Quality Technician

Kelly is hiring a Quality Technician for one of our clients in St Louis, MO

• Client: IRCA Group
• Job Title:
  
  Quality Technician
• Site
  
  Location:
  
  8021 New Hampshire Ave St Louis MO 63123
• Contract Duration:
  Temp to Hire
• Night Shift for South Building; 3 days on 2 days off 2 days on 3 days off; 6:30 PM - 7 AM
• Training:
  All employees train on day shift, usually about 4 weeks on days, until transitioning to the night schedule

IRCA is a leading international provider of semi-finished ingredients for the bakery, pastry and gelato markets, serving independent producers as well as large food manufacturers (e.g. CPG). Core products include chocolate, chocolate decorations, creams, pastry mixes, gelato ingredients, and other bakery / pastry ingredients. The Company, headquartered in Italy, was acquired by Advent International, the global Private Equity firm, in July 2022, and has a strong track record of growth over the last decade.

IRCA has made 2 bolt-on acquisitions in the areas of candied fruits (Cesarin) and pistachio ingredients (Anastasi) in 2022, and recently entered exclusive negotiations to acquire a leading manufacturer of sweet and cereal products in Europe and the US. The target’s business focuses on high value add specialty ingredients for the Food Manufacturers segment, with a portfolio that incorporates a range of products including sweet particulates, chocolate confections, baked inclusions, variegates and fruit purées.

This transformative deal would create a global leader in the semi-finished ingredients industry, with 22 manufacturing facilities in Europe, US and Vietnam and a combined €1 billion of revenues (2022).

This position is responsible for laboratory operations related to product testing, internal audits, and monitoring production quality. The QA Laboratory Technician performs analytical testing (moisture, fat, particle size, colorimetry), conducts pre-operational inspections, oversees allergen changeovers, and performs swabbing. The role also includes holding and releasing products, approving materials and labels, and conducting environmental monitoring to ensure all products meet Food Safety and Quality requirements.

Adhere to good laboratory practices (GLP), good manufacturing practices (GMP) and safety requirements.

Responsible for daily laboratory operations.

Maintains and perform duties that are needed to meet production orders (chemical analysis, product approvals, COA, and specifications).

Maintains incoming and outgoing products (tracking, analysis, record keeping, database, etc.).

Performs equipment/calibration in the lab and plant where appropriate.

Assists in general audit of the quality system.

Purchase and maintains laboratory inventory.

Covers techs for vacations when needed and any calls in the lab.

Assists in maintaining and understands product specifications, SDS, TDS, and kosher documents.

Responsible for analyzing test data to determine acceptability.

Disposition of material produced as well as incoming material.

Responsible for approving packaging and labels for use.

Performs other duties as assigned.

Reports to:

Quality Assurance Technical Manager and Quality Assurance Supervisor

Degree in the sciences preferred. College coursework even if someone doesn't have a degree

2-3 years GMP regulated lab experience, ideally in food manufacturing

GMP experience required, needs to know how to partner with manufacturing operations, knowing how to identify non-conformances/deviations, and how to communicate/escalate those

Requires some experience with environmental monitoring and/or swabbing for manufacturing environment

Requires some analytical lab testing experience in a manufacturing environment

Prefer experience with sensory…