Estcourt: Quality Control Supervisor – KZN posted by Headhunters

Our client is seeking to employ a Quality Control Supervisor to join their manufacturing facility based in Estcourt, KZN.

Requirements:

• Diploma / Degree in Food Technology or Biotechnology
• 3-5 years’ experience preferably in the meat industry
• Strong understanding of food safety, food quality and microbiology.
• Experience with working on Food safety management systems based on FSSC 22000.
• Good communication skills both written and verbal, confident in decision making, ability to act quickly, effective planning, attention to details and time management.
• A team player with good interpersonal skills.
• Systematic and logical thinking.
• Ability to identify risks, analyze root causes, and implement effective corrective and preventive actions.

Responsibilities (include but are not limited to):

• Leadership
  • Report directly to the Quality Manager on site
  • Supervise Quality Controllers to ensure consistent and accurate quality checks
  • Create and manage work schedules for the Quality Department
  • Support New Product Development (NPD) initiatives
  • Ensure Quality Controllers have the necessary tools to perform their role
• Verifications and Calibrations
  • Review weekly compliance with swabbing plans and product submissions
  • Oversee product and process inspections to verify compliance with specifications, standards, and procedures
  • Monitor and enforce Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards across the facility
  • Conduct routine spot checks on cleaning effectiveness
  • Ensure QC and food safety equipment is verified and calibrated according to schedule
• Documentation
  • Verify that records are completed correctly and provide guidance and training where required
  • Assist with the compilation of export documentation
  • In collaboration with NPD, ensure availability of raw material, packaging, and final product specifications; request from suppliers when necessary
  • Ensure records are readily available when required
  • Coordinate administration of the Food Safety and Quality Management System
  • Maintain accurate QA records for audit and certification purposes
• Non-Conformances and Customer Feedback
  • Complete NCR documentation arising from customer complaints, GMP, PRP, or audit findings
  • Follow up on corrective and preventive actions and ensure NCR closure
  • Manage the product restriction (on-hold) programme, including release status and destruction of rejected products
  • Work closely with Production, NPD, QC, and other teams to resolve quality concerns
  • Provide training and guidance to staff on quality requirements and best practices
  • Communicate customer complaints to relevant Production Managers for investigation
  • Assist responsible persons/incident owners with root cause analysis
  • Assist with completion of customer complaint feedback and submission to the Customer Liaison
• Audits
  • Act as second-in-charge for third-party audits in the absence of the Quality Manager
  • Participate in all regulatory, certification, and customer audits and inspections, including corrective action responses
• Reporting
  • Analyse quality and food safety-related data to identify trends, risks, and opportunities for improvement
  • Prepare and present detailed weekly QA reports to relevant stakeholders
  • Prepare trend analyses for:
    • Customer complaints
    • NCRs (Microbiology, PRP, CCP)
    • Audit trends (results, recurring findings, and observations)
  • Report any changes that may impact food safety or quality and trigger system, policy, procedure, or record reviews
• Quantum Lean
  • Drive implementation and maintenance of 5S practices
  • Encourage the use of Quantum Lean tools within the teams scope of work
  • Coordinate team preparation for benchmarking activities
  • Ensure visual management boards are consistently updated
  • Support the QA Manager in fostering positive morale within the QA team

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. If you do not receive feedback within two weeks of applying, please consider your application unsuccessful.