Lead Operations/Quality Tech

Airgas•Jefferson, GA

11d•Onsite

About The Position

The Lead Operations/Quality Technician (LOQT) guides and supports the quality function at the facility and the LOQT will partner with the Plant / Facility Manager in the safe, reliable and sustainable operation of the facility. The LOQT nurtures the processes that support products and services being of exceptional quality, while aligning with all regulatory agencies and requirements including, but not limited to FDA, OSHA, EPA, DHS and company quality policies and procedures. Shapes, coordinates and guides quality assurance program and food safety programs designed to support quality production of products in alignment with shared standards by carrying out the following contributions alongside team members at the plant.

Requirements

HS Diploma or GED
Minimum of 3 years of experience within Quality Assurance in a processing environment.
Extremely organized with demonstrated skills administering quality and technical programs, including being able to establish and maintain a plant filing system and control of engineering documents.
Working knowledge of Food Safety Programs including SQF, HACCP,
Demonstrates advanced understanding of air separation, refrigeration, carbon dioxide and associated technologies.
Instrumentation and Electrical – Demonstrates an understanding of electrical principles in practical situations involving the operation and repair of complex electrical devices.
Mechanical aptitude - Demonstrates basic skills in mechanical systems maintenance.
Safety and Compliance – A fundamental understanding of all applicable regulations, laws, certifications and standards with a focus on how to achieve success in each discipline for a manufacturing environment.
Leadership – Candidate must have foundation to learn the leadership skills to effectively engage with a production staff.
Maintenance Programs - Familiar with modern maintenance programs, asset management systems and principles.
Moderate to advanced knowledge of word processing, spreadsheet and presentation applications
Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals. Ability to compute rate, ratio, and percent’s.
Ability to read, analyze and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations.
Strong verbal and written communication skills
Ability to write routine technical procedures and policies in English.
Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from employees and/or customers.
Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.
Ability to read and interpret documents such as safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions, and procedure manuals using the English language.

Nice To Haves

Technical Degree
Industrial plant operations experience

Responsibilities

Guides and sustains EPA, FDA and Food Safety Programs, SQF, HACCP, SOP’s and other government compliance programs.
Welcomes and guides customer or 3rd party Quality or Food Safety Audits.
Maintains Customer Compliance Log; investigate quality complaints, recommend and implement corrective measures.
Partners as a technical resource to all departments as necessary.
Updates and maintains all product specifications, control specifications, processes and practices; works with all operators and technicians to support all team members in understanding and applying updates.
Dedicated to facilitating GMP training programs.
Conducts required mock product recalls.
Champions and nurtures safe work habits through the use of existing policies and procedures and an emphasis on safety behavior management techniques.
Where gaps are identified within existing policies and procedures, this role will use any required resources to author procedures and policies to ensure personnel and site safety.
Offers supportive coaching to uplift team safety habits resulting in an improved safety culture.
Partners in safety incident reviews, including near misses, using root cause analysis leading to recommended corrective actions to eliminate recurrences.
Assists with the development of training tools and conducts training to support company safety, regulatory, continuous growth and operational excellence initiatives.
Fosters alignment with applicable regulatory (OSHA, EPA, DOT, DHS) requirements and applicable training and recordkeeping is performed to meet departmental and location requirements.
Supports necessary maintenance of instrumentation, electrical systems, compressors, pumps, turbines, valves, motors, and other plant equipment being scheduled, completed and documented.
Supports necessary maintenance of environmental, safety, quality assurance, and FDA compliance systems and programs including spare parts, preventive, predictive and proactive maintenance.
Cultivates a sustainable process for maintenance of operational files and records; completes all required paperwork accurately, timely and in compliance with various company policies and procedures, to ensure full regulatory alignment.