Effluent Treatment Plant Operator

Are you passionate about environmental sustainability and interested in operating a biological effluent treatment plant while helping maintain environmental compliance and sustainable manufacturing operations?

IFF is a global leader in flavors, fragrances, food ingredients and health & biosciences. We deliver sustainable innovations that elevate everyday products.

Global Operations: Ensuring excellence in execution, from procurement to supply chain and reliability, delivering quality, safety, efficiency and sustainability across the value chain.

The role is based in Haverhill, United Kingdom (on-site role). Be part of an experienced, accurate and dedicated team where together we can maintain reliable treatment performance and make a meaningful environmental impact. Your potential is our inspiration.

Where You'll Make a Difference

• Operate and monitor biological effluent treatment plant equipment, including balance tanks, mixers, pumps, clarifiers, sludge handling systems, chemical dosing systems and final discharge points.
• Carry out routine plant checks, inspections and process adjustments to maintain stable biological treatment performance.
• Monitor key process parameters, including flow, pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, mixed liquor suspended solids, sludge age, settleability, nutrient balance and chemical usage.
• Observe biological process health through visual checks of sludge settlement, foam, odour, colour and floc quality.
• Collect influent, mixed liquor, sludge and final effluent samples at agreed locations and arrange laboratory analysis as required.
• Respond to process changes such as shock loads, toxicity risks, high-strength effluent, low dissolved oxygen, poor settlement, bulking, foaming or loss of biological performance.
• Adjust aeration, sludge wasting, return activated sludge, nutrient dosing and chemical dosing within approved operating limits.
• Maintain accurate operating records, sample results, environmental checks, chemical usage data, waste movements and maintenance activities.
• Identify plant abnormalities, alarms, faults or process deviations and escalate them promptly to the appropriate teams.

What Makes You the Right Fit

• Experience in microbial effluent treatment, activated sludge, biological wastewater treatment, utilities, manufacturing, chemical processing or a similar operational environment is desirable.
• Understanding of how biological treatment systems react to pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, nutrient balance, organic loading and toxic or inhibitory materials.
• Ability to follow operating procedures and make objective and logical process adjustments within established operating limits.
• An analytical approach to monitoring plant performance and identifying process deviations.
• Good mechanical awareness, with the ability to identify faults, abnormal conditions and basic maintenance requirements on pumps, mixers, instruments and dosing systems.
• A determined approach to maintaining environmental compliance and operational standards.
• Ability to work independently and make decisive process adjustments within approved operating parameters.
• Good communication skills, with the ability to cooperate with production, engineering, laboratory teams, contractors and management while building effective interpersonal relationships.
• Ability to complete logs, checks, computer-based records, sample sheets and operational reports accurately.

How Would You Stand Out?

• Experience operating an industrial wastewater treatment plant or activated sludge system.
• Training in wastewater treatment, biological treatment, environmental compliance or chemical handling.
• Training in wastewater sampling and testing, dissolved oxygen monitoring, pH control, sludge settlement testing or plant instrumentation.

Why Choose Us?

• Opportunity to support environmental stewardship and sustainable manufacturing practices.
• Comprehensive site-specific training for biological treatment plant operation, sampling, chemical dosing and compliance activities.
• Learning and development opportunities in an inclusive working environment.
• Exposure to industrial treatment technologies and manufacturing processes.
• Opportunity to contribute to environmental performance and operational excellence through objective decision-making.
• Work alongside experienced operations and engineering teams in a stable manufacturing environment that values collaboration and a supportive culture with an analytical approach to continuous improvement.

We are a global leader in taste, scent, and nutrition, offering our customers a broader range of natural solutions and accelerating our growth strategy. At IFF, we believe that your uniqueness unleashes our potential. We value the diverse mosaic of the ethnicity, national origin, race, age, sex, or veteran status. We strive for an inclusive workplace that allows each of our colleagues to bring their authentic self to work regardless of their religion, gender identity & expression, sexual orientation, or disability.

Visit IFF.com/careers/workplace-diversity-and-inclusion to learn more