Extruder Operator, Blue Buffalo

Extruder Operator

• $21.50 per hour
• Additional $1.00 per hour shift differential
• 12 hour shifts
• Hiring for Night Shift (6:45 pm to 7 am)
• Great 1st day benefits

About Blue Buffalo Heartland:

Love them like family, feed them like family.” Everything at Blue Buffalo starts with this simple idea.

This is an exciting time to be part of the Blue Buffalo family, as the company is on a journey to revolutionize relationships with consumers (Pet Parents). Joplin is home to the original manufacturing facility for Blue Buffalo and has the capability to manufacture several varieties of dry dog and cat food. The Pet segment is unique in the General Mills’ portfolio because of the deep integration with the business and Supply Chain. There truly is no place like BLUE.

We are looking for buffs who come to the table with a shared passion for making food the world loves, to solve problems and shape General Mills - Blue Buffalo for the future. As a part of our manufacturing group, you will be responsible for supporting production packaging and processing operations, sanitation and participation in startup, changeover, and shutdown of extrusion operating equipment.

General Mills – Blue Buffalo encourages growth for our employees; if you want to learn new things, attain and prove competency quickly, and apply technology in the manufacturing space.

Extruder Operator

What your compensation will look like:

• $21.50 per hour
• Shift differential
  • Additional $1.00 per hour when working between the hours of 7pm – 7am

What your benefits look like:

• Up to 10 days (120 hours) of vacation a year and 11 paid company holidays
• Great paid time off benefits
• 401(k) match  
• Health Insurance - includes medical, dental, vision, and life
• Pet Parent Perks - includes pet and pet adoption reimbursement
• AND much more

What your schedule will look like:

• 12-hour shifts - 3 on, 2 off, 2 on, 3 off, schedule
  • Night shift: 6:45 pm to 7 am
• Currently hiring for Night Shift
• Ability and willingness to work overtime, any shift, including days, nights, weekends, and holidays
• Plant operation is 24 hours a day, 7 days per week

What your day will look like:

• Creating high quality pet foods and treats that are eaten EVERYDAY, NATIONWIDE
• Using TECHNOLOGY in an industry-leading facility
• Working with HIGH-LEVEL operators on EXPERIENCED teams that are looking to pass down their knowledge to workers WILLING TO LEARN and get paid doing it
• CHALLENGING yourself to get the JOB DONE RIGHT and gain skills to take with you to your next opportunity
  • Troubleshoot problems with machinery and partner with maintenance staff to resolve issues
  • Calibrate and monitor extrusion processing systems daily to meet required specifications
  • Participate in startup, setup, changeover, and shut down of operating equipment
  • Participate in Continuous Improvement initiatives to increase platform performance
  • Assist in training new employees

What you have to offer:

• Minimum of a high school education or GED
• Mechanical/technical experience in manufacturing or related field preferred
• Experience in a manufacturing/production environment preferred

What your growth will look like:

• Be a part of a team that will learn and grow
• Develop leadership skills, that will allow you to focus on new KNOWLEDGE and ability to adopt and implement those ideas
• Ability to operate within a safety culture
• Expanded technical capabilities

Physical requirements:

• Must be able to lift up to 50 lbs
• Must be able to perform physical tasks for extended periods of time including standing, walking, climbing, bending, pushing, pulling, and twisting over surfaces
• Ability to climb and/or work at heights while utilizing stairs, ladders, personnel lifts, or platforms
• Ability to wear protective clothing and equipment such as safety shoes, face masks, safety glasses, hearing protection, a hard hat, a hair/beard net, and gloves when required
• Willing and able to adhere to all grooming requirements necessary for a food manufacturing environment
• Ability to work in hot, cold, noisy, dusty, wet environmental working conditions
• Willing to work around industrial high-speed moving machinery
• Ability to work with allergens that might be present in a food environment
• Need to be able to work in a tobacco free environment

We exist to make food the world loves. But we do more than that. Our company is a place that prioritizes being a force for good, a place to expand learning, explore new perspectives and reimagine new possibilities, every day. We look for people who want to bring their best — bold thinkers with big hearts who challenge one other and grow together. Because becoming the undisputed leader in food means surrounding ourselves with people who are hungry for what’s next.