Manufacturing Engineer – Blown Film Extrusion

Flexible Food Packaging | 100% On-site in Tijuana, B.C.

Job Details

Location: Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
Work arrangement: 100% on-site
Schedule: Monday through Friday, 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Occasional Saturday work may be required.
Industry: Flexible Plastic Packaging / Food Packaging Manufacturing
Company: Confidential
Job type: Full-time

Important Location Notice

Although this posting may appear under a remote or home-office category because of the platform’s national reach settings, this is not a remote position.

The selected candidate must work on-site and live in—or be genuinely willing to relocate to—Tijuana, Baja California.

Position Summary

We are recruiting a Manufacturing Engineer for a confidential, growing manufacturer of custom flexible plastic packaging for the food industry.

The company operates a vertically integrated manufacturing process that includes:

- Multilayer blown film extrusion and coextrusion.
- Polyethylene film manufacturing.
- Flexographic printing.
- Slitting and converting.
- Bag-making and rollstock production.
- Food-grade flexible packaging manufacturing.

Direct experience with blown film extrusion is the primary technical requirement for this position. Candidates whose experience is limited to general manufacturing, injection molding, rigid plastics, automotive assembly, or packaging operations without film extrusion exposure will not be considered an ideal match.

The Manufacturing Engineer will work closely with Production, Maintenance, Quality, Purchasing, and Management to improve extrusion stability, product quality, equipment reliability, throughput, food safety compliance, and manufacturing costs.

This is a hands-on position requiring regular presence on the production floor and availability to support a multi-shift manufacturing operation when necessary.

Key ResponsibilitiesBlown Film Extrusion and Process Engineering

- Provide direct technical support to blown film extrusion and multilayer coextrusion operations.
- Analyze and optimize extrusion parameters, including temperature profiles, output rates, film thickness, gauge variation, blow-up ratio, cooling, winding, and line speed.
- Troubleshoot film defects and process instability, including gauge inconsistency, wrinkles, blocking, poor winding, gels, contamination, bubble instability, weak seals, and printing or converting issues.
- Support the selection and control of polyethylene resins, additives, blends, and film structures used in food-grade packaging.
- Lead process trials involving resins, film structures, specifications, equipment settings, and new products.
- Standardize operating conditions and document approved process parameters.
- Improve film quality, consistency, machinability, yield, and production throughput.

Continuous Improvement

- Analyze manufacturing processes to identify opportunities involving productivity, quality, safety, waste, and cost.
- Lead improvement projects across extrusion, flexographic printing, slitting, and converting operations.
- Establish and monitor KPIs related to output, scrap, downtime, labor utilization, line efficiency, quality, and yield.
- Conduct root cause analysis and implement sustainable corrective and preventive actions.
- Reduce scrap, resin loss, changeover time, unplanned downtime, and process variability.
- Develop and maintain SOPs, work instructions, process specifications, and technical documentation.
- Apply Lean Manufacturing, 5S, standard work, and structured problem-solving methods.

Production Support

- Work directly with operators, technicians, supervisors, and production managers on the manufacturing floor.
- Troubleshoot process and equipment issues affecting output, quality, or delivery performance.
- Support operator training and the implementation of standardized manufacturing practices.
- Coordinate process changes and improvement activities across departments and shifts.
- Support production scheduling, workflow optimization, and capacity improvement initiatives.

Maintenance and Equipment Reliability

- Collaborate with Maintenance to improve equipment reliability and preventive maintenance programs.
- Participate in equipment troubleshooting and identify long-term corrective actions.
- Support equipment installation, startup, commissioning, validation, and optimization.
- Participate in maintenance planning and equipment improvement projects.
- Help identify critical spare parts and technical support requirements.

Maintenance Purchasing and Inventory

- Support the purchasing of maintenance parts, tools, consumables, and technical supplies.
- Research replacement components and coordinate technical specifications with suppliers.
- Request and compare quotations,



pricing, availability, and delivery schedules.
- Improve inventory controls for critical spare parts and maintenance supplies.
- Support cost-reduction initiatives involving technical purchasing and inventory.

Bills of Materials

- Create, maintain, and improve Bills of Materials for finished products and manufacturing processes.
- Verify the accuracy of resin, ink, additive, packaging, and other material requirements.
- Ensure BOM accuracy for production planning, inventory control, product costing, traceability, and compliance.
- Coordinate BOM revisions when materials, specifications, products, or manufacturing methods change.
- Collaborate with Production, Quality, Purchasing, and Administration to maintain accurate product documentation.

Food Safety, GMP, and HACCP

- Support GMP, HACCP, food safety, sanitation, and traceability programs.
- Maintain food safety documentation, procedures, records, and training materials.
- Participate in internal audits, customer audits, certification audits, and corrective actions.
- Help ensure compliance with food-contact packaging requirements and customer standards.
- Support employee training in GMP and food safety practices.

Quality and Compliance

- Support quality improvement and corrective action programs.
- Participate in investigations involving customer complaints, nonconforming materials, and process failures.
- Establish process controls, inspection criteria, and quality standards.
- Analyze recurring defects and implement preventive actions.
- Ensure compliance with company procedures, customer requirements, and applicable regulations.

Project Management and Reporting

- Lead cross-functional manufacturing improvement projects.
- Develop project plans, schedules, budgets, and implementation timelines.
- Track progress and communicate project results to management.
- Collect, analyze, and report operational data.
- Create spreadsheets, dashboards, and technical reports to support decision-making.

Required Qualifications

- Bachelor’s degree in Manufacturing, Industrial, Mechanical, Electromechanical, Chemical, Plastics, Polymer, or a related engineering field.
- At least five years of experience in manufacturing engineering, process engineering, production engineering, or continuous improvement.
- Direct, hands-on experience supporting blown film extrusion operations.
- Experience working with polyethylene film, preferably LDPE, LLDPE, HDPE, resin blends, additives, or multilayer coextruded structures.
- Experience troubleshooting extrusion parameters, film defects, process instability, scrap, or productivity issues.
- Experience working directly with operators, production supervisors, maintenance personnel, and quality teams.
- Experience with process optimization, root cause analysis, KPIs, scrap reduction, downtime reduction, and productivity improvement.
- Fluent Spanish.
- Professional working proficiency in English, ideally 70%–80% or higher.
- Ability to communicate in English during meetings, technical discussions, emails, and written reports.
- Availability to work fully on-site in Tijuana.

Strongly Preferred Qualifications

- Experience manufacturing flexible plastic packaging for food, fresh produce, bakery, frozen food, or other food-related applications.
- Experience with three-layer or multilayer blown film coextrusion.
- Experience with flexographic printing, slitting, bag-making, rollstock, laminating, coating, or converting.
- Knowledge of film properties, resin formulations, gauge control, seal performance, corona treatment, and printability.
- Experience with GMP, HACCP, food safety systems, customer audits, and corrective actions.
- Experience with maintenance coordination, technical purchasing, spare-parts inventory, or equipment commissioning.
- Experience creating and maintaining Bills of Materials.
- Advanced Excel or Google Sheets skills.

Ideal Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate is a hands-on manufacturing engineer who understands blown film extrusion beyond a theoretical or supervisory level.

This person should be able to walk onto the production floor, review extrusion conditions, communicate effectively with operators, analyze process data, identify the likely causes of film defects or instability, and lead practical improvements.

We are looking for someone who is:

- Proactive and accountable.




- Highly organized and detail-oriented.
- Technically curious and data-driven.
- Comfortable in a fast-paced production environment.
- Capable of managing multiple priorities.
- Effective at collaborating across departments and shifts.
- Focused on measurable operational results.

Success in This Role Will Be Measured By

- Improved blown film extrusion stability and output.
- Reduction in extrusion scrap, resin waste, and quality defects.
- Reduction in downtime and process variability.
- Improved film quality, gauge consistency, and yield.
- Successful completion of continuous improvement projects.
- Accuracy of Bills of Materials and technical documentation.
- Improved maintenance-parts inventory controls.
- GMP and HACCP audit performance.
- Purchasing savings and cost-reduction results.
- Overall contribution to operational excellence and company growth.

Compensation and Benefits

- Daily base salary: MXN $1,700–$2,000, depending on experience and technical qualifications.
- 10% punctuality bonus.
- 10% attendance bonus.
- MXN $1,000 in monthly food vouchers.
- Statutory benefits in accordance with Mexican labor law.

Final compensation will be determined based on the candidate’s direct experience with blown film extrusion, versátil food packaging, technical expertise, and English proficiency.

Confidentiality Notice

This is a confidential search. The company name and exact plant location will be disclosed only to candidates who advance in the selection process.

Sueldo: $63,000.00 - $73,960.00 al mes

Beneficios:

- Estacionamiento de la empresa
- Estacionamiento gratuito

Pregunta(s) de postulación:

- Are you currently living in Tijuana, or are you willing to relocate to Tijuana for a 100% on-site position?
- Do you have direct, hands-on experience supporting blown film extrusion operations?
- How many total years of manufacturing or process engineering experience do you have?

Less than 3 years
3–4 years
5–7 years
8–10 years
More than 10 years

- How many years of direct experience do you have with blown film extrusion?

No direct experience
Less than 1 year
1–2 years
3–5 years
More than 5 years

- Which statement best describes your blown film extrusion experience?

I have directly set, adjusted, or optimized extrusion process parameters.
I have supervised extrusion operations but have limited experience adjusting process parameters.
I have worked near extrusion operations but did not provide direct technical support.
I do not have blown film extrusion experience.

- Which blown film materials or structures have you worked with? Select all that apply.

LDPE
LLDPE
HDPE
Polyethylene blends
Three-layer coextruded film
Five-layer or higher coextruded film
Food-grade film
Recycled-content film
Other
None

- Briefly describe one blown film extrusion problem you helped solve. Include the defect or issue, the likely root cause, the parameters or conditions you changed, and the measurable result.
- Which processes have you supported directly? Select all that apply.

Blown film extrusion
Multilayer coextrusion
Flexographic printing
Slitting
Bag-making
Rollstock converting
Laminating
Coating
Injection molding
Other plastics manufacturing

- How many years of experience do you have manufacturing flexible packaging for food or food-contact applications?

No experience
Less than 1 year
1–2 years
3–5 years
More than 5 years
Describe your experience working with operators, supervisors, Maintenance, Quality, and Production teams on the manufacturing floor.

- Which improvement methods have you applied directly? Select all that apply.

Root cause analysis
5 Whys
Fishbone analysis
Lean Manufacturing
5S
Standard work
Scrap reduction
Downtime reduction
Changeover reduction
Process capability or statistical process control
KPI development and monitoring

- Do you have experience with GMP, HACCP, food safety systems, customer audits, or corrective action programs? Please explain briefly.
- What is your English proficiency level?

Basic
Intermediate
Upper-intermediate
Advanced
Fluent

Are you able to participate in meetings, write reports and emails, and discuss technical manufacturing issues in English?
Yes
No

- What is your current monthly gross compensation, including fixed bonuses?
- What is your expected monthly gross compensation for this opportunity? Incluiding bonuses or equivalent benefits (Aguinaldo, vacaciones, prima vacacional, vale de despensa, SGMM)
- Are you comfortable with a compensation structure consisting of a daily base salary of MXN $1,700–$2,000, plus a 10% punctuality bonus, 10% attendance bonus, MXN $1,000 in monthly food vouchers, and statutory benefits?

Lugar de trabajo: Empleo remoto

📌 Manufacturing Engineer – Blown Film Extrusion (México)
🏢 Talento Tijuana
📍 México