What are the responsibilities and job description for the Production Supervisor 3rd Shift position at American Sugar Refining, Inc.?
The ASR Group® family of companies make up the world’s largest refiner and marketer of cane sugar. The companies produce a full line of grocery, industrial, foodservice and specialty sweetener products. Across North America, ASR Group® companies operate five sugar refineries, located in California, Maryland, Louisiana, Canada and Mexico. In Europe, ASR Group® companies operate sugar refineries in the United Kingdom, Portugal, and, with a joint venture partner, Italy. The companies also farm sugarcane and own sugar mills in Mexico and Belize. The ASR Group® portfolio includes the leading brands Domino®, C&H®, Florida Crystals®, Redpath®, Tate & Lyle®, Lyle's®, Sidul® and Whitworths®. ASR Group® companies also produce and market Tellus®, a single-use, compostable tableware and foodservice product made from plant fibers, including sugarcane.
Overview
Reporting to the Plant Manager, the 3rd Shift Production Supervisor leads day-to-day packaging/production activities to ensure safe, compliant, efficient manufacturing. The role provides shift leadership, verifies critical control checks (e.g., weights and foreign-material controls), escalates issues impacting safety/quality/production, and develops hourly team members to meet customer requirements.
Key Responsibilities
Overview
Reporting to the Plant Manager, the 3rd Shift Production Supervisor leads day-to-day packaging/production activities to ensure safe, compliant, efficient manufacturing. The role provides shift leadership, verifies critical control checks (e.g., weights and foreign-material controls), escalates issues impacting safety/quality/production, and develops hourly team members to meet customer requirements.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead shift operations by planning, scheduling, delegating, and verifying work to meet production, quality, safety, and delivery requirements.
- Coach, develop, and assess employees on required operational skills using documented competency levels, measurement dates, and supporting commentary.
- Perform and/or verify production start-up, shutdown, product changeovers, line adjustments, system controls, tote production, lot coding, production board execution, and recirculation of good product per written procedures.
- Ensure required product testing is completed and documented, including starch by spectrophotometer, air jet screen/sieve testing, moisture analysis, maltodextrin by polarization, and other required lab tests; respond to deficiencies and escalate as needed.
- Verify critical quality and food safety checks, including bag weight monitoring, manual weight checks, weight checker tolerance changes, electronic weight checker verification/calibration, metal detection, magnet inspections, sifter monitoring, and operation inspections.
- Monitor process indicators and equipment performance, including magnehelic readings and production conditions; coordinate troubleshooting and maintenance support as needed.
- Complete, review, and maintain required records for accuracy, completeness, and traceability, including Daily Monitoring Records, production reports, lab records, railcar receiving forms, hold forms, and foreign material reports.
- Manage non-conforming materials and foreign material events by identifying suspect product, placing material on hold, completing required documentation, attaching forms, and communicating per escalation protocols.
- Verify specification guidelines, run rules, approved raw ingredients, empty packaging requirements, lot code accuracy, label control, and finished product requirements are followed.
- Support railcar and raw material activities after training, including railcar seal verification, raw cane sugar sampling, Trackmobile operation, rail movement, track switching, rail opener/vibrator use, and maintaining clear travel paths.
- Support continuous improvement, site food safety and quality programs, and other duties as assigned.
- Follow and enforce GMP, PPE, Safety Absolutes, Quality Absolutes, monitoring requirements, escalation procedures, and production stoppage expectations to protect employee safety, food safety, product quality, and regulatory compliance.
- Respond appropriately to abnormal conditions, rain event inspections, food safety concerns, and emergencies, including notifying site leadership when required.
- 3 years leadership experience, preferably in food or regulated manufacturing.
- Proven ability to lead and develop hourly teams.
- Working knowledge of GMP and food safety/quality systems preferred.
- Strong attention to detail and documentation discipline for critical checks and production records.
- Mechanical aptitude and ability to interpret process indicators/logs to troubleshoot and drive corrective actions.
- Continuous improvement mindset; Lean/Six Sigma experience or certification preferred.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office, SAP, and Kronos preferred.
- Bachelor’s degree in Business Management, Food Science, Organizational Leadership, or a related field preferred.
- Associate degree required, or equivalent experience as determined by HR.
- This position directly supervises a team of 5 hourly production associates.
- Demonstrated ability to direct, coach, and develop a team of 15-20 associates on a daily basis.
- Leads by example to create and maintain a workplace culture that engages and motivates associates at all levels.
- Demonstrated ability to communicate and develop relationships across all levels and functions of the organization to support overall business success
- Strong Microsoft Office and PC skills, including Word, Excel, and Access.
- Ability to work extended days and/or weekends with flexibility to switch shifts as required.
- Aptitude for team building and employee engagement.
- Results-oriented with a focus on process improvement.
- Highly organized self-starter with the ability to work with limited direct supervision.
- Managing Complexity & Ambiguity: Makes timely decisions, prioritizes effectively, and drives progress with incomplete information.
- Change Leadership: Challenges the status quo and supports continuous improvement and adoption of new ways of working.
- Regulatory & Compliance Focus: Understands and follows applicable regulatory and company requirements.
- Accountability: Delivers on commitments, owns outcomes, and learns from mistakes.
- Integrity & Credibility: Acts with honesty and consistency and builds trust through reliable execution.
- Quality Mindset: Applies food safety and quality systems and reinforces standards.
- Communication & Customer Focus: Communicates clearly, adapts to the audience, and delivers responsive support.
- Energy & Initiative: Works independently, takes ownership, and follows through.
- Judgment: Uses facts and sound reasoning to make timely decisions.