St Augustine, Florida, United States
I strongly believe in promoting values such as sharing knowledge, creative problem-solving, and cultivating deep, meaningful relationships with those around me. Embracing these principles has yielded significant returns in terms of colleague engagement, fostering innovative solutions through on-the-spot thinking, and, most importantly, establishing a culture of paying it forward.
• Spearheaded and managed all aspects of customer Research and Development gummy needs, from initial concept to successful commercialization. • Conducted external research on moulding starch and executed DOE’s around starch moisture % and temperature of deposited gummy mass to prevent starch skin and boost product quality. • Successfully transitioned an internal Operations team member into an R&D technician role, fostering continuous professional development and contributing to the company’s innovation and growth. • Successfully optimized over 20 benchtop recipes for efficient production on fully automated gummy equipment. • Strategically leveraged industry networks to source high-quality commodity ingredients, achieving annual cost savings exceeding $100K. • Developed comprehensive product mass balance sheets and provided hands-on training to the Operations teams on precise dosing of color, flavor, acid, and active ingredients within a cooked gummy matrix.
• Orchestrated the planning and execution of a candy and confectionery laboratory within the IL edibles manufacturing facility that supported incoming edible innovation projects. • Designed and executed a comprehensive sensory program, encompassing affective, descriptive, and discrimination sensory assessments, to help expedite product development while dialing in on specific attributes within the edibles category. • Created ingredient mass balance sheets for our gelatin and pectin-based gummy formulas. These essential sheets were pivotal in our production process, allowing us to consistently achieve our target brix and cannabinoid potency levels after adding color, flavor, and acid components. Furthermore, these sheets proved invaluable in mitigating pre-gelling within our pectin-based formulas. • Collaborated extensively with the IL Edibles Production team to refine automated gummy equipment parameters such as mixing time and temperature setpoints, establishing target brix and pH values throughout the production process, and fine-tuning homogenized gummy mass cooking through a tube and shell cooker.
• Works in collaboration with the Brand, Sales, and Edibles Production Teams to develop and commercialize Incredibles chocolatey and gummy products in compliance with state regulations across different states. • Identified and acquired state-of-the-art chocolate manufacturing equipment, leading to the modernization of chocolate production across multiple production sites. • Created and published standard operating procedures for installing, operating, and maintaining various in-line chocolate equipment for Operators. • Devised testing designs that enhanced the automated manufacturing process's efficiency in Illinois, reducing chocolate rework and increasing first-time-right quality metric. • Conducted a comprehensive chocolate training program, covering ingredient overview, sensor training, and hands-on chocolate-making sessions for the edible production operators to enhance their ability to think on their feet during production.
• Responsible for the commercialization of chocolate and compound products for customers in the US mid-west region, which included offering a range of products such as full-sugar, sugar-free, and no added sugar options. • Worked closely with the Sales team to gain insight into customer product expectations, establish project timelines, and ensure the timely completion of key milestones to stay on track. • Formulated a variety of chocolate and compound finished products, such as coatings, drops, discs, and bars to meet the specific application requirements of our customers. • Provided technical expertise in chocolate and compound products to internal and external partners during production and specification development. • Specialized in testing enrobing equipment to provide product rheology data to customers for their specific application requirements. • Conducted various tests that included physical and chemical parameters, shelf-life, and sensory to assess the suitability of new raw ingredients such as emulsifiers, flavors, and specialty oils (cocoa butter equivalents/replacers).