Responsibilities associated with this role include, but are not limited to:

Supplier Management

• Maintain the supplier management process with detailed specification, risk assessment, audit and approval records for all raw material, packaging or miscellaneous suppliers
• Support quality manager with supplier audits as necessary as part of new approval, ongoing review, or in response to issues
• Review and evaluate suppliers to give feedback on performance and quality on a frequency that reflects their risk, size, and complexity
• Manage the approval of new raw material, packaging or miscellaneous suppliers

Customer Management – Specifications

• Implement and maintain detailed specifications and quality standards for all finished products, knowledge of various software programmes used by customers required (Micros, Hamilton Grant, FIND, etc)
• Develop and maintain internal specifications for the factory

QMS & HACCP Systems

• A key member of the companies HACCP team, challenging processes food safety systems and maintaining and reviewing the plan as required
• Responsible for the document control and maintenance of the quality management system
• Update process documentation (check sheets and procedures) as required when driven by improvement, audit requirements, customer requirements etc.
• Assist quality manager in implementing the internal audit programme to ensure quality system compliance
• Full participation in external audits for food safety and quality audits for customers, governing bodies (BRC/ Dept of Agriculture) and other regulatory authorities
• Ensure traceability is maintained throughout the process and carrying out traceability exercises as per external audits/customer requests

Testing Programmes

• Ensure raw material, process and finished product evaluation and verification is completed as required within production, being part of the team helping to solve issues as they arise
• Implement microbiological, chemical and physical testing schedules in accordance with agreed programme and budget. To include:
  – Finished product and raw material micro
  – Chemical analysis of relevant product
  – Daily organoleptic assessment panel
• Report non-conformances and drive root cause analysis in a timely and comprehensive fashion, involving all relevant disciplines
• Ensure communications of customer requirements to the operations team and ensure compliance to KPI targets
• Carrying out investigations for customer complaints, liaising with the production/maintenance teams as needed to find cause, agreeing actions that can be put in place to prevent recurrence
• Management of quarantined product, ensuring product traceability and safety is maintained.
• Liaise with other departments concerning rework or other destinations of quarantined inventory
• Shelf-life analysis management as required for chilled and frozen product
• Interface with NPD as required for the successful launch of new products into production

Technical Administration

• Responsible for maintaining records for due diligence and audit purposes
• Collating technical information to view trending and take relevant actions where required
• Drive and implement plant wide process & quality system improvements, working with the relevant departments to ensure multi-disciplinary approach
• Use trended data/ statistical analysis from KPI’s as part of continuous improvement loop
• Implementing quality improvement initiatives in both manufacturing and business processes
• Liaise with NPD team where necessary to ensure the smooth and safe introduction of new products, lines and processes which are integrated into the QMS
• Responsible for organisation and upkeep of records for calibration of factory and testing equipment on site
• Responsible for ensuring pest control is maintained by liaising with external contractor and the upkeep of records and online system
• Issue of new product codes and new recipes to the plant