Process Technician at Manebu Industries Rwanda (2025-11 – 2026-02)
- Pre-Startup Activities System Inspection and Punch Listing: Walking through the plant to check that all piping, vessels, and instruments are correctly installed according to P&IDs (Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams)
- Cleaning and Testing: Participating in blowdown and flushing of pipes to remove debris, and assisting in pressure testing to check for leaks
- Testing pumps, motors, and automated systems to ensure they work properly before introducing raw materials
- Safety Procedures: Implementing Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) protocols to isolate equipment safely while the Engineers perform final work
- Controlled Startup: Starting up machinery and equipment according to new procedures, monitoring temperatures, pressures, and flows to ensure safe startup
- Troubleshooting: Identifying and diagnosing early operational problems, such as faulty valves, malfunctioning instruments, or process leaks
- Working with engineers to adjust and calibrate computerized control systems (e.g., DCS or PLC) for optimal performance
- Carrying out the pre-operational activities
- Caustic solution preparation (maintaining a baume of range 48 to 50)
- Silicate solution preparation and operating the silicate digesters and conducting the quality check on the solution before it's transferred to the storage tank
- Draining water and sludge from the oils storage tank later heating the oil maintaining a temperature range of 55-65 degrees
- Monitoring the quality of the intermediate products and the final product
- Liaising with the maintenance department incase there is a breakdown
- Conducting routine checks on the machines after every shift
- Maintaining inventory
Process operator at Mount Meru Millers limited (2024-03 – 2025-01)
- Conducting pre commissioning checks on plant piping, instrument cabling, gasket fitting where they are missing and ensuring that all the flanges are well bolted and tightened
- Colour coding of pipes
- Carrying out the pre-operational processes of raw materials ie draining of sludge or water, pre-heating of fats, caustic dissolving
- Establishing standard operating procedures for operation
- Training junior employees on soap production processes
- Ensuring that all the safety devices are properly fitted and are in good working condition (safety valves, limit switch)
- Maintenance of various process equipment ie Lubrication of gear box and fitting of gaskets, mounting of valves, pumps installation
- Plant start-up and plant shutdown as per the SOP
- Liaising with the head of the department on issues pertaining production to avoid wastage of raw materials and utilities
- Monitoring quality of the immediate product and final product to avoid packaging of non conforming products
- Initiate work request for maintenance in case of equipment/instrument failure in coordination with fellow Operators and the Head of the department
- Carrying routine checks on the equipment on daily basis
- Carrying out pressure test on new line after fabrication (heating coils for raw materials)
- House keeping
Process Operator at KAPA OIL REFINERY (2017-12 – 2023-01)
- Monitor and control process parameters in soap, utilities, and offloading of fats
- Take timely remedial actions in case of process alarm's or plant upset due to equipment failure, ensure safety of the plant and the personnel
- Troubleshoot and diagnose process upset in process units and Equipments
- Initiate work request for maintenance in case of equipment/instrument failure in coordination with fellow Operators and the shift supervisor
- Follow-up work permits, take equipment/instrument out of service for maintenance and taking it back in service after maintenance intervention
- Recording all activities that occurred during the shift
- In liaison with the offloaders of raw materials (fats, caustic, silicate), prepare necessary storage tank, pumping station and recording for each materials offloaded to the storage tanks
- Recording the raw materials loaded on trucks in cases where there is sales of the materials
- Assist shift supervisor in day-to-day activities by providing proper feedback and follow-up
- Reporting equipment malfunctioning directly to the shift supervisor
- Liaising with the production supervisor on issues related to production planning to avoid over production/under production of intermediate product hence avoiding wastage of raw materials and utilities
- Monitor the quality of the intermediate product and take necessary corrective actions when the lab analysis indicate deviation from standard norm
- Prepare daily production reports of important plant parameters
- Provide guidance to trainees/junior Operators and coordinate their activities in keeping with standard operating procedures and standing instructions complying to companies health and safety policy
- Responsible for starting and shutting down plant operations under normal conditions as well as under emergency conditions
- In case of emergency situation, take appropriate actions as per companies emergency procedures
- Safely shutdown the affected plant partially or totally
- Restore the plant to normal operating conditions safely and efficiently once the situation is normalised
- Contribute to The Health and Safety of the Working environment, cleaning the working and making sure it's free of hazards
- Prepare daily consumption sheets which indicates stock raw material/reconciliation of stocks at the end of the shift
- Tank filler: maintaining cleanliness on tank firm
- Maintaining right temperature for the raw materials (fats)
- Carrying out daily routine checks of temperature controllers
- Check of presence of any leaks on the storage tank and feed tanks, leakages of steam coils and reporting to the maintenance team if there is leakage
- Carrying out pre-operational processes on raw materials
- Carrying out quality management system audit
Intern at KAPA OIL REFINERY (2017-04 – 2017-06)
- Plant operation
- Monitoring, recording and maintaining plant parameters (pressure and temperature)
- Housekeeping practice
- Lab analysis - moisture analysis, Quality checking on the final products (Color uniformity)
- Physical appearance (softness, cracking and breaking), Nominal weight, branding and stamping of the soap, batch numbering, KEBS logo and the S-Mark
- Maintenance - Mounting of pumps/motors, replacing worn out gaskets, Equipment condition monitoring, unclogging the Steam pressure gauges, cleaning the machines/equipments
Cashier at Max land Restaurant (2017-02 – 2017-03)
- Taking customer orders at the counter
- Receive payment and present change to the customers
- Receive food checks from waiters and customers
- Ensure a balance of the register at the end of the shift/working periods
- House keeping
Attaché at Trans Mara Sugar Company (2014-09 – 2014-12)
- Handled troubleshooting and maintenance as well as monitoring and deployment of process equipment
