Lead Process Engineer - Fluid Milk

Lead Process Engineer – Fluid Milk

Why Byrne

At Byrne, we foster a culture built on teamwork, excellence, and professionalism. Our greatest strength lies in the exceptional talent and dedication of our team members across every part of the organization. We value their contributions and ensure they’re recognized, rewarded, and compensated in ways that reflect their impact and expertise.

Pay and Benefits

• Salary Range – $125,000 - $152,500 per year
• Competitive bonus programs
• Medical, Dental, Vision benefits available day 1 of employment
• Supplemental benefits available on day 30 of employment
• Eligible for 401 (k) with a company match available on day 90 of employment
• Educational Support via tuition reimbursement and scholarship program

Work Shift and Location

6750 Benedict Road W East Syracuse, NY 13057

Monday – Friday 1^st shift

Job Overview

The Lead Process Engineer – Fluid Milk plays a key role in executing assigned Engineering tasks. This includes being the functional owner of fluid dairy processing systems across multiple facilities, including receiving, batching, pasteurization, and upstream process distribution to filling operations.  This role is accountable for process performance, reliability, and standardization, and ensures fluid milk processes are designed, modified, and operated to meet production, quality, and business objectives. 

Key Responsibilities

• Own performance of all fluid dairy processes, including receiving, storage, transfer, batching, and pasteurization.
• Drive continual improvements in reliability, OEE, yield, and stability.
• Identify and eliminate chronic sources of downtime and variability.
• Maintain awareness of system constraints, risks, and capabilities.
• Ensure consistency of process-related performance, best practices, and designs across Byrne facilities.
• Lead organization-wide initiatives to standardize equipment, instrumentation, operation, and capabilities in line with business requirements.
• Maintain regular on-site presence and engagement with plant leadership, maintenance teams, and operations groups.
• Lead fluid process engineering design, scope, and specifications for capital and operational projects, including process flow, equipment selection, instrumentation configurations, functional descriptions, and visualization mockups.
• Collaborate effectively within project-based teams for execution of assigned projects.
• Ensure designs prioritize reliability, operability, maintainability, and scalability.
• Review and approve all process engineering deliverables.
• Develop, implement, and maintain process engineering standards, best practices, and documentation.
• Harmonize process design and control philosophies across projects and sites
• Evaluate new equipment, technology, vendors, and solutions for strategic value
• Define, maintain, and communicate process design and control philosophies and functional descriptions for equipment and processes.
• Partner with Operations Technology team to implement control logic and visualization changes, maintain overall stability of process systems, and ensure proper integration of process and automation systems. Automation governance is owned by the Operations Technology function.
• Directly supervise and develop Process Engineers for a high-performing team supporting operations and project design/execution.
• Set clear expectations for performance, accountability, and professional growth, aligning team skills and capacity with business needs.
• Provide coaching, mentorship, and technical guidance to Process Engineers, plant leadership, maintenance teams, and operations personnel.
• Ensure effective distribution of knowledge, resources, and coverage within the engineering team.
• Escalates cross-functional or organization-level issues and concerns to Director of Engineering as appropriate.
• Serve as primary escalation point for Process Engineers for complex or high-impact process issues.
• Support operations and maintenance with timely, practical solutions for short- and long-term reliability, performance, and stability improvements.
• Lead or participate in root cause analysis events for significant or recurring issues.
• Promote and reinforce a culture of safety, quality, and continuous improvement.

Min. Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree with 5 years experience in dairy, beverage, or fluid process manufacturing, or GED/High school diploma with 10 years experience, in dairy, beverage, or fluid process manufacturing.
• Demonstrated experience as subject matter expert, capital project leader, and our continuous improvement leader.
• Demonstrated experience leading technical teams.
• 3-5 years of dairy process experience.
• 3-5 years of process automation or controls integration experience.
• Experience working in multi-site manufacturing environments.

Byrne

Headquartered in LaFayette, Byrne is a Central New York-based dairy company with a legacy spanning over 90 years. Its operations include an extended shelf-life (ESL) and ultra-high temperature (UHT) pasteurization plant in DeWitt, as well as an ESL manufacturing facility in Cortlandville. Byrne also maintains warehouse facilities in Syracuse and East Syracuse, along with a dedicated ice cream center in Syracuse. As a recognized industry leader, Byrne continues to drive innovation at the forefront of dairy processing and product development.