Refrigeration Tech

Company Mission, Values, and Goal:

Blue Star is a pear packing warehouse located in Cashmere, Washington that was established in 1907. It is the vision of Blue Star to be the best of the best in people, packing, and production. It is Blue Star’s mission to deliver maximum value to our growers while making Blue Star a great place to work. Our goal is to become the best pear packing warehouse in the industry. 

Benefits Package: 

We have an excellent benefits package that includes generous paid time off, holidays, matching 401K program, medical, dental, vision, long term disability, and life insurance. We also offer an employee assistance program and a fun teamwork environment.   

Position Summary:

The Refrigeration Technician will work closely with the Refrigeration Supervisor to continually improve the refrigeration processes and equipment throughout all plants and grounds.  This position requires the ability to troubleshoot, diagnose and repair equipment utilizing strong mechanical skills. 

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Make decisions on when to start up storage and pull-down rooms, seal rooms, open rooms, turn off zones so that maintenance can be performed or when they are no longer needed
• Monitor and record the temperature and CA readings in each zone and log the information accurately daily when the zones are operating
• Inspect mechanical equipment on a regular basis
• Perform technical adjustments to maintain specific temperatures and atmospheres
• Maintain accurate records of each zone, reading, recording, and maintaining of temperature, CO2%, O2%, and any other related factors.
• Stay abreast of changing technology in refrigeration techniques and equipment
• Maintain clean and orderly conditions in the areas under the direct supervision of the Supervisor of Refrigeration
• Maintain all storage facilities, refrigeration, and all related equipment, as well as all well heating systems
• Perform preventive maintenance to maximize efficiency and minimize downtime on the refrigeration systems and use record keeping, knowledge, skills and effective communication when monitoring equipment and performing repairs
• Apply chemical applications on fruit in our CA rooms
• Complete ammonia, confined space, LOTO, and hot work training
• Follow a yearly repair and maintenance schedule
• Engage in Industry training to gain new knowledge and maintain all needed certificates
• Other duties as assigned

Qualifications and Skills:

• Ability to work in cold/hot/loud environments.
• Ability to work in heights and confined spaces.
• Drive forklift and scissor lifts
• Must be able to pass a fit test and wear SCBA equipment.
• Must be able to be on call and respond to alarms triggered by the refrigeration system afterhours and weekends.
• Ability to communicate fluently in English, including reading, writing and verbal communication.
• This position is required to work with chemicals and must be able to read and understand all labels
• This individual will also work around machinery and will be required to successfully complete training for lock-out/tag-out procedures
• Must be curious, competitive, and detailed oriented
• Must work well in a teamwork type environment

Education and Experience:

      Required

• Must have a valid Washington State driver’s license
• High school diploma or GED
• AA in Refrigeration Technology or equivalent experience working with ammonia refrigeration systems

Preferred

• Bilingual in Spanish and English preferred but not required

Expected Hours of Work:
Core business hours of work are Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.  These workdays and hours may vary depending on production requirements. Overtime hours may be needed at times to accommodate production requirements. 

This position is a safety-sensitive position and requires a pre-employment drug test as well as participation in our random drug testing program, and possible additional drug testing at the company’s request.