COMPANY OVERVIEW:

Balchem is committed to making the world a healthier place by delivering trusted, innovative, and science-based solutions for the health and nutritional needs of the world. Balchem employs approximately 1,400 employees worldwide who provide the service, quality, and technology that enables our customers to win with their customers. We have built a reputation for delivering results to all of our stakeholders. Founded in 1967, Balchem, a Maryland corporation, became a publicly-traded company in 1970 and is listed on Nasdaq under the symbol “BCPC.” Our corporate headquarters is located in Montvale, New Jersey, and we have a broad network of sales offices, manufacturing sites, and R&D centers, primarily located in the U.S. and Europe. The Company consists of three business segments: Human Nutrition and Health, Animal Nutrition and Health, and Specialty Products.

POSITION SUMMARY:

This position is responsible for the efficient day to day operation of the production rooms as well as the development and management of the production team. This position is also responsible for motivating the safety and continuous improvement culture while achieving operating goals to meet growth expectations.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

• Responsible for department incident rate consistent with IFP company goals; must maintain department safety rules compliance and be a positive safety role model
• Responsible for training all department employees on safe work practices
• Responsible for ensuring an organized, clean and safe work environment
• Ensure procedures and work practices have appropriate safety review and new equipment is reviewed for proper guarding, safe operating procedures, and lockout tagout
• Must have regular safety discussions with team and proactively listen to employees’ safety concerns/suggestions; must act upon those concerns and provide feedback
• Responsible for implementing corrective actions after an incident or near miss
• Follow all Food safety practices and processes applicable to the department
• Perform/execute job duties keeping the company’s commitment to quality in mind
• Monitor and maintain all food safety activities as part of daily tasks
• Enforce food safety plan while producing product
• Build a unified, successful team
• Responsible for achieving established performance measures for productivity, quality, and safety levels as set for the production rooms and the whole department; meet or exceed daily production goals related to safety, quality, and quantity produced
• Perform troubleshooting of production room issues as capable and perform minor maintenance on the lines; accurately assess when to call in additional support from maintenance and management
• Cross trained to operate all production rooms including paperwork and set-up; provide backup to positions as needed to ensure efficient operations
• Drive, initiate, and support continuous improvement and elimination of waste and variation in processes using established improvement processes
• Responsible for the timely, efficient, thorough, and effective cleaning and sanitation of their area of responsibility, including but not limited to production or packaging equipment and the surrounding areas or rooms, support areas, and other areas as may be required
• Provide daily work assignments and production priorities to the operators
• Build and maintain a high-performance team environment and coach others in effective team interaction and function; foster an empowerment environment
• Lead, motivate, and direct employees to achieve clear performance objectives
• Must understand the company vision and set goals that will drive the Team in that direction
• Detect quality issues and source the root cause to resolve the issue; perform any necessary adjustments to batches
• Coordinate and participate in PM (preventative maintenance) tasks on a daily, weekly, monthly basis
• Promote GMP compliance and help correct GMP issues
• Promote quality awareness and help correct quality issues
• Understand the product specs and operating standards by customer product and implement the necessary equipment for processing
• Learn, understand, train to, develop and follow documented policies, procedures, and work procedures and drive others to do so; this includes product codes, coding system, line changeovers, and wet and dry line cleaning processes
• Set up of daily productivity board and track production to board targets; maintain detailed and organized data records for the department
• Ensure all necessary supplies, materials and WIP are stocked on the line for daily production needs; verify correct incoming materials and ingredients are in the right area, ensure conformance to established standards and complete the material usage form
• Assist in managing production supplies; deliver Kanban cards to designated purchasing area for replenishment of supplies
• Assist in development of work instructions, training and auditing team members and assisting in special projects
• Perform audits within the production areas for paperwork accuracy and compliance with SOPs, GMPs, and Safety procedures
• Assist Commercialization group with scale-ups and customer trials
• Lead others in maintaining good housekeeping and an orderly work area; support 5S initiatives
• Assist in implementation of productivity improvements; this person will also help plan ahead to improve utilization of resources
• Support and assist as needed in maintaining and improving operations of the production rooms
• Must continuously assess employees for selection, promotion and discipline situations
• Provide frequent, specific performance feedback and coaching to all Operations employees, including proactively addressing performance issues
• Assure that Production team members are appropriately trained, coached and developed in support of individual career development paths and IFP growth plans; identify potential successors within the team and develop them towards this goal
• Conduct timely and thorough employee reviews giving accurate and constructive feedback to report
• Meet or exceed customer expectations for on-time delivery and quality of product delivered; communicate Customer Satisfaction to the team using quantitative measures
• Coordinate and conduct meetings with direct reports individually and in regularly scheduled team meetings; include support staff as needed to maximize efficient operations and foster “One Team” approach
• Plan ahead for the shift to ensure and approve full utilization of resources; ensure consistent application of Operational and other Company procedures
• Document and monitor procedures and processes to eliminate variation and promote sharing of knowledge
• Cross train in related functions and assist others in obtaining cross-functional capabilities
• Must develop cooperative relationships with other departments
• Plan, control, and measure all aspects of the production operations area
• Support, understand, and coach others in understanding and use of lean tools
• All other duties as necessary to the success of Balchem Corporation

REQUIREMENTS:

• High School Diploma/GED
• Solid background/work experience in manufacturing (2+ years); food or pharmaceutical a plus
• 2+ years leadership experience
• Knowledge of Lean Manufacturing concepts and 5S organizational tools; Six Sigma training a plus
• Proficient computer skills (Word, Excel, ERP)
• Mechanical aptitude/trouble-shooting ability
• Knowledge of food GMP’s a plus
• Training and mentoring mindset with constant operator training
• Strong safety orientation
• Strong organizational skills
• Positive attitude and professional image
• Self-motivation and ability to work independently; ability and willingness to provide support and training to employees on all shifts
• Demonstrated ability to lead, work, and develop others in a team environment
• Sensitive to other cultures/backgrounds, able to work in a multi-cultural workplace
• Ability and willingness to learn, understand, and follow documented work procedures
• Demonstrated ability to function in a fast-paced environment while moving multiple simultaneous projects forward
• Ability to manage time and workload efficiently, and the ability to prioritize and modify priorities accordingly
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills necessary to interface with customers and colleagues
• Able to work with all personality types and connect with people - quickly earn their respect and dedication

WORKING CONDITIONS:

• While performing the functions of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, stand, walk, talk, and hear
• The employee is occasionally required to kneel, crouch, crawl, bend, ascend and descend stairs and/or ladders
• The employee is frequently required to use hands and fingers to feel, handle, or operate objects, tools, or controls; and reach with hands and arms
• The employee may occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds
• Vision requirements include close vision, depth perception, color vision, and the ability to adjust focus
• This job is performed in a production environment in a manufacturing location
• The noise level in the plant is moderate to loud
• There will be exposure to machine noise and food dust when in the plant
• While performing the duties of this job, the employee regularly works near moving mechanical parts and with or around various chemicals
• The employee is occasionally exposed to vibration and risk of electric shock
• Production environment includes varying temperatures (heat, cold and moisture)
• The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job; reasonable accommodations may be made to allow individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions

The expected salary range for this position is $60,000 -$70,000.