- Role: Lead Mechanical Design Engineer
- Venture: Aspire Food Group Ghana
- Location: Kumasi and Accra, Ghana
Aspire Food Group is a social enterprise dedicated to the sustainable practice of farming edible insects. In Ghana, Aspire seeks to farm locally desired insects as a way to address food insecurity and malnutrition. Aspire farms the palm weevil larva, a local delicacy that has been traditionally hand-harvested from palm trees. In addition, Aspire has trained several hundred farmers in Southern and Central Ghana to farm their own larva as a source of household animal protein and as an opportunity for increased income.
As a Lead Mechanical Design Engineer with Aspire Food Group, you will work with the Aspire Food Group team in Ghana with guidance, mentorship and financial support from the Engineers Without Borders Canada (EWB) community in Canada and in East and West Africa.
About You
Aspire Food Group is looking for a detail-oriented, imaginative and flexible mechanics and materials engineer to support the organization in optimizing operations. Aspire is in a high period of growth, scaling up insect production in one facility and looking to expand into a larger facility. The Lead Mechanical Design Engineer will support the optimization of the systems used to farm/store the insects and the equipment/procedures used to process feed and insects. The individual will also play a key role in optimizing industrial processes and designing the new production facility. The Engineering lead would contribute to reduced production costs, improved yields and operational efficiencies.
Responsibilities
- Getting a thorough understanding of systems and processes used to farm, store and process feed/insects (working across teams and with various stakeholders).
- Performing analysis and making evidence-based recommendations while considering the local context with the goal of optimizing the rearing processes
- Effectively communicating recommendations to technical and non-technical audiences
- Leading the prototyping of potential solutions.
- Identifying resources, suppliers and pathways to implement successful prototypes farm-wide and on an industrial scale
- Quantify the impact of proposed interventions
- Address optimization challenges to improve efficiencies in current facility and prototyping ideas for the new production facility.
- Supporting the design process of the new production facility.
- Managing the required resources (human, financial etc.) to complete the projects on time, within scope and budget.
- Conducting performance and cost analyses to support the decision-making process.
- Other tasks upon request.
Sound exciting? Here’s who we are looking for.
Skills & Qualifications
- Minimum Bachelor’s degree in Engineering (focus in mechanics and/or materials)
- Professional experience or completed co-op terms in mechanics or materials engineering a strong asset.
- Design experience a strong asset
- Excellent analytical and problem solving skills
- High level of adaptability and flexibility
- Willingness to work outside of traditional engineering responsibilities
- Strong ability to work independently and with minimal supervision
- Superb communication skills
- Excellent time management skills
- Detail-oriented
- Hard working and passionate about social change
