C&D Foods is one of Europe's leading own label pet food manufacturers producing a range of wet and dry pet foods. C&D Foods has grown to become one of the industry's leading pet food producers. C&D Foods has 9 production facilities across 7 Countries (Ireland, the UK, France, Denmark, Austria, Spain, and The Netherlands) and 2 sales offices located in Manchester and Italy. C&D Foods' Headquarters is in Mullingar, county Westmeath.
Join our Quality Team as a Laboratory Technician and help support food safety, quality, and product compliance across our site. Working in our on-site laboratory, you will carry out testing of raw materials and finished products, maintain laboratory records and equipment, and support continuous improvement initiatives.
This is an excellent opportunity for a detail-oriented individual with a Food Science qualification and laboratory experience to develop their career in a fast-paced food manufacturing environment.
Role Overview
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The Laboratory Technician is a key member of the Quality Team involved in the day to day running of the on-site laboratory.
Key Relationships
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Quality Manager / Deputy Quality Manager.
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Quality Team.
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Environmental Team.
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Site R&D Technologist.
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Product Development Team.
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Laboratory equipment suppliers.
Key Responsibilities
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Operation of Laboratory efficiently in line with G.L.P and ensure audit ready at all times.
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Daily chemical testing of raw materials and finished product as per Testing Schedule.
- This includes meats and finished product in Pouches, Alutrays & Cans.
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Monthly Mineral Analysis - Calcium, Phosphorous, Sodium.
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Species testing on selected MRM materials.
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Physical testing of intermediate products (Gels/Guars) / Batch.
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Daily testing of effluent and results reporting.
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Weekly testing of boiler water and results reporting.
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Sourcing and purchasing of laboratory materials and equipment.
- Maintenance of adequate stocks at all times.
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Installation and calibration of new equipment in the laboratory. Initial calibrations and subsequent calibrations for finished products (pouch, alutray, cans) and raw materials and reporting and trending findings.
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Liaise with departmental colleagues on current development projects.
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Preparation and circulation of Analytical Reports and Trending.
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Trending and reporting of out of spec results for both finished products and raw materials.
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Co-Ordination of Shelf-Life Extensions for raw materials (Dry).
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Participate in Cleaning Validations.
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Quality Records Review
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Possess an awareness of the manufacturing process and finished products.
Personal Competencies and Qualifications
- Third level qualification in Food Science or related discipline and experience of working in a laboratory.
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Experience in use of NIR (Food Scan 2 Meat Analyzer), Spectrophotometer, Texture Analyzer and Viscometer an advantage.
- Excellent Communication Skills with the ability to deal with all levels of the organization.
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Excellent organizational skills.
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Excellent attention to detail.
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Ability to multitask, manage time, and take initiative.
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Microsoft Office knowledge (Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint).
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Experience of document control system and quality information system, with a strong emphasis on data interpretation.
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The ability to work independently or collaboratively as part of a cross functional team.
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Be highly customer focused.
- Be innovative, willing, and engaged in ongoing training on new processes & operations.
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Good Problem Solving & Decision-Making Skills.
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Must be flexible with a willingness to adapt to change. A "Can Do" attitude.
