Process & Recoveries Engineer

Job description

Zambia Sugar Plc. is a subsidiary of Illovo Sugar Africa (Pty) Ltd Group and is the leading sugar producer in Zambia. Its main activities are the growing of sugar cane, the production and marketing of sugar and other sugar downstream products.

We’re seeking a motivated Factory Process & Recoveries Engineer (Optimisation) to join our team! In this role, you’ll analyze key metrics, uncover insights that contribute to strategic decision-making that drives business growth.

POSITION: PROCESS & RECOVERIES ENGINEER – OPTIMISATION (x 1) D3 PERMANENT
This position reports to the Factory Optimisation Manager. The successful candidate will be responsible for the following:

Key Responsibilities

Develop in-Country medium- and long-term Optimisation Strategy (by discipline) to optimise reliability, performance, quality and cost of production
Contribute to the in-Country Production Optimization Strategy with the objective of effectively optimizing performance and cost of Illovo’s production
Drive production, recovery and extraction initiatives that will deliver products at volume, cost and quality levels that drive profitability.
Drive synergies with the group, effectively partnering with group counterparts to identify, share and embed opportunities for production optimisation.
Provide expertise on complex, multi-faceted production issues, support and advice on solutions.
Model and simulate factory balance to understand bottlenecks and key efficiency drivers, and use the model to propose solutions, drawing on factory real time data
Set direction, implement and monitor continuous improvement by driving work practices, and ensuring that tools and techniques are being applied to deliver high quality products made in a safe and sustainable manner at the highest extraction rate.
Contribute to production & Supply Side plans and monitoring of compliance to plans.
Optimise the cost of production
Conduct regular internal and external benchmarking exercises to identify and develop Production best practices and improvement opportunities
Manage and coordinate sharing of identified best practices, frameworks and minimum standards within function across entities and through the Head Office platform and provide additional opportunities for problem identification and knowledge sharing.
Address all technical process audit findings.
Build a strong technical team and talent pipeline for Production Optimisation through ongoing coaching, mentoring, guidance and technical training
Ensure enablers are in place to promote success (e.g. systems and processes)
Management of technical standards, MOPS, TOPS, process specifications, best practices and policies and the governance thereof.
Identify and monitor KPIs to track performance and flag any issues
Promote and adhere to Illovo’s procedures, policies and guidelines, including, without limitation, those relating to SHERQ, Competition Law and Anti-Bribery and Corruption (ABC)

Minimum Requirements

Chemical Engineering Degree or equivalent, ideally supported by further technical development courses – SMRI course or equivalent will be an added advantage.
5 Years’ experience in manufacturing and a sound knowledge of sugar factories.
Track record of technical leadership experience
Good data analysis and interpretation skills
Strong understanding of current business processes and data systems incl. SAP4HANA
Member of the Engineering Institute of Zambia.
Suitably qualified applicants must provide certificates which have been verified by the Zambia Qualifications Authority- (ZAQA).

Should you be interested in applying for this role, please submit your detailed CV, copies of relevant qualifications, registrations and ID/Passport for the attention of HR Business Partner
Email: careers@zamsugar.zm indicating “Application – Process & Recoveries Engineer” in the subject line.

Closing date for applications is 23rd May 2025.

Applicants shall be required to complete pre-employment checks (qualification, credit, security, background, and medical assessments) as part of the recruitment process where applicable.

Should you not hear from us within 4 weeks after the closing date, please accept that your application was unsuccessful.