What are the responsibilities and job description for the Food Process Development Engineer position at DeWafelbakkers?
Food Process Development Engineer
Job Description
As a member of R&D team the process development engineer will lead technical aspects of assigned product and process development; and ensure new products are in alignment with production capability. The process development engineer needs to be able to take part in multiple projects to deliver process and product innovations and renovation projects timely within brief elements. Leads trial productions and pilot plant operations establishes and maintains process specs. The process development engineer will also identify and execute optimization and improvement projects, and cost savings.
KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES/OUTCOMES
- Execute process and product development projects from concept to commercialization including new technology/capabilities.
- Work with cross-functional team to qualify co-manufactures to develop and launch new process capabilities or new products.
- Execute process and performance validation through the Design of Experiments (DOE) to determine the effect of process parameters on product quality, throughput, and cost.
- Establish and maintain process specs
- Provide technical support to operations as needed to identify and resolve relevant production issues
- Provide technical and business risk assessment /perspectives related to new product development
- Operate and maintain pilot plant
KNOWLEDGE/SKILLS/EXPERIENCE
- Bachelor’s Degree in Chemical/Food/Mechanical Engineering or related engineering field with 2 years of food product and process development experience
- Understanding of technical standards and data analysis
- Demonstrated success in process and product development in a cross-functional environment
- Deep understanding of food systems, ingredients, packaging, and processing interactions, experimental design, and statistical analysis
- Demonstrated skills to deal with ambiguity and can comfortably manage risks, changing priorities, and uncertainty.
- Excellent interpersonal skills and proven ability to work across functions
- Demonstrated understanding of process and performance validation
- Thorough understanding of product lifecycle management principles
- Physical requirements:
- Able to lift up to 30 lbs.
- Able to stand for 6 or more hours during the workday
- Able to compare and distinguish differences in ingredients, materials, etc. through taste, smell, touch, and visual inspection
- Manual dexterity is required to operate various equipment such as lab and pilot plant equipment, etc.
- Computer Skills:
- Solid PC proficiency (Excel, Word, database, statistical software) and the ability to create spreadsheets, computer analysis, and report writing.
- Travels regularly, up to 20%