Commissioning Engineer

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

With over $3B in annual retail sales, fairlife’s 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.

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

job purpose

The Commissioning Engineer will be a key member of fairlife’s Engineering Technical Team, primarily based at the Webster, NY plant. This role serves as the critical link between OEMs and multiple internal teams, owning the end-to-end commissioning process and closely supporting validation of processing and filler equipment for all brownfield and greenfield projects.

This role ensures proper installation, commissioning, and validation, and facilitates a smooth transition of ownership to plant operations and maintenance teams. It also provides strategic input during project conception and design phases to incorporate lessons learned and drive optimization in future initiatives.

responsibilities

• Ensure plant compliance with Federal, State, and Corporate environmental regulations  
• Ensure projects meet quality assurance requirements  
• Lead technical project reporting and status communications across teams  
• Drive startup planning to meet business objectives with optimized investment and operational costs  
• Collaborate with OEMs, quality teams, and operations readiness teams to coordinate commissioning and validation activities  
• Manage and optimize allocated commissioning hours with OEMs  
• Ensure equipment operates efficiently and that all documentation is complete for handover to operations  
• Oversee design, construction, modification, and maintenance of equipment during commissioning and validation  
• Incorporate best practices, design principles, and stakeholder feedback into project execution  
• Maintain equipment performance criteria in design specifications  
• Ensure OEM compliance with performance criteria post-commissioning  
• Conduct post-project evaluations and capture lessons learned in close-out reports  
• Partner with vendors and suppliers to leverage insights, training, and productivity

skills/qualifications

• Bachelor of Science in Engineering or related field  
• 5+ years in the dairy or beverage industry  
• 2+ years of project management experience  
• Self-starter with a proactive, positive attitude  
• Strong communication skills, both internal and external  
• Demonstrated teamwork, maturity, and strong work ethic  
• Experience in process plant engineering  
• Strong leadership capabilities

preferred qualifications

• Dairy processing and packaging experience  
• Strong understanding of process/product interactions and risk assessment  
• Deep knowledge of system capabilities and ability to deliver solutions within deadlines and budget  
• Strong negotiation and execution skills  
• Ability to manage ambiguity in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment  

location: Webster, NY
reports to: VP of Process Technologies
travel requirements: Up to 50%

exempt/nonexempt: exempt

*Base pay offered may vary depending on geography, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. A full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the position, is offered.

Base pay range:$115,000—$130,000 USD

fairlife, LLC is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. 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 disab