Wicking Machine Technician - First Shift

The Hours

3:00 AM - 1:00 PM, Monday - Thursday. During our busy season (currently through October) overtime is available. The final two weeks of the year, we are shut down for the holidays and inventory; full-time hours cannot be guaranteed during that time.

The Pay

$23.00/hour, plus a $2,000 sign-on bonus split into two payments: $1,000 in your first paycheck and $1,000 after completing 90 days of service.

About the Role

As a Wicking Machine Technician, you will own machine setups, preventative maintenance, and continuous improvement initiatives to reduce downtime and boost efficiency. You will train and support operators, maintain tooling and critical spares, and uphold strong 5S and safety standards.

Responsibilities

• Follow and comply with all safety rules and regulations; maintain work area and equipment in a neat, orderly manner.
• Detect and report improper operations, faulty equipment/tooling, defective materials, and unusual conditions to the material lead or supervisor.
• Follow 5S guidelines.
• Evaluate each shop order including wick type, item number, wick length, correct sustainer, waxed or high melt, and number of wicks per container in accordance with the ERP system.
• Set up machines with wick, sustainer, adjusted length, acceptable crimp, and correct tooling/machine parts for different vessels.
• Regularly perform preventative maintenance on wickers.
• Develop and maintain TPM on all wick machines.
• Provide daily updates and continuously track individual and cumulative downtime on wickers.
• Use Microsoft Office daily.
• Maintain Alene standards of performance and comply with housekeeping and safety policies.
• Evaluate and develop process improvement plans for downtime caused by wickers and tabbing operations.

Requirements

• High school diploma or GED.
• 12 months of related experience and/or training; equivalent combination of education and experience accepted.

Skills

• Ability to lead small group activities by motivating and directing the team.
• Ability to develop process documentation.
• Knowledge of all product types, how to identify differences in wick, and differences in sustainers.
• Effective verbal and written communication skills.
• High attention to detail and accuracy.
• Ability to read and interpret documents such as safety rules, operating/maintenance instructions, and procedure manuals.
• Ability to write routine reports and correspondence.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Ability to problem-solve and evaluate machine issues at a moment's notice.
• Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals; compute rate and percent; read and use rulers.
• Ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out detailed but uninvolved written or oral instructions.

Physical Demands & Work Environment

• Frequently required to walk, sit, reach with hands and arms, climb or balance, stoop, kneel, crouch, crawl, and talk or hear.
• Often required to stand and use hands to handle or feel.
• Must frequently move objects and sometimes lift up to 60 pounds.
• Specific vision abilities required: close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.
• Frequently exposed to fumes or airborne particles.
• Noise level is usually moderate.

Benefits

• Medical, Dental, and Vision with a Healthcare Reimbursement Account
• 401(k) with company match
• Basic Life Insurance (100% company paid)
• Employee Assistance Program
• Flexible Spending Account
• Paid Holidays, Paid Time Off, and Paid Maternity/Parental Leave
• Voluntary PTO Donation Program
• Tuition Reimbursement
• "Alene Gives Back" – paid volunteer program