Technical Engineering Intern

fairlife, LLC is a Chicago-based dairy company that creates great-tasting, nutrition-rich and value-added products to nourish consumers.

With more than $1B in annual retail sales, fairlife’s growing portfolio of delicious, lactose-free, real dairy products includes: fairlife® ultra-filtered milk; Core Power® High Protein Shakes, a sports nutrition drink to support post-workout recovery; fairlife® nutrition plan™, a nutrition shake to support the journey to better health.

A wholly owned subsidiary of The Coca-Cola company, fairlife, LLC has been recognized by both Fast Company and Nielsen for its industry leading innovation.

The company is driven by its values of caring for people, the animals that supply us with milk, and the planet. By providing nourishing products, implementing stringent care standards for animals, and stewarding efficient operations and responsible packaging, fairlife, LLC puts a focus each day on making a positive impact for all. 

To learn more about fairlife and its complete line of products, please visit fairlife.com.

about our internship program:

The fairlife Summer Internship Program is designed to welcome interns across our locations to gain meaningful experience and social and professional development opportunities. For 11 weeks, interns will work in one of our three locations: Chicago, IL, Coopersville, MI, or Goodyear, AZ. fairlife’s paid internship program also offers a summer full of social, professional, and community engagement events including exposure to our senior leadership and executives across the business in small group settings, insight into company initiatives, off-site field trips, and for those qualified and selected, an opportunity to pursue a full-time job opportunity.

The fairlife 2024 Summer Internship Program will take place from 6/3 through 8/16 at the fairlife specified in this job description.

job purpose: Technical Team Intern continuously supports the evaluation of all dairy processing equipment in our facilities, to include CIP systems, membranes filtration systems, HTST’s, separators, milk receiving systems, batching systems, & VTIS/UHT operations, for reliability and effectiveness tracking and documenting areas of success as well as driving opportunity areas for improvement and growth. In fulfilling this role, the Technical Team Intern works cross functionally with commercial, manufacturing, engineering, IT, quality, R&D, and other functions within fairlife, they will support the lead liaison in procuring new processing equipment while incorporating our learnings with new technologies and processes to improve quality, efficiencies, and speed to market.  

skills/qualifications required:

• Must be currently enrolled in a four-year undergraduate degree program, entering the fall semester as a junior or senior (preferred)
• Preferred focus in Process or Chemical Engineering
• Cumulative GPA of 3.0/4.0 or higher
• Self-starter; organized, take charge, positive & proactive attitude.
• Ability to communicate clearly within the organization and externally.
• Demonstrable teamwork and maturity with a strong work ethic.
• Ability to handle ambiguity and work in a fast paced, entrepreneurial environment.

learning objectives:

• Assist in defining the objectives of capacity expansion projects and support the process design from milk receiving to filling of bottles to achieve lowest risk design at lowest total cost of ownership.
• Support new line/plant design basis (mass balance, sku mix, process flow diagram, PID approval)
• Assisting in the developing and commercializing of new technologies and processes to improve quality, efficiency, and speed to market
• Support the review and update of functional specifications related to new processing equipment
• Support review of new and existing line/plant designs with focus in milk processing area to reduce food safety risk and improve the overall efficiency and cost of operations
• Assist in solving complex processing problems following escalation from plants; manage the process of escalation with plants to ensure timely resolution
• Support milk production process monitoring and situational awareness systems that enhance efficiency and reduce losses and total cost of ownership. Examples include design for extended run time, faster CIP turnaround, prediction of next CIP, energy recovery, water re-use, chemical re-use etc
• Document standards to improve the accuracy and efficiency of new and existing equipment
• Assure plant compliance to Federal, State and Corporate environmental laws, rules & regulations.
• Assure that the process complies with U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations, PMO, other regulatory requirements, Company policies, operating procedures, processes, and task assignments
• Effectively collaborate and coordinate with plant & project engineering teams to ensure all project work is performed on time and within budget
• Support commissioning and validation activities, review and execution of Factory Acceptance Test and Site Acceptance Test (FAT/SAT) protocols
• Support the documentation process to clearly communicate the design intent of all equipment installed new and existing to the plants key stakeholders 
• Provides verbal and written reports to communicate project status as required and contribute to project review meetings.
• Other duties as assigned.

working conditions and physical requirements:

• 10 hours sitting/standing/walking daily
• Ability to lift up to 50lbs.
• Reaching/bending requirements - Standard industrial operations
• Exposure to hazards (machinery, confined spaces, steam lines, high pressure air systems, chemical distribution systems etc.) daily

food safety requirements:

• Notify supervision of any repairs or adjustments that are required that may affect product quality or food safety.
• Understand, observe, and comply with the handling and usage of the color-coded container policy while in the Production Areas.
• Perform all duties necessary to meet Company, Customer and/or Government requirements/standards as prioritized by the Company.
• Ability to initiate action to prevent the occurrence of nonconformities relating to Food Safety and the Quality of the product, processes, quality system, or safety system.
• Identify and record any problems relating to Food Safety and the Quality of the ingredients, processes, quality system, or safety system.
• Control further processing or delivery of nonconforming product in terms of Food Safety and Quality issues until the deficiency or unsatisfactory condition has been corrected.
• In the event of absence, another employee with the same skill level will assume the duties and responsibilities as required.

internship location: Goodyear, AZ

schedule: On-site Monday-Friday, 40 hours per week

internship duration: 6/3/2024 through 8/16/2024

reports to: VP of Process Technology     

fairlife, LLC is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, disability, veteran status, or any other category protected by law. All qualified applicants and employees will be given equal opportunity. Selection decisions are based on job-related factors.

In addition to its nondiscrimination commitment, the Company will also provide reasonable accommodation of qualified individuals with known disabilities unless doing so would impose an undue hardship on the Company. If you have a disability and would like to request accommodation in order to apply for a position with us, please email [email protected].