauce, condiment or liquid-food processing experience is strongly preferred
3. Proven plant-floor experience with batch heating/cooling processes, hygienic product transfer, storage, filling/packaging and CIP
4. Strong practical utilities experience covering steam/boiler systems, chillers, cooling towers, compressed air and water systems
5. Working knowledge of PLC/HMI/VSD fault finding and industrial instrumentation; able to trace alarms, I/O, permissive and interlocks. LS, Festo or Siemens exposure is advantageous
6. Strong mechanical troubleshooting ability on pumps, valves, mechanical seals, bearings, couplings and sanitary pipework
7. Ability to read and work from P&IDs, electrical/control schematics, OEM manuals, instrument schedules and maintenance documentation
8. Knowledge of GMP, HACCP and food-safety requirements; FSSC 22000 and hygienic-design exposure advantageous
9. Commissioning or start-up experience, including FAT/SAT, IQ/OQ and vendor coordination, is advantageous
10. Food manufacturing process engineering and batch liquid/sauce processing
11. Must be willing to work hands-on on the plant floor and support breakdowns, start-ups and planned shutdown work outside normal hours when required
12. Must be comfortable working across mechanical, process, utilities and controls disciplines; this is not a desk-only design/project role
13. Valid driver's licence and ability to travel occasionally to suppliers/OEMs or other Pedros sites is advantageous
14. Must be able to train operators and maintenance staff on basic equipment care, fault escalation and safe operating practices