Intern, Packaging Engineer R&D
About Ritual
Based in sunny Los Angeles, Ritual is a direct-to-consumer health brand that believes it's crucial to know not just what you're putting into your body, but why you need it in the first place.
We're transparent about our ingredients, where they're sourced from, and have spent years conducting extensive research behind each of the premium nutrient forms we use. Our products are simple, effective, and backed by science. Our mission is simple: to empower people to feel their best by turning healthy habits into a ritual.
We have built a team of curious skeptics, world-class scientists, unconventional artists, expert marketers and analytical strategists that are on a mission to reinvent an entire industry. We're well-funded, growing quickly, and committed to our mission. If you're a team player who refuses to settle for the status quo, we want you. Welcome to your new daily Ritual.
Position: Intern, Packaging Engineer R&D
Reports to: Sr. Director, Package Engineering
Location: Culver City, CA (onsite 2x a week)
Timing: 8 weeks during the months of June through August
Essential
The Packaging Engineer Intern will support the technical packaging development for existing packages and new product launches. This individual will gather data from our R&D packaging specification database, create pallet patterns for how our co-mans are receiving our packaging components today, and collect packaging quantities from Operations. All this information will be inputted into a Life Cycle Analysis tool to capture our overall environmental impact. Having this information will be critical as we determine what partnerships we want to pursue to get us to a Zero Carbon Future.
Ritual is looking for an individual who is a great communicator, a fast learner, and can apply the principles of problem-solving to move activities forward. At the end of the summer internship, you will present your findings to the organization, create a standard operating procedure document, and provide any next steps for activities that have not been completed.
What You'll Do:
- Orchestrate the development and implementation of packaging specifications by leveraging internal and external resources to expedite the process. All 36 Ritual packaging specifications will need to be updated within the first two weeks of your start date.
- Work with the TOPs software to build pallet patterns for components being shipped from the vendor to our co-mans. This will be the input for the completion of the packaging specification updates.
- Partner with Operations to gather forecast quantities per package type (e.g. bottles, closures, corrugate, etc.). This data will inform how much material we are transporting and help yield our environmental impact.
- Work with the Compass life cycle analysis software to understand our environmental impact. The data collected from the updated packaging specifications along with the forecast quantities will inform these values.
- As you are collecting information, you will work in excel spreadsheets to help communicate status and outstanding activities.
- At the end of your summer internship, you will present your findings to the organization as a deck. You will also create an SOP for how to collect the information and use the Compass software for any future packaging engineers.
- Your work is tied to the 2022 strategic project pipeline for the business - sustainability & transparency.
Who You Are:
- Communicator. You write well, understand the power of storytelling, and can parse through the numbers to uncover the story within.
- Analytical. You're informed by data. You understand how to utilize qualitative information to support impactful decisions.
- Technical Curiosity. You believe in continuous learning and improvement. To bring to the business innovative solutions that can be incorporated into our new product launches and continuous improvement programs (e.g. cost savings and sustainability).
What You Need:
- Education: The pursuit of Packaging Technology/Science, Engineering or equivalent BS degree.
- Experience: Undergraduate with general experience in material science and life cycle analysis. Having general experience interning for a consumer packaging good company would be a plus (e.g. Direct to Consumer and/or Retail)
- Software: General software tools are as follows: CAPE or TOPs (pallet software). Google docs (word & excel). Compass - you will learn on the job. Google Drive - to store specifications. HelloSign - you will learn on the job. Gmail - for external communication. Slack - for internal communication