Packaging Engineer

Certified Origins•Newport News, VA

3d•Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Packaging and Product Implementation Specialist owns the full technical and operational execution of new packaging, product launches, packaging changes, and related implementation projects from concept through final closeout. This role is responsible for ensuring every project is technically sound, operationally practical, compliant, fully documented, trialed, implemented, stabilized, and formally closed. This position requires a highly experienced and demanding professional with deep expertise in packaging specifications, packaging materials, regulatory requirements, supplier and converter management, OEM coordination, equipment capability, line trials, startup support, controlled documentation, and cross-functional project execution. The role must bring structure, urgency, technical discipline, and accountability to projects that cannot be managed through informal follow-up, incomplete specifications, or reactive firefighting. This is a senior execution role for a world-class employee. The successful candidate must be able to challenge weak assumptions, identify gaps early, force clarity, hold people accountable, and drive projects to completion without losing control of technical details or plant realities.

Requirements

Minimum of 7 years of relevant experience in packaging, manufacturing project management, commercialization, technical operations, or product implementation in a manufacturing environment.
Minimum of 5 years of direct experience leading packaging or new product implementation projects from concept through launch and closeout.
Demonstrated experience creating and controlling technical specifications and supporting documents for packaging components and finished good implementation.
Demonstrated experience working directly with OEMs, packaging suppliers, converters, technical service providers, and equipment vendors.
Experience in a regulated manufacturing environment is required.
Deep knowledge of packaging materials, packaging specifications, packaging drawings, tolerances, and revision control.
Strong knowledge of packaging-related failure modes and how packaging design choices affect line performance, quality, and customer risk.
Strong understanding of regulated manufacturing expectations, documentation discipline, and controlled change management.
Strong knowledge of equipment capability, change parts, startup planning, line trials, and packaging line integration.
Strong project management ability with the discipline to manage details, deadlines, dependencies, and technical risks without losing control.
Strong troubleshooting, root cause analysis, and corrective action capability under real plant conditions.
Ability to read and challenge technical drawings, specifications, machine requirements, supplier documents, and trial results.
High proficiency in Excel, Word, ERP systems, and structured project tracking tools.
Excellent written and verbal communication with the ability to operate effectively on the plant floor, with leadership, and with external technical partners.
Extremely high ownership and accountability.
Demanding on standards, preparation, and follow-through.
Strong urgency balanced with sound technical judgment.
Willing to challenge weak assumptions and insist on technical clarity.
Highly organized, disciplined, and relentless on project closure.
Comfortable working hands-on in the plant during trials, startups, and issue resolution.
Able to maintain pressure on projects without losing professionalism or control.
Ability to walk production, packaging, warehouse, and utility areas regularly.
Ability to stand for extended periods during trials, startups, and plant observations.
Ability to bend, reach, climb stairs, and move through an active industrial environment safely.
Ability to lift up to 25 pounds regularly and more with assistance when required.
Ability to use a computer and maintain technical documentation for extended periods as needed.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in Packaging Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Materials Science, Food Science, or a related technical field strongly preferred.
Food, beverage, pharmaceutical, personal care, or consumer packaged goods experience is strongly preferred.
Equivalent higher-level practical experience may be considered only if the candidate has a proven record of owning complex technical implementation work from start to finish.

Responsibilities

Lead packaging and new product implementation projects from concept through design review, supplier alignment, procurement readiness, trials, startup, stabilization, and final closure.
Develop and maintain detailed project plans, critical path timelines, deliverable trackers, risk registers, action lists, and escalation points.
Own project execution at the plant level and ensure no project moves forward with unresolved technical gaps, unclear ownership, or weak handoffs.
Drive formal project closeout, including final documentation, lessons learned, standard settings, approved specifications, and elimination of open items.
Manage multiple projects at the same time while maintaining full control of priorities, due dates, dependencies, and readiness status.
Create, review, revise, approve, and control robust packaging specifications for bottles, caps, closures, liners, labels, corrugate, trays, films, pallets, dividers, adhesives, inks, and other packaging-related components.
Ensure specifications are measurable, technically complete, revision-controlled, and usable by suppliers, procurement, operations, quality, maintenance, and OEMs.
Define dimensional, mechanical, functional, visual, material, performance, and compatibility requirements with enough rigor to prevent avoidable failures and interpretation gaps.
Maintain disciplined control of drawings, artwork requirements, dielines, tolerances, technical data sheets, validation records, approvals, and version history.
Refuse release of incomplete or weak specifications that create downstream risk during startup or routine production.
Serve as the site subject matter expert for packaging materials and packaging performance.
Evaluate packaging materials for manufacturability, equipment compatibility, durability, product compatibility, transport performance, shelf-life impact, and risk to quality or food safety.
Work directly with suppliers and converters on material construction, tolerances, defect reduction, sealing performance, print quality, label application, closure fit, torque windows, and long-term stability expectations.
Identify likely packaging failure modes before launch, including seal failures, leaks, scuffing, deformation, poor label application, color variation, weak corrugate performance, closure defects, and line-efficiency losses.
Support root cause analysis and permanent corrective actions for packaging-related failures in trials and production.
Ensure packaging and labeling projects comply with applicable regulatory, legal, customer, food safety, and internal requirements before release.
Work closely with Quality and Regulatory functions to verify food-contact suitability, required declarations, supplier support documents, customer-specific standards, and change control expectations.
Coordinate and review documentation such as technical data sheets, declarations of compliance, migration support where applicable, restricted substance support, recyclability or environmental support, and change notifications.
Assess packaging and labeling changes for compliance risk and block implementation until gaps are resolved.
Maintain a high standard for documentation quality so the facility is not exposed by poor records, unsupported claims, or avoidable compliance gaps.
Perform other projects / duties as assigned.
Work directly with OEMs, line suppliers, technical service providers, and format-part suppliers to ensure new packaging formats can be run successfully and efficiently.
Define and follow up on equipment capability reviews, format parts, machine adjustments, startup requirements, training needs, visit schedules, and open punch-list items.
Coordinate FAT, SAT, installation support, commissioning activities, and startup planning where applicable.
Challenge supplier and OEM assumptions when equipment capability, performance expectations, or readiness plans are weak or incomplete.
Ensure change parts, settings, machine recipes, and technical support are ready before trials and first production runs.
Translate project plans into plant-ready execution with clear owners, due dates, trial requirements, materials readiness, labor readiness, and success criteria.
Plan and coordinate line trials, startup events, validation runs, and first-production activities for new products and packaging changes.
Be physically present and actively engaged during critical trials and initial launches to observe performance, drive decisions, capture issues, and ensure rapid closure of gaps.
Track all startup losses, trial failures, open items, retest requirements, and corrective actions until stable routine production is achieved.
Prevent projects from being considered complete simply because materials arrived or a meeting was held. Completion means the plant can run the format consistently and correctly.
Coordinate item setup, bills of material, material masters, packaging hierarchies, and related ERP requirements needed to support production, inventory, and planning.
Verify that BOMs, setup parameters, inspection criteria, work instructions, startup sheets, and related controlled documents are complete and accurate before launch.
Work with relevant functions to ensure no product or packaging format is released into production without correct systems setup and document control.
Drive strong revision control and change management discipline so the operation is never working from outdated drawings, old specs, or partial setup information.
Maintain organized, audit-ready project files and implementation records.
Act as the central technical owner for packaging and new product implementation work at the facility.
Lead effective project meetings with clear action ownership, hard due dates, defined decisions, and immediate escalation of barriers.
Hold internal teams, suppliers, and OEMs accountable for commitments and deliverables.
Drive urgency and follow-through across Operations, Quality, Maintenance, Procurement, Planning, Warehousing, and external partners.
Eliminate ambiguity, prevent project drift, and push open issues to closure.
Build and strengthen a disciplined stage-gate process for packaging and product implementation projects.
Standardize project checklists, launch readiness reviews, trial protocols, handoff criteria, and closeout requirements.
Reduce startup losses, packaging-related downtime, late changes, supplier misses, and preventable launch delays.
Create repeatable systems that make implementation stronger and less dependent on last-minute heroics.