Qualification and Experience

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Chemical, Mechanical, or Industrial Engineering, or related discipline.
  
• Minimum of 20 years’ experience in sugar refining or comparable continuous process industries.
  
• At least 5 years in a senior management or executive role overseeing plant operations.
  

1. Sugar Refining Operations

• Lead and optimize all stages of sugar refining:affination, clarification, filtration, evaporation, crystallization, centrifugation, drying, and packaging.
  
• Ensure efficient raw sugar melt and purification processes to achieve required colour and quality specifications.
  
• Monitor and improve sucrose recovery, massecuite performance, and sugar losses across the refining cycle.
  

2. Production & Yield Optimization

• Drive initiatives to maximize refinery throughput and recovery rates while minimizing process losses (molasses, filter cake, moisture).
  
• Establish and monitor mass balance systems and process KPIs.
  
• Optimize steam consumption, energy use, and cycle times across operations.
  

3. Engineering, Utilities & Maintenance

• Oversee Engineering and Maintenance functions, ensuring high equipment uptime and reliability.
  
• Ensure optimal performance of critical refinery assets such as evaporators, vacuum pans, centrifugals, dryers, and packaging systems.
  
• Manage utilities including boilers, turbines, compressed air, and water treatment systems.
  
• Drive Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) and predictive maintenance strategies.
  

4. Quality Control & Food Safety

• Provide oversight for Quality Control laboratories and processes.
  
• Ensure compliance with ICUMSA standards, food safety systems (HACCP, ISO 22000), and regulatory requirements.
  
• Maintain product specifications including colour, grain size, moisture, and purity.
  

5. Cost Control & Resource Management

• Optimize the use of energy, chemicals (lime, phosphoric acid), water, and raw materials.
  
• Drive reduction in cost per tonne of refined sugar.
  
• Manage operational budgets with strong fiscal discipline.
  

6. Technology & Process Improvement

• Champion automation (DCS/SCADA), digital monitoring, and process control systems.
  
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives (Lean, Six Sigma) to enhance productivity and reduce waste.
  
• Drive refinery modernization and capacity expansion projects.
  

7. Leadership & Stakeholder Management

• Provide integrated leadership across Production, Engineering, Utilities, and Quality Control teams.
  
• Develop a strong technical leadership pipeline and succession plans.
  
• Manage relationships with regulators, vendors, consultants, and host communities.
  

8. HSSE & Sustainability

• Ensure strict adherence to Health, Safety, Security, and Environmental (HSSE) standards.
  
• Drive initiatives in energy efficiency, emissions reduction, and sustainable operations.