Safely make and deliver a quality product right the first time. Assist the Quality Manager to ensure that all members of the team are well educated with regard to quality standards, processes, practices, and regulations. Promote best practices and a discipline to standard work. Work closely with operations and the leadership team to build one team with one purpose. Ensure all products manufactured at the plant meet the quality and food safety standards established by DFA, all relevant regulatory agencies, and our customers. Direct the quality assurance and compliance efforts and the laboratory employees to ensure that staffing is in place for all shifts and that personnel are properly carrying out the responsibilities assigned to them. Serve as the liaison with our customers on finished product quality issues. 

 

Job Duties and Responsibilities:

Know and understand federal, state, and local food industry regulations and company policies as applicable to operations of facility (CFR, GMPs, SSOPs, HACCP, SQF, Organic, etc.) Implement and maintain Quality Systems to ensure manufactured products meet all specifications Ensure all plant personnel are operating in compliance with plant and corporate procedures for Food Safety, Quality, and Safety Ensure that plant is operating in compliance with all customer, FDA, and government regulations and SQF Certification requirements Coordinate and conduct facility audits, accompany investigators, and ensure corrective actions are tracked and follow-up reports are completed. This includes physical inspection of equipment, buildings, and facility grounds for internal, regulatory, or customer audits Assist production and operations management with development and implementation of corrective actions and appropriate documentation in response to audit and inspection findings  Review laboratory and production documents daily to assess the quality of products, determine that products meet customer specifications, and approve products for release to customers Manage product “Hold and Release” programs for finished products and incoming goods Develop policies and procedures as needed and provide training to employees. Coordinate procedure management system for issuance, distribution, compliance, and review Develop, organize, and administer training for plant employees on HACCP, GMP’s, SQF, and related food safety topics Convey company, facility, and department goals to employees. Track and report on plant quality key performance indicators Participate on Quality and Operations teams Attend seminars to develop skills needed to improve job performance Act as coordinator for the HACCP program, facilitate committee meetings, and review HACCP documentation daily Develop, implement, and maintain the Food Defense plan in compliance with DFA and customer requirements Directly supervise laboratory technicians, schedule hourly shifts, and provide training and performance feedback Set up, calibrate, and troubleshoot laboratory equipment. Arrange for repairs as needed Develop, implement, and maintain a systematic method of auditing analytical results (split sample testing program) Conduct physical and organoleptic evaluations of products and ingredients Direct the testing and analysis of routine and special products, trials, etc., and provide effective reports to involved parties (management, vendors, customers, etc.) Coordinate with customers for new item setup, product specifications, labeling requirements, and complaint resolution Maintain customer documents and specifications, ensuring up-to-date information is provided to production Coordinate shipping of samples to customer(s) as needed Coordinate Pest Control program for facility Conduct investigations into incidents, quality issues, and complaints. Document findings, perform trend analysis, and communicate to employees and customers as appropriate Attend required training, including but not limited to, GMP’s, HAACP, SQF, Safety, etc. Proactively identify opportunities for continuous improvement to include Lean, Kaizen, 5S and Leader Standard Work Follow all DFA GMP’s and work in a manner consistent with all corporate and regulatory, food safety, quality and sanitation requirements Back up to/from QA Manager and Operations Manager in his / her absence. Assignment will be determined at time of event. The requirements herein are intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by employee, but is not a complete list of responsibilities, duties and skills required. Other duties may be assigned as required.