Continuous Improvement Engineer-Paper

Founded over 35 years ago, First Quality is a family-owned company that has grown from a small business in McElhattan, Pennsylvania into a group of companies, employing over 5,000 team members, while maintaining our family values and entrepreneurial spirit. With corporate offices in New York and Pennsylvania and 8 manufacturing campuses across the U.S. and Canada, the companies within the First Quality group produce high-quality personal care and household products for large retailers and healthcare organizations. Our personal care and household product portfolio includes baby diapers, wipes, feminine pads, paper towels, bath tissue, adult incontinence products, laundry detergents, fabric finishers, and dishwash solutions. In addition, we manufacture certain raw materials and components used in the manufacturing of these products, including flexible print and packaging solutions.

Guided by our values of humility, unity, and integrity, we leverage advanced technology and innovation to drive growth and create new opportunities. At First Quality, you’ll find a collaborative environment focused on continuous learning, professional development, and our mission to Make Things Better®.

We are seeking a Continuous Improvement Engineer-Paper for our First Quality Tissue SE, LLC facility located in Anderson, SC.  This position will be responsible for providing leadership for new product development, material improvements, process improvements, process validations, procedure development, with the goal of improving efficiencies, lowering costs, and expanding the business with new products or product improvements while insuring compliance with quality systems and regulatory requirements.   

Primary responsibilities include:

•    Promote an action-oriented safety culture embracing safety as a core value, instilling, and exemplifying a safety mindset for all team members resulting in an incident free workplace. 

•    Work in conjunction with Quality department to ensure finished product satisfies all finished product quality standards. 

•    Responsible for providing technical support for converting machines to improve efficiencies of all equipment in the paper making process. 

•    Organize, implement, and maintain production process flow. Develop best practices, routines, and innovative solutions to improve production rates and quality of output. 

•    Systematically evaluate, analyze, and identify trends in manufacturing processes/equipment issues and data from failures. Create and implement recommendations to prevent recurrence to reduce downtime and waste. 

•    Complete design and development projects by training, providing technical support and promoting growth of paper operations personnel to improve understanding of processes. 

•    Prepare documentation for new manufacturing processes and/or engineering procedures, reviews design drawings and customer specifications. 

•    Utilizes project management skills, prepares timelines, schedules, and coordinates multiple disciplines to meet required schedules. 

•    Proposes, installs, starts up, and validates new equipment. 

•    Plans and leads process trials and communicates results to appropriate parties. 

•    Apply continuous improvement methods such as lean manufacturing to enhance manufacturing quality, reliability, or cost-effectiveness.   

•    Identify complex problems and review related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.  

•    Consider the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one. 
 

The ideal candidate should possess the following:  

•    Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Chemical or Electrical Engineering or related technical field. 
•    5 years’ experience in a high-speed, high-volume manufacturing environment.  
•    Previous paper industry experience STRONGLY preferred.   
•    Experience providing technical analysis, feasibility studies and recommendations for controls systems requirements preferred. 
•    Microsoft Office applications 
•    Experience in a lean manufacturing environment preferred. 
•    Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services. 
•    Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance. 
•    Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.  
•    Fundamental knowledge of cost accounting principles. 
•    SAP knowledge preferred. 
•    Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, both written and verbal. 
•    Analytical thought process by identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts. 
•    Ability to manage multiple projects/tasks and adjust priorities as necessary. 
•    Detail oriented and thorough when completing work tasks.

What We Offer You

We believe that by continuously improving the quality of our benefits, we can help to raise the quality of life for our team members and their families. At First Quality you will receive:

• Competitive base salary and bonus opportunities

• Paid time off (three-week minimum)

• Medical, dental and vision starting day one

• 401(k) with employer match

• Paid parental leave

• Child and family care assistance (dependent care FSA with employer match up to $2500)

• Bundle of joy benefit (years’ worth of free diapers to all team members with a new baby)

• Tuition assistance

• Wellness program with savings of up to $4,000 per year on insurance premiums

• ...and more!