Packaging Equipment Specialist at AVI Limited

Job Description

Build your career behind biscuits South Africans know and love.

• Join the Snackworks Isando Biscuits Factory and become part of a business with a proud biscuit-making legacy and some of South Africa’s most iconic brands.
•  From production and engineering to quality, planning, maintenance and supply chain, you’ll work alongside specialist teams in a hands-on manufacturing environment where your contribution matters.
• Build your skills, take ownership and grow your career behind iconic brands with Snackworks.
• Grow, Innovate, Succeed! We have an incredible opportunity for a Packaging Equipment Specialist at NBL Isando Biscuits in Kempton Park, Gauteng. In this role, you will be responsible for Maintenance- and Project support, training and upskilling of artisans and operators. Continuous  improvement of packaging and biscuit handling processes.

Reporting Structure:

• Reports to: Packaging Equipment Lead

Key Areas of Impact:

Key Outputs:

Optimised maintenance support:

• Equipment uptime and efficiency
• Audits on equipment in line with OEM standards
• Ensure availability and reliability of equipment for area of responsibility
• Assist with high level breakdowns
• Analyse breakdowns and provide recommendation to reduce downtime for area of responsibility
• Assist with development and maintaining a problem-solving culture at a high level through facilitating and sustaining root cause analysis practices
• Advise on maintenance strategies
• Set standards of stock requirements (critical spares, slow moving, redundant) for all packaging equipment
• Provide input for the upkeep of site engineering standards specification documents
• Monitoring and evaluating of artisan tasks according to the CMMS – Asset care system
• Review and improvement of existing maintenance practices
• Implementation of condition monitoring activities

Project support:

• Equipment, installation and start up support
• Identify areas of maintenance and service projects
• Assist with the reviewing OEM recommended spares and identification and classification of critical spares
• Participate in scoping and procurement of new plant equipment to ensure adherence to site engineering standards
• Facilitation of relationships with original equipment manufacturers contractors and suppliers
• Management and planning of new installations, upgrades and modifications to the existing plant in a safe and effective manager
• Ensure compliance to all relevant procedures
• Assist with commissioning and handover of projects
• Write motivational documents for capital expenditure
• Implementation of capital plans that are approved, planning, overseeing installations, sticking to time plans.

Training and upskilling of operators and artisans:

• Assist with updating and implementation of skills matrix
• Co-ordination of training with OEM’s and local training departments
• Development of Artisan teams, project teams, development of Graduates

Continuous Improvement:

• Identify areas of improvement in packaging and biscuit handling processes and lead the execution of initiatives to capatilise on these improvements to strengthen product quality, reduce inefficiencies and improve labour utilisation (core output).
• Identify areas of improvement across maintenance planning and execution
• Identify areas of improvement in planning and execution of projects

Health and Safety

• Ensure compliance by resources / suppliers to the company safety policies and procedures
• Ensure that engineering and installations comply legally from a compliance, equipment, facilities point of view, how we manufacture and what is manufactured
• Ensure equipment compliance with relevant safety regulations, including the General Machinery and Driven Machinery Regulations
• Ensure equipment is installed and maintained in such a manner that Food Safety is not compromised
• Ensure standard of utilities (water and compressed air) adhere to Food Safety Standards

What It Takes to Succeed:

Experience that set you up for success:                       

• 5 - 8 years of experience in packaging engineering or similar environment
• Relevant experience such as working with vertical form fill seal machines, case packers, case sealers, shrink wrappers, stretch wrappers, cartoners, flow wrappers, delta robots, articulate palletizing robots flat belt conveyors, roller conveyors, merge conveyors, modular conveyors, vibrating conveyors, spiral conveyors and slat conveyors will be advantageous.
• Proven track record of successfully completed Continuous Improvement Projects (Advantageous)

Qualifications & Certifications that will contribute to your success:

• Completed tertiary qualification (NDip; BTech; BEng) in Mechanical Engineering or Completed Millwright Trade Test
• Continuous improvement certification/qualification or completed short course (Advantageous)

Closing Date 07 September 2026