Intertek Alchemy is proud to share that we’ve been helping to ensure the safety of the foods we eat, the products we use, and the people who make them with our training solutions and consulting services for over two decades.

This month, we’re celebrating our success and those who truly make our world a better place, including our beloved clients and employees.

A Brief History
Alchemy sank our teeth into employee training in 2003 with our very first customer, J Bar B Foods. We’re proud to say J Bar B is still with us 20 years later, joining more than 1,000 other clients, including Tyson Foods, Ajinomoto, Keurig Dr Pepper, and Adidas. Our client base includes 75 of the top 100 food processors with whom we have a 95% client retention rate.

And throughout it all, we’ve followed the guiding principle that “people make the difference” in everything we do. We know people are the heart and soul, and the eyes and ears of your operations, and it’s our mission to help you keep them safe, engaged, and productive.

Our Employees
Intertek Alchemy’s recipe for success starts with our employees who consistently rank us as one of the Austin American Statesman top places to work. We strive to make our employees feel respected and supported. This year, we were higher than the national average for employees feeling like their managers care about their concerns, which shows in their motivation and their strong bonds with others throughout the company.

“I’ve been with Intertek Alchemy for more than 18 years, and I can’t think of a better place to connect my work to a better purpose,” said Erin Silver, executive vice president of client services. “The work we do here not only benefits our clients but the people they serve, which includes friends and family everywhere. Those fried pickles someone ate while watching a football game were likely made by one of our clients. It’s rewarding knowing we played a hand in ensuring they were made in a safe environment with food safety as a top priority.”

Our Training Solutions
Over the years, we’ve advanced the Alchemy Training System for frontline employees based on client feedback to meet the growing needs of the food industry. To compliment that training, we added an online training solution to help busy food safety leaders build their skillsets and earn industry certifications with Zosi Learning.

We’ve also expanded our solutions to fit the needs of other manufacturing industries, as well as packagers and distributors. And in the process, we are reaching new parts of the world, including Europe and Latin America. 

When Alchemy first started, we offered 34 courses in English and Spanish in the Alchemy Training System, covering food safety and workplace safety. Now, we have more than 400 unique courses available in five languages. When you add variations like different languages, refresher courses, or versions for specific audiences, that number tallies up to more than 1,000 unique courses.

All courses are developed by a 30-person team of award-winning curriculum designers, content subject matter experts (SMEs) and certified project managers. And we’ve expanded the topics to include onboarding & HR, warehouse and transportation safety, leadership training, lean manufacturing, and more.

Because classroom training can only go so far, we developed new technologies to extend training directly on the production floor. In 2014, we launched Alchemy Coach, a mobile on-the-floor validation app, that helps managers verify employees understand the training as they receive it. The app’s pre-built “observations” help consistently validate employees correctly apply their training on the floor.

A few years later in 2019, we developed the Alchemy Playbook app to enable clients to create, deliver and qualify training directly on the production floor with any mobile device. The mobile app makes it easy for companies to record videos and turn them into task-specific, on-the-job training courses. Playbook also tracks every worker’s training qualifications to help fill production line gaps instantly.

Our Consulting Services
While providing training solutions, we discovered many of our clients needed help understanding and meeting food and workplace safety regulations. In response to that need, we introduced a consulting practice with experienced professionals who work directly with clients to ensure compliance with industry regulations. With a 100% client satisfaction rate, our team provides food safety, health & safety, ISO, and environmental consulting services. Additionally, they help many of our clients build and execute their training strategy with the Alchemy Training System.

All of our success could not have happened without the dedication of our clients and employees. To see how together we are making a difference, take a look at our case studies and testimonials.

We look forward to teaming with you and your employees for the next 20 years as we continue to promote a safer and more productive world!