Relief Operator III

General Lactose Plant Duties

• Operates equipment involved in lactose production, including crystallizers, decanters, evaporators, and bagging systems.
• Maintains monitoring of flow rates, pressure, temperature, and other critical parameters throughout the lactose process.
• Troubleshoots operational issues and reports or resolves minor mechanical faults.
• Safeguards raw materials and consumables availability and staging.
• Maintains accurate recording of data on production logs regarding product levels, temperatures, and flow in whey tanks, balance tanks, cream tanks, and the RO system.
• Performs routine sanitation of all whey plant equipment in accordance with cleaning schedules, documenting cleaning procedures per regulatory and company standards.
• Complies with all company policies related to Safety, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP).
• Reports any food safety or quality concerns to supervisors or authorized personnel.
• Trains new team members in lactose plant duties, operating procedures, and safety protocols.

Dryer Operation

• Operates and monitors lactose dryers (spray dryer, fluid bed, or other) to maintain optimal drying parameters.
• Adjusts temperature, airflow, and feed rates as needed to ensure consistent product moisture and quality.
• Conducts regular visual inspections to identify issues such as buildup, clogging, or abnormal noise/vibration.
• Collects and tests in-process samples for moisture, particle size, and purity.
• Performs cleaning-in-place (CIP) and manual cleaning procedures on the dryer and auxiliary systems as required.
• Controls the reverse osmosis (RO) and polisher systems to produce high-quality concentrated whey, adjusting flow rates, pressure, and temperature as needed; directs product to appropriate storage tanks and conducts in-process testing.

General WPC Plant Duties

• Operates equipment involved in whey protein concentrate production, including separators, heat treatment, filtration, evaporators, and bagging systems.
• Maintains monitoring of flow rates, pressure, temperature, and other critical parameters throughout the WPC process.
• Troubleshoots operational issues and reports or resolves minor mechanical faults.
• Safeguards raw materials and consumables availability and staging.
• Maintains accurate recording of data on production logs regarding product levels, temperatures, and flow in whey tanks, balance tanks, cream tanks, and the RO system.
• Performs routine sanitation of all whey plant equipment in accordance with cleaning schedules, documenting cleaning procedures per regulatory and company standards.
• Complies with all company policies related to Safety, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP).
• Reports any food safety or quality concerns to supervisors or authorized personnel.
• Trains new team members on WPC plant duties, operating procedures, and safety protocols.

Qualifications

• A high school diploma or equivalent is required (GED).
• 3+ years of food manufacturing experience is desirable, operator experience preferred.
• 1 year of cheese-making experience is desirable.