Packaging Engineer Summer Intern

Product Development | Naperville | Full Time | Permanent

Wilton is a US heritage brand with a 95-year history in baking and decorating. Now fully integrated into the Dr. Oetker family, Wilton aspires to be the most influential and successful cake decorating brand. Learn more about Wilton at www.wilton.com.
 

Internship Summary

Do you have a passion for contributing to impactful consumer packaging and innovation? As an Intern working on Packaging at Wilton, you will assist in an important primary project for our retailers, developing exciting new packaging that provides them with innovative solutions that enhance efficiency and consumer interactions with our brand. Reporting to the Sr. Manager of Innovation & Product and under the guidance of our Food Packaging Engineer, an MSU alum, you will have the opportunity to learn all aspects of building brands with a consumer centric mindset.

Project Focus

Shelf Ready Tray Development: 
Project purpose/goal: to support NPD and Resourcing initiatives. Includes work in these areas:

• Product Orientation: Align with CBU and Sales team on preferred orientation and branding all categories.
• Case Quantity: Determine the maximum allowable case quantity using case + ½ rule 
• Nesting & Dunnage: Consider the product’s nesting ability & potential dunnage (ie. inserts) required to keep product standing / displayed correctly within the SRT
• Design Parameters: Utilize product unit dimensions and the following design parameters to optimize / “right-size” case layouts using CAPE software: 
  • Single Face vs. Double Face layout? 
  • Minimum conveyable requirements
  • Can it be effectively palletized and if not , design of  inner AND master case are required

Additional Projects (as time permits):

• TraceGains Specifications – support internal review, SKU set-up, and approval process.
• Ti x Hi Pallet Patterns - Improve & ensure accuracy of Ti x Hi Data across all Wilton Life Cycle / Data Management systems (Agile, SAP, LogPro, TraceGains).
• Sustainability – work to introduce sustainable, fully recyclable or compostable packaging solutions to the Wilton portfolio and maintain Walmart’s E-Halo Packaging system.
• E-commerce – help to facilitate growth in ecommerce by eliminating customer chargebacks via testing / certification and strive to set all new items up for ideal omnichannel distribution (retail and eComm).
• Resourcing -  provide packaging support for resourcing and supplier transitions to meet business asks, ensuring successful product launches.
• Cost Savings / Optimization  – support cost savings and optimization opportunities related to packaging.

Education & Experience

• Current MSU student or college graduate with a major in Packaging Engineering (meets MSU minimum Co-Op requirements).
• Package Design Software experience (e.g. CAPE, TOPS, Artios CAD).
• MS Office suite, specifically Excel & PowerPoint.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Proactive, collaborative work style and enthusiasm to deliver results with a passion for excellence. 
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively. 
• Thrives in a fast-paced environment with the ability to receive direction and implement knowledge to complete tasks. 
• Can work with established & emerging processes and protocols. 
• Flexibility in managing multiple assignments and adapt to change in project priorities.
• Encourages and supports team members, asks questions to drive progress, maintains a positive attitude, and brings innovative thinking to every project.

Physical Demands

• Professional office environment, sedentary in nature.
• Routinely use standard office equipment such as (laptop computers, monitors/keyboards, printers, and telephones).
• Processes information and communicates effectively with others.