Job Vacancies at Sappi

As a Process Manager, you will be responsible for : 

• Continually seek opportunities for the enhancement of productivity and quality by applying Lean Manufacturing Principles.
• Manages the plant operations to ensure the optimum utilisation of all resources.
• Manages the shut process for effective execution.
• Reviewing, initiating and implementing BOP standards and procedures.
• Drive and mobilise the shift team and MDT to achieve OEE targets.
• Investigating and preventing CSR's.
• Ensuring the correct items are in stock to mitigate production risks.
• Set goals and appraises immediate subordinates.
• Ensures competency of all subordinates through adequate training, assessments and coaching.
• Coordinate and engage the MDT - prioritise work amongst all disciplines.
• Manage risks & ensure alignment between disciplines & ensure investigations are completed timeously.
• Ensure that reoccurrences of incidents are prevented & conduct RCA's & incidental work.
• Effective communication to all shifts i.e. strategy formulation, team goals, training plans & day-to-day interventions.
• Implement changes as and when required
• Holding people accountable through engagement and implement disciplinary action where necessary.
• Forecasts and prepares annual capital, fixed and variable cost budgets, controls these and reports monthly on status thereof.
• Overtime management and reporting thereof.
• Ensures that the section complies in all respects with the relevant statutory requirements (OHS Act, Environmental Regulations) by implementing the necessary control measures and rectifying non-conformances.
• Ensures plant’s conformance to the OHSAct 18000, ISO 9002 and ISO 14000 systems
• Communicates with the internal / external suppliers / customers
• Responds to customer feedback and takes corrective action when required.
• Understand & comply with all SHEQ requirements of the job.
• Carries out BBS Observations
• Identify and take corrective action in terms of SHEQ conditions and hazards.
• Maintains a high level of good housekeeping in the workplace at all times.
• Drive sustainability targets i.e. (fibre loss/energy usage and water usage)

  What are we looking for?

• BSc Degree or BTech or equivalent
• Computer Literate (Complete MS Office Package)
• SAP would be advantageous
• 5 - 8 years’ experience within a manufacturing environment.
• 2 years at supervisory level
• 3 years’ experience in a paper mill production environment would be advantageous.

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As a Chemical Technician, you will be responsible for:

• Perform tests in accordance with the testing regime
• Plan for and obtain laboratory consumables, chemicals, and equipment in advance
• Work out chemical stoichiometry and other analytical/pulp or process chemistry calculations
• Record, statistically validate, and store all test data into logbooks, log sheets, data sheets, notebooks, spreadsheets, and quality system
• Ensure that all procedures and calculations are technically and chemically sound (calculations, stoichiometry etc) and work according to established work instructions and best practices (ISO Apply effective problem-solving techniques to overcome analytical and equipment difficulties
• Supervise laboratory and personnel effectively by ensuring that good techniques and practices are applied
• Complete own testing competency and calibrate equipment according to lab schedule
• Ensure that the right quality of chemicals is prepared and used efficiently along with other consumables
• Comply with safety requirements when handling chemical hazards and follow the MSDS when handling spillage

What are we looking for?

• Diploma or equivalent NQF level 6 qualification in a relevant field such as Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Biotechnology, or Pulp and Paper
• BSc degree or BTech in a relevant Chemistry or Chemical Engineering will be advantageous
• 1- 3 years of experience in an industrial testing laboratory

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As a Team Leader, you will be responsible for:

• Plan and organize in-field and nursery activities on a weekly basis with both the manager and team members.
• Supervision of field crews, contractors and staff to complete daily work
• programmes.
• Conduct daily pre-work risk assessments, checklists and WSWP.
• Ensure that the correct PPE is used where necessary.
• Manage and assess the risks to staff during in field and nursery work throughput and quality on an ongoing basis to avoid injuries, loss of time and damage to equipment.
• Record data accurately and cross reference periodically to ensure accuracy.
• Report on a weekly basis with accurate and complete records. 
• Be available to travel for extended periods for trials.

What are we looking for?

• Grade 12 or NQF 4 equivalent.
• One year relevant experience. 
• Driver’s license.
• Basic computer skills are essential.
• Capable and willing to do physically demanding field work.

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As a Risk Technician, you will be responsible for:

• Conduct various internal and external audits (contractor audits, Supplier or Vendor audits, ISO Audit Safety Compliance audits.
• Follow-up on findings to ensure closure and implementation of corrective or preventative action
• Enforce compliance to life-saving rules, and legal, procedural, and other requirements and initiate disciplinary processes for non-compliance
• Provide technical advice to Management, Engineering, Contractors, and Employees mill-wide to ensure compliance with the OHS Act, Construction Regulations, SANS codes, policies, and other legislation
• Seek and recommend new methods procedures or standards for implementation/integration in or with existing systems/modules to improve Sappi’s compliance with World-Class standards
• Perform individual investigations and work with the Department of Labour to investigate undesired events, by gathering information to determine the underlying causes for; Personnel injuries/occupational illness/property damage incidents, reportable injuries/fatalities, toxic chemical release, or spillages
• Conduct informal checks on procedures, and work instructions and ensure that the plants adhere to the correct procedures for issuing General Work Permits
• Assist with general Mill induction, orientation, SHEQ awareness programs, and site-specific inductions. Assist in the determination of the correct safety training
• Facilitate Root Cause Analysis for Employee or Contractor injuries assist in compiling reports and facilitate weekly incident review meetings
• Perform the SHEQ superintendent functions for a portfolio of business areas as required
• Compile weekly and monthly safety statistics reports and ensure accurate record-keeping for all incidents

What are we looking for?

• NQF Level 6 in Safety Management while NQF Level 7 in Safety Management would be advantageous
• At least 3-5 years relevant experience in Pulp and Paper/Chemical Environment within a Safety environment.
• Knowledge of ISO Systems
• Certificates in HIRA, RCAT, and ISO auditing

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As a Handyman: Con Mon, you will be responsible for:

• Ensure data acquisition (vibration, oil samples, ultrasound, and temperature) on indicated equipment and machinery is done according to predetermined schedules
• Ensure that during data acquisition the general condition and any defects (abnormal sound, water leaks, excessive shaking, and vibrations, etc) of the equipment or machinery are observed, recorded, and reported to the Plant Engineer/Technician and ConMon Technician for resolution
• Discuss deviations and follow-up actions with Condition Monitoring (ConMon) Technicians
• Maintain healthy and stable working relations with colleagues within the department and the mill as a whole
• Work independently while knowing when to seek help and network across Engineering and Maintenance disciplines
• Contribute to the department in setting best industry practices and standards

What are we looking for?

• NQF4 qualification (Matric or N3)
• 2 years as a General Worker with some basic knowledge of condition monitoring and machinery like pumps, motors, gearboxes, and bearings.

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As a Data Engineer you will be responsible for:

• Design, build, and maintain scalable and reliable data pipelines to process large volumes of data from various sources.
• Develop and maintain data models, databases, and data warehouses to support business analytics and reporting needs.
• Ensure data quality and accuracy by implementing data validation and monitoring processes.
• Collaborate with business, data scientists, analysts, and other stakeholders to understand their data needs and provide solutions to support their work.
• Implement and comply with the data governance policies and related controls and ensure all security and compliance standards are upheld.
• Collaborate and coordinate with multiple departments, stakeholders, partners, and external vendors to develop effective solutions
• Provide support to other teams regarding any optimization or troubleshooting on the performance of the application to avoid errors.
• Perform ongoing monitoring, automation and refinement of implemented solutions.
• Design and build highly available, scalable, and fault-tolerant data infrastructure to support data processing.
• Develop and maintain infrastructure automation tools, deployment pipelines, and monitoring systems.
• Collaborate with engineers, data scientists, and analysts to ensure the availability and performance of the data infrastructure.
• Evaluate new data technologies and tools that enhance the performance and reliability of the data infrastructure and drive adoption within the data community.

What are we looking for:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• 3+ years of experience in data engineering or related fields.
• Proficiency in at least one programming language (Python, C#, etc.) and SQL.
• Proven experience with data modelling, ETL processes, and data warehousing.
• Experience with cloud platforms such as AWS, GCP, or Azure.
• Experience with DevOps practices, including automated deployment, CI and CD.
• Experience with Big Data, Advance Analytics, Data Warehousing and Business Intelligence.
• Experience with Cloud security groups, permissions, VPC, roles and services.
• Ability to multitask and manage workload with minimal supervision.
• Ability to collaborate and build relationships with people at all levels.
• Strong analytical skills with heightened problem-solving ability.
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written.
• Must be willing to travel.

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As a Quality Control Laboratory – Shift Supervisor, you will be responsible for: 

• Ensure effective running of the groundwood lab, wet-end lab, and paper laboratory.
• Ensure that the team/shift uses the correct methods of testing. 
• Identify possible errors in testing methods and take corrective action. 
• Must be fully conversant with ISO 9001 test methods and testing procedures and be able to assist the analyst, should the need arise.
• Ensure proper calibration of equipment and functioning of equipment. 
• Responsible for any non-routine special test that needs to be carried out during the shift.
• Responsible for on-the-job training of new recruits on shift.
• Liaise closely with the plant regarding quality results and the status of the product, advising them timeously of quality trends and the possibility of cull paper. 
• Responsible for keeping an up-to-date record of attendance for shift employees on SAP 
• Organises call-outs in the case of absenteeism/leave.
• Responsible for the good housekeeping and safety of all three laboratories during the shift.

What are we looking for?

• Grade 12 with Maths and Physical Science/ N3 Pulp and Paper Making
• Relevant Post- Matric qualification will be advantageous
• 3-5 years relevant working experience
• Supervisory experience will be advantageous
• Experience in pulp and paper making will be advantageous

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As a Finance Officer: Accounts Payable, you will be responsible to: 

• Review invoice payment processes weekly to identify discrepancies and re-submit to Creditors Clerks to investigate and resolve
• Track volumes of work daily to determine capacity and gaps and re-allocating and re-distributing tasks to provide adequate capacity in the department. 
• Clear Goods Receipt Invoice Receipt (GRIR) once the necessary checks and corrections relating to unpaid invoices and statements have been made by the Creditors Clerks on GRIR and approved by the Financial Accountant.    
• Review the cash flow forecasts for all foreign payments for Sappi Southern Africa to confirm that all processes have been completed to enable the projected cash flows to pull through and to address potential problems. The confirmed forecasts are submitted to the Financial Manager (Accounts payable) for approval and sign-off
• Compile and scrutinise all reconciliations, raw material statements, including the SES reconciliations and Service Level Agreement schedule, to confirm accuracy and to refer discrepancies to Creditors Clerks for investigation and correction where necessary.  
• Monitor vendors and related accounts payable processes, recommends or improves processes to prevent recurrence of problems and escalates un-resolved issues to relevant departments to review, amend and/or implement
• Assist Business Process Engineer to related system changes
• Conduct performance reviews of Creditors Clerks and provides guidance to improve/enhance performance to meet required standards.  
• Keep Financial Manager abreast of all matters related to Accounts Payable

What are we looking for?

• 3-year Diploma in Accounting while a Degree in Accounting would be considered advantageous
• 3 years experience as a Supervisor and managing people in a large department. 
• 3 years experience in an Accounts Payable Department.
• Advanced MS Office / SAP / FI.

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As a Automation/Electrical - Technician, you will be responsible for:

• Ensure equipment uptime, calibration, and optimisation of all electrical, electronic, and instrumentation equipment used to serve the purpose of Sappi such as PLC's, AC and DC Drives, DCS, protection equipment, measuring equipment, communication equipment, controllers, SLCs, UPSs, battery chargers and any other equipment that uses, switches, controls or generates electricity to perform some or another function. Concerning all the equipment the Technician covers both hard- and software.
• Assist with solving everyday plant problems having a complexity that reaches beyond the trained knowledge of Artisans and foremen, decreasing plant downtime, by making decisions, using specialised techniques with the aid of specialised measuring equipment.
• Fault finding and repair on equipment up to card level depending on the availability of the relevant spares.
• Reports such problems to direct supervisor and Master Technician, investigate possible causes, research all possible solutions and make a choice to the best solution and provide recommendations for most effective and economical solutions to prevent re-occurrence.
• Manage and execute preventative- and improvement steps, making use of the support of maintenance personnel or contractors depending on the nature of the specific task.
• Ensure compliance with engineering standards of work done by inspecting and commissioning plant modifications.
• Ensures accurate documentation updates according to Ngodwana Management of Change procedure.
• Obtain information and knowledge from suppliers of equipment installed during a project. Knowledge obtained to transfer to fellow technicians, section engineers, artisans, and foremen, by compiling manuals. Double checks such manuals set up by junior technicians and technicians.
• Give on-the-job training to Artisans and Foremen.
• Research possibilities of increasing performance and effectivity of equipment, by continually keeping up with technology through supplier technical releases, attending demonstrations, training courses, and presentations supplied by contractors.
• Advising the Master Technician about such new methods and systems.
• Investigate, compile the scope of work, and cost calculations, monitor installations, compile and follow up on punch lists, and ensure proper documentation.
• Compiling of fault-finding, calibration, and optimisation procedures for new equipment to be used by maintenance personnel and other technicians.
• Identify training requirements needed for daily tasks performed by Artisans and Foremen.
• Identify measuring and fault-finding equipment requirements and ensures artisans have the know-how to fully utilise such equipment.
• Submit monthly and weekly reports on section activity for Electrical Engineer.

What are we looking for?

• NQF6: N. Diploma or equivalent
• SAP knowledge will be advantageous
• National Diploma
• Heavy industry experience – 3 years