Process Engineer

About the role:

Sugar Australia is looking for a Process Engineer to join our team at the Mackay Racecourse Refinery on a permanent full-time basis.

Reporting to the Technical & Continuous Improvement Manager – Northern Loop, you'll play a key role in improving refinery performance through process optimisation, operational support and continuous improvement initiatives.

Working closely with production, quality and engineering teams, you'll provide technical process expertise, identify opportunities to improve plant efficiency, and support the delivery of capital and improvement projects. This role is ideal for someone who enjoys solving complex problems, analysing data and working collaboratively to drive meaningful improvements in a food manufacturing environment.

About the Mackay Racecourse Refinery:

Located in Mackay, our Racecourse Refinery is one of Australia's largest sugar refineries and plays a critical role in producing high-quality sugar products for customers across domestic and export markets. The site operates a complex manufacturing process supported by advanced processing, automation and packaging systems.

The sweet things you'll be involved in:

• Monitoring refinery performance and analysing production, process and material balance data to identify trends, losses and improvement opportunities
• Providing day-to-day technical process support to Production Managers, Shift Team Leaders and operational teams, including troubleshooting process-related issues
• Developing and implementing process improvement initiatives to increase production performance, improve efficiency and reduce operating costs
• Facilitating Root Cause Analysis (RCA) investigations and problem-solving activities to identify and address production and process related issues
• Maintaining refinery process models, process databases and operational reporting systems to support decision-making and continuous improvement
• Monitoring process material usage and investigating variances to improve operational outcomes
• Supporting refinery capital and improvement projects through process design input, technical expertise, commissioning and operational integration
• Developing and maintaining process documentation, operating procedures and process information systems
• Providing training and technical support to operational teams on new processes, equipment and best practice operating standards
• Ensuring activities are completed safely and in line with environmental, quality and regulatory requirements

What we're looking for:

We're looking for a technically minded engineer with strong analytical skills, a continuous improvement mindset and the ability to build effective working relationships across operational teams.

You will bring:

• A Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical, Mechanical or Metallurgical)
• Previous experience within a manufacturing, processing or industrial environment
• Experience within FMCG, food manufacturing or process industries
• Experience working in the Sugar industry (highly desirable)
• Strong analytical and problem solving capability
• Experience interpreting production and process data to drive performance improvements
• Exposure to continuous improvement methodologies such as Lean, Six Sigma or Root Cause Analysis
• Strong understanding of process optimisation and operational efficiency principles
• Experience supporting or delivering capital improvement projects
• Experience using MES systems, process modelling and data analytics tools
• Exposure to SAP systems (desirable)
• Strong communication and stakeholder engagement skills
• A proactive approach and genuine passion for continuous improvement

About Sugar Australia:

Sugar Australia has been a trusted name in Australian manufacturing for over 170 years and is a leading producer of sugar and ingredient solutions across retail, foodservice and industrial markets.

We operate refineries, packing facilities, bulk storage terminals and distribution sites across Australia, supporting some of the country's largest food and beverage brands alongside our well-known CSR Sugar retail products found in supermarkets nationwide.

With a strong operational footprint and manufacturing heritage, our teams play an important role in safely producing and moving essential products used in homes and businesses every day.

At Sugar Australia, our values of integrity, excellence, passion, innovation, teamwork and safety underpin the way we work and support one another across the business. We're committed to creating an environment that supports strong operational performance, continuous improvement and ongoing people development.

What we offer:

• Competitive salary and benefits package and exclusive corporate discounts
• Health and wellbeing programs, regular social events and employee recognition initiatives
• Ongoing learning and career development opportunities
• A friendly and collaborative culture with a strong focus on our people and our customers
• A proudly Australian business with over 170 years of history
• Access to our product range – perfect for those with a passion for baking

We are an equal opportunity employer and encourage applications from all backgrounds, identities and experiences.

Interested?

If you're a process engineer who enjoys using data, technical expertise and continuous improvement principles to solve problems and improve operational performance, we'd love to hear from you.

Apply today and be part of something sweet.