Robert Cordina

Experience

• 

  IAESTE

  Oct 2001 - May 2004

  • National Secretary

    Oct 2002 - May 2004

  • Outgoing Exchange Officer

    Oct 2001 - Sept 2002
• 

  Novartis

  Aug 2004 - Aug 2005

  Trainee
• 

  Teva/Actavis Generics

  Dec 2007 - Nov 2010

  Scientific Officer

  • development and full validation of numerous analytical methods• responsibility for all analytical aspects of a number of finished goods projects• being a member of a number of nucleus groups, liaising with colleagues from various other departments• advising the production QC analytical lab on analytical transfer issues• spectroscopy results interpretation• drafting of transfer data protocols• analytical method transfer from other group sites to the local site• chemical health and safety assessments• occupational risk assessments Show less

• 

  University of Malta

  Jan 2008 - Jan 2014

  MATSEC (Advanced Level) Chemistry Paper Setter and Marker
• 

  PHARMACARE PREMIUM LIMITED

  Nov 2010 - May 2011

  Quality Control Coordinator

  etting up of the Quality System of the company, in conjunction with the QA Coordinator and Director of Quality, including writing SOPs and protocols, culminating in a successful Medicines Authority audit which granted the company the Good Manufacturing Practice licence enabling it to operate• setting up of the Quality Control laboratory of the company, including liaising with the various local and foreign suppliers • managing the Quality Control department, including work scheduling, performance reviews and setting up of goals for the employees, and interviewing candidates for future posts• liaising with the mother company on the transfer of products from their site to the local site, ensuring compliance with the European, British and US pharmacopoeiae• drafting of transfer protocols, validation protocols and analytical methods• review and approval of documentation for company-wide use Show less

• 

  Marsovin Winery

  May 2011 - Feb 2012

  Quality Assurance and R&D Manager

  • revision of the Quality System to bring it up-to-date with all current and relevant legislation and standards (ISO9001/22000), including writing and issuing of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) as well as drawing up all the company’s HACCP plans• integration of the operations of the different departments and sections of the Group into one Quality System• overseeing the implementation of the Group’s Quality System and training of all employees• strategic development of the Group’s current and new products to reflect consumer trends• review and improvement of the current production procedures and formulations, ensuring that they conform with legislation, whilst improving the Group’s operating efficiency• dealing with the relevant Government authorities or parastatal companies on various issues which are pertinent to the Group’s operations• carrying out internal and external audits to ensure the compliance of the all the departments and suppliers with the Group’s policies, established procedures and requirements• carrying out a Root Cause Analysis of any incoming complaints, and establishing any Corrective Actions and Preventive Actions (CAPAs)• establishing the documentation and archiving system of the Group to facilitate retrieval of products or documents in case of queries, complaints or litigation• liaising with all of the Group’s departments to ensure the continuous improvement of the Quality System• leading recall simulation procedures which are carried out once a year to verify the efficiency of the Group’s response to a recall situation• chairing of the interdepartmental Food Safety Team• overseeing the development of fruit juices and squashes, as well as mineral water products Show less

• 

  Combino Pharm Malta Ltd

  Mar 2012 - Mar 2013

  Quality Control Manager

  • management and supervision of the QC lab• ensuring that all testing is carried out well and on time• approval and release or rejection of raw and packaging materials and approval of bulk and packaged products• approval of specifications, test methods and sampling instructions• checking the maintenance of the QC equipment and premises• responsibility for the calibration and maintenance of the QC equipment• responsibility for analytical method, cleaning method and equipment validations• responsibility for the co-ordination, investigation and closure of lab OOS results• ensuring compliance with EU and US pharmacopoeial requirements• ensuring compliance with EU and US regulatory requirements• drafting and executing Excel template validation protocols• overseeing training of the department employees and trainees• liaising with, and carrying out external audits of suppliers and sub-contractors• liaising with corporate structures Show less

• 

  Foster Clark Products Ltd

  Mar 2013 - Oct 2014

  Product Development Manager

  • NPD (new product development)• developing clean label products (such as with natural colourings, no trans-fats, GMO-free etc.)• choosing appropriate packaging materials for the newly developed products• handling multiple projects simultaneously• carrying out shelf-life studies using different conditions and packaging• overseeing the product lifecycle (from planning to post-marketing stages)• assisting in the drafting of HACCP plans for the products under my responsibility• drafting and executing Validation Protocols and Reports• setting of validation and analytical limits• updating and refinement of current products to keep up with consumers’ demands• researching the market for present competitors’ products• searching for new ingredients• liaising with Sales, Marketing, Purchasing, Quality Assurance, Quality Control, Engineering and Production • overseeing and delegating duties to R&D technicians Show less

• 

  One Harvest

  Oct 2014 - Sept 2015

  Senior NPD Technologist

  • managing both internal and external concept briefs through the NPD process, including• writing finished product specifications• coordinating all trials and launches with other sites as well as external departments • planning microbiological & organoleptic shelf-life testing • determination of the best packaging requirements for the products• signing off specifications, artwork, packaging and any other requirements • coordinating NPD projects both on a site and group level for all major Australian supermarkets (Woolworths, Coles, Aldi and IGA)• optimising production processes to achieve better quality, shelf-life and efficiency• liaising with Technical department on all regulatory and quality related aspects• regular contact with Sales, Marketing, Operations, Supplier Integration and Business Intelligence managers to discuss new projects • meeting Australian Food Safety Standards, Customer and Internal requirements (including BRC, WQA and Coles Standard requirements) to deliver the highest quality food products to the market• delivering launches to agreed timeframe and budget (both internal and external) by working closely with both internal and external stakeholders • supervision of and delegating work to the NPD Technologists • member of the Site Steering Team, made up of the site manager and all other managers Show less

• 

  University of Malta

  Oct 2015 - now

  Visiting Lecturer

  Lecturing in • Food Chemistry• Food Safety Management Systems• Quality Standards• New Product Development• Sensory testing

• 

  Mondelēz International

  Jul 2016 - Jul 2024

  Global technical lead for all Physical Sciences modelling techniques used at Mondelēz R&D (CFD, FEA, DEM, Computational Chemistry, mathematical modelling, Process Modelling, coupled Physical Science + Data Science techniques)Global area technical lead for Computational Chemistry (Molecular Dynamics (atomistic, coarse-grained, free energies), reaction kinetics, and thermodynamics)Member of the Modelling & Simulation Leadership teamSimultaneous end-to-end work track lead (combining models using various physical and data science techniques, across time scales and physical scales, to enable developers to progress rapidly with new product, process and/or packaging development)Responsibility for setting the strategy for the Physical Sciences R&D M&S team, as well as involved in setting the Digital strategy for the wider R&D organisationPhysical Sciences representative on M&S Technical Council (vetting proposed projects, setting up training for M&S team members and wider R&D community, report and peer review, keeping up to date with technical advancements)Technical and scientific mentor, including to eight indirect reports Show less Technical lead/lead modeller for multiple £x00k projects, including with external academics and companiesInternal technical and scientific mentor and subject matter expert for modelling projects, as well as food chemistryLead architect for Democratisation Strategy for M&S team, with impact on whole R&D communityM&S Technical Council ordinary memberBuilding and setting strategy for model-building and coupling for the M&S team (including physical and data science models)Core member of the end-to-end product development modelling team, having an impact on the long-term acceptance and use of M&S tools as part of the ways of working of developers globallyBuilding and setting strategy for model-building for my two main areas of responsibility, having an impact on the future activities of both my team as well as that of the various R&D functions/product categories (e.g., Ingredients Research, Biscuits, Chocolate, Candy etc.)Training at various levels of other M&S team members, Advanced M&S Users and R&D Developers working in other R&D functions/categories, on both Computational Chemistry and Process Modelling Show less • Led a number of projects (technically/scientifically, and in some cases also logistically), including on filled chocolates shelf-life (multiple sub-projects), dealing with colleagues and external partners, across functions and at all levels• Led a cross-functional cross-site Working Group for the Data Mining project and planning roll-out to other categories/sites, acting as the main point of contact • Liaised with colleagues globally across the global Modelez Technical Centres• Point of technical/scientific reference for colleagues across all levels for various projects• Gave technical (chemistry) training sessions on ingredient functionality to the Technology Development team, technical mentor for other junior colleagues and sit on the chocolate drop-in technical sessions • Led several Open Innovation projects, working with external prototyping companies and world-leading research facilities• Co-chair of the cross-category cross-functional Fillings Community of Practice, and local representative of the organising team for Tech Forum Show less

  • Global Physical Sciences Modelling & Simulation Technical Lead

    Apr 2023 - Jul 2024

  • Associate Principal Scientist

    Feb 2019 - Mar 2023

  • Senior Scientist II

    Jul 2016 - Jan 2019
• 

  Royal Society of Chemistry

  Jan 2020 - now

  • Committee Member - Food Group

    Jan 2019 - now

  • Committee Chair - Food Group

    Jan 2020 - Jan 2023
• 

  Funis Consulting Ltd

  Aug 2024 - now

  Founder

  www.funisconsulting.comCompany offering consultancy services if food product development, and scientific and technical services related to data analysis, and building of mathematical, physical and chemical models.