Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for a Juice Operator

🎯 Role Definition

As a Juice Operator, you are the hands-on expert at the heart of our production facility. You will be responsible for transforming raw ingredients into the delicious, high-quality juices our customers love. This role is not just about running machines; it's about taking ownership of the entire juice production process, from precise ingredient blending to meticulous quality control and final packaging. You will be a crucial member of our operations team, ensuring every bottle meets our stringent standards for safety, quality, and consistency. This role requires a proactive, detail-oriented individual who thrives in a dynamic manufacturing environment and is passionate about producing best-in-class beverage products.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Production Associate
Warehouse Worker
Food Manufacturing Laborer
Machine Operator (General)

Advancement To:

Lead Operator / Team Lead
Production Supervisor
Quality Assurance Technician
Maintenance Technician (with additional training)

Lateral Moves:

Blending or Batching Specialist
Logistics & Inventory Coordinator

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Batching & Blending: Accurately execute complex batching and blending operations by precisely measuring, weighing, and mixing raw ingredients according to detailed formula specifications and production schedules.
Processing Equipment Operation: Skillfully operate and monitor critical beverage processing equipment, including industrial blenders, pasteurizers, homogenizers, and holding tanks, to ensure all product specifications are consistently met.
Filling & Packaging Line Management: Manage the end-to-end operation of high-speed filling and packaging lines, including aseptic fillers, cappers, labelers, and case packers, ensuring seamless production flow and minimal downtime.
Quality Control & Assurance: Perform vital in-process quality control checks, such as Brix, pH, acidity, and temperature tests, to guarantee product consistency and strict adherence to internal and external quality standards.
Sanitation & Food Safety: Conduct thorough Clean-In-Place (CIP) and Clean-Out-of-Place (COP) procedures on all processing, filling, and packaging equipment to maintain the highest levels of sanitation and food safety.
Documentation & Record-Keeping: Diligently complete and maintain accurate production records, batch logs, quality assurance paperwork, sanitation logs, and operational checklists using both paper and digital systems.
Troubleshooting & Maintenance: Proactively identify, diagnose, and troubleshoot minor mechanical issues and operational disruptions on the production line to minimize downtime and maintain peak efficiency, escalating complex problems to the maintenance team.
Compliance & Safety Adherence: Strictly adhere to all company safety policies, Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) procedures, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), HACCP guidelines, and SQF protocols to ensure a safe and compliant work environment for the entire team.
Material Handling: Safely operate material handling equipment, such as forklifts and electric pallet jacks, to transport raw materials, packaging supplies, and finished goods throughout the facility.
Process Monitoring & Control: Attentively monitor control panels and Human-Machine Interfaces (HMI) to regulate critical process variables like temperature, pressure, and flow rates throughout the entire production cycle.
Product & Packaging Inspection: Visually inspect raw materials upon receipt and finished products throughout the packaging process for any defects, contamination, or inconsistencies in sealing, labeling, and coding.
Equipment Changeovers: Efficiently manage the changeover process for equipment between different product runs, ensuring machinery is properly cleaned, sanitized, set up, and calibrated for the next batch.
Product Coding & Traceability: Ensure correct coding, dating, and labeling of all products, verifying legibility and accuracy to meet all regulatory and internal traceability requirements.
Inventory Management: Monitor inventory levels of ingredients and packaging materials at your workstation, communicating needs to supervisors or the supply chain team to prevent production shortages.
Finished Goods Handling: Ensure all finished product pallets are correctly stacked, stretch-wrapped, and tagged for transfer to the warehouse, verifying pallet counts and product information for accurate inventory tracking.
Sample Collection: Take and properly label product samples at various critical production stages for laboratory analysis, ensuring sample integrity and accurate documentation for quality assurance.
Waste Reduction: Actively monitor material usage and equipment performance to identify opportunities to minimize product waste, ingredient loss, and utility consumption.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis related to production efficiency and quality trends.
Contribute to the organization's continuous improvement culture by suggesting process enhancements and participating in improvement projects.
Collaborate with business units, including Quality, Maintenance, and Warehousing, to translate data needs and operational challenges into engineering and process requirements.
Participate in sprint planning, daily huddles, and other agile ceremonies within the production and data engineering teams to drive performance.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Beverage Processing Equipment: Hands-on experience operating pasteurizers, blenders, fillers, and cappers.
GMP & HACCP: Strong working knowledge of Good Manufacturing Practices and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points in a food-grade environment.
CIP/Sanitation Protocols: Proficiency in performing Clean-In-Place (CIP) and manual cleaning procedures on industrial equipment.
Mechanical Aptitude: Ability to perform basic mechanical troubleshooting and minor machine adjustments.
Forklift Operation: Certified or able to become certified to operate a forklift and other material handling equipment.
Quality Control Testing: Experience with basic lab equipment for testing quality parameters like pH and Brix.
HMI/Computer Literacy: Comfortable using Human-Machine Interfaces (HMIs) and basic computer software for data entry and process monitoring.

Soft Skills

Attention to Detail: Meticulous and thorough in executing tasks, from following recipes to completing paperwork.
Problem-Solving: A proactive mindset to identify issues, analyze root causes, and implement effective solutions.
Teamwork & Communication: Excellent ability to work collaboratively with colleagues, supervisors, and other departments.
Adaptability: Ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment and adapt to changing production schedules and priorities.
Time Management: Strong organizational skills to manage multiple tasks and responsibilities efficiently.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

High School Diploma or GED equivalent.

Preferred Education:

Associate's Degree or a Technical Certificate.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Food Science
Manufacturing Technology
Industrial Maintenance

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 1-3 years of experience in a food and beverage, CPG, or pharmaceutical manufacturing environment.

Preferred: 3+ years of direct experience as a machine operator in liquid processing, blending, or aseptic/hot-fill bottling operations.