Quality Control (QC) Manager – Food, Flavour & Chemical Manufacturing

Location: Merseyside
Salary: £30,000 – £40,000 per annum
Job Type: Full-time
Sector: Food Manufacturing / Flavour Manufacturing / Chemical Manufacturing / Quality Control / Laboratory Management

QC Manager – Quality Control Manager Job in Merseyside

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced Quality Control (QC) Manager to join a successful manufacturing business based in Merseyside. This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced Quality Control Manager, QC Laboratory Manager, Laboratory Manager or Senior QC professional looking to take ownership of product testing, laboratory operations, product release and environmental monitoring within a manufacturing environment.

As QC Manager, you will have overall responsibility for the site's Quality Control laboratory and product testing activities, covering raw materials, in-process testing and finished product testing. You will lead a team of QC technicians/analysts and ensure that all testing is completed accurately, efficiently and in accordance with product specifications and quality standards.

The role has been created as part of a wider restructure of the Quality function, separating Quality Assurance (QA), Quality Control (QC/testing) and Regulatory responsibilities. This provides clear ownership across the quality department and gives the successful candidate a key role in the technical testing and product release function.

The Role – Quality Control Manager

The QC Manager will work closely with Production to ensure testing supports efficient manufacturing and product flow without compromising quality or customer requirements. You will also work alongside the QA Manager to investigate and manage non-conformances arising from laboratory and product testing.

This is a hands-on leadership position combining QC laboratory management, food testing, chemical testing, product release, environmental monitoring, laboratory equipment management, quality data analysis and team leadership.

Key Responsibilities

Quality Control Testing & Product Release

• Manage and oversee raw material testing, in-process testing and finished product testing against approved specifications.
• Take ownership of the product release process, ensuring only conforming products are released to customers.
• Have authority to place and lift product quality holds based on laboratory and testing results.
• Investigate out-of-specification (OOS) results, including product holds, retesting and appropriate escalation.
• Ensure laboratory testing provides accurate and timely results to support manufacturing and production schedules.
• Maintain high standards of quality control, testing accuracy and product compliance.

QC Laboratory Management

• Manage the site's Quality Control laboratory, including laboratory equipment, testing methods and laboratory personnel.
• Ensure laboratory equipment is appropriately calibrated, maintained and fit for purpose.
• Develop, maintain and improve QC testing procedures and laboratory methods.
• Ensure analytical and testing methods remain current and aligned with best practice and available laboratory equipment.
• Manage laboratory consumables, reagents and calibration budgets.
• Coordinate and manage external laboratory calibration contractors.
• Own the retained sample and reference sample programme.
• Manage stability monitoring throughout product shelf life.
• Ensure accurate laboratory records, test results and quality documentation are maintained.
• Monitor and trend QC testing data to identify emerging quality issues and opportunities for improvement.

Environmental Monitoring

• Take ownership of the site's environmental monitoring programme.
• Manage production area environmental swabbing and sampling schedules.
• Review environmental monitoring and swab results.
• Identify adverse trends and ensure potential quality issues are escalated appropriately.
• Support corrective and preventative actions arising from environmental monitoring results.

QC Team Management

• Lead, coach and develop QC Technicians, QC Analysts and laboratory personnel.
• Manage laboratory rotas, workload planning and testing priorities.
• Set clear expectations for testing accuracy, turnaround times, laboratory standards and record keeping.
• Develop the capability and technical knowledge of the QC team.
• Promote a strong culture of quality, accuracy, accountability and continuous improvement.

Production & Cross-Functional Working

• Work closely with Production Managers, Production Supervisors and Chargehands to ensure QC testing turnaround supports manufacturing requirements.
• Ensure testing schedules are aligned with production flow and product release requirements.
• Escalate quality issues identified through testing to the QA Manager for formal non-conformance management.
• Work collaboratively with Quality Assurance and Regulatory colleagues.
• Support New Product Development (NPD) through laboratory testing, analytical input and method development where required.

Key Skills & Competencies

The successful QC Manager / Quality Control Manager will demonstrate:

• Strong technical knowledge and a highly rigorous approach to quality control and laboratory testing.
• Excellent attention to detail with a strong focus on accuracy.
• A calm, methodical approach when working under pressure, particularly when making product release and quality hold decisions.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to explain technical testing results to non-technical colleagues.
• Strong organisational and laboratory management skills.
• Effective people management and team leadership abilities.
• A proactive approach to identifying quality issues, trends and opportunities for continuous improvement.

Technical Skills & Experience

We are particularly interested in candidates with experience in:

• Quality Control (QC)
• Food testing
• Flavour testing
• Chemical testing
• Food manufacturing
• Flavour manufacturing
• Chemical manufacturing
• Laboratory management
• Product testing and product release
• Raw material testing
• In-process testing
• Finished product testing
• Environmental monitoring
• Laboratory equipment calibration
• Testing method verification
• Specification management
• Quality data trending
• Out-of-specification investigations
• Microsoft Office
• Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) / laboratory data systems

Qualifications & Experience

• Proven experience in a QC, Quality Control, laboratory or product testing role within food, flavour, chemical or related manufacturing.
• Previous experience managing a Quality Control laboratory.
• Experience leading, managing or developing a small team of QC Technicians, QC Analysts or laboratory staff.
• Relevant scientific qualification, such as Chemistry, Food Science or a related scientific discipline, or equivalent practical industry experience.
• Strong understanding of product specifications, laboratory testing and quality control processes.
• Experience with statistical analysis, quality data trending and interpretation of test results would be advantageous.

Equal Opportunities

Along with our client, we are committed to building a diverse workforce and recruiting from the widest available pool of talent. Our hiring, assessment and selection processes are fair, free from bias and designed to ensure the right person is selected based on merit.

We treat colleagues, candidates, clients and business partners with equality, fairness and respect, regardless of age, disability, race, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, marital status or family circumstances.

A copy of our Diversity & Inclusion policy is available upon request.