QA Associate - 1st Shift

Pacific Cheese•Reno, NV

3d•Onsite

About The Position

Pacific Cheese, a family-owned and operated company for over 50 years, is seeking a Quality Assurance Specialist for their 1st Shift schedule. This role involves ensuring finished products comply with food safety and quality specifications, assisting in enforcing GMP guidelines, and documenting all food safety, sanitation, and quality issues. The position requires performing daily inspections, air quality tests, and adhering to various plant, customer, and regulatory guidelines.

Requirements

Standing for long periods of time frequently twisting, turning, bending, stooping, pushing, pulling and lifting material up to 50lbs.
Must be able to work in a warehouse/production type atmosphere where the temperature is as low as 32 degrees (typically 45-55 degrees).
Noise level in production environment may require the use of hearing protection.
Must pass a pre-employment drug screen.
Must comply with all Plant, Customer, State, Federal, OSHA, EPA, FDA, USDA, HACCP, and SQF guidelines and regulations for food safety, quality, and employee safety.
Must follow Good Manufacturing Practices requirements to ensure food safety, safe work practices.

Nice To Haves

Experience in quality assurance in a food production environment.
Familiarity with HACCP and SQF guidelines.
Ability to perform cross-training for other positions in the department.

Responsibilities

Give recommendations in the improvement of quality control and assurance.
Conduct all monitoring activities to assure finished product comply with food safety and quality specifications.
Assist in enforcing compliance with company GMP guidelines on the line.
Report/Document all food safety, sanitation and quality issues and deviations to management.
Perform Daily Operation and Sanitation Inspections per shift as delegated.
Perform Air Quality Tests as delegated.
Perform High Pressure Air Quality Tests as delegated.
Comply with all Plant, Customer, State, Federal, OSHA, EPA, FDA, USDA, HACCP, and SQF guidelines and regulations for food safety, quality, and employee safety.
Follow Good Manufacturing Practices requirements to ensure food safety, safe work practices.
Prepare needed paperwork at start-up.
Grade Product by conducting in-line inspection audit on finished products and packaging.
Conduct inspection of machine performance in production lines, as per QA manual and procedures.
Ensure proper documentation and frequency of inspection.
Collect and manage samples for testing and Quality Keeping samples – including “plug” sampling as needed and retain sample.
Collect and manage customer requested samples.
Complete required DV/return tasks to include inspection, counting and placing in on hold.
Assist in the Sample Retain Program testing.
Maintain Retention area in a clean and organized condition.
Monitor QA Hold area to ensure locked.
Inform of discrepancies and assist in assessment of corrective actions.
Work closely with all departments on quality issues.
Monitor product and in-feed raw material rejects.
Perform Daily Temperature Monitoring per shift as delegated.
Complete Hold Tags as need and correctly (Orange and Red).
Print Put Away sheets for file and compile Hold Tags to review.
Assist Pre-Op and ATP sanitation assessment for lines prior to start-up, and the Environment Monitoring Program.
Ensure quality assessment tools are in optimal performance and calibrated as scheduled.
Check utensils in/out and document appropriately.
Perform cross training for other positions in the department.
Attend all department and company required trainings.
Maintain grading area on production floor and lab in a clean and orderly condition.
Perform other duties as assigned.