Fresh & Ready Foods | Charlotte, NC
Full-Time | On-Site
Salary: $90,000 per year + Bonus Eligibility
Be the Go-To Person Who Keeps the Operation Moving
Fresh & Ready Foods is looking for an experienced, hands-on Maintenance Supervisor to support our refrigerated food manufacturing facility in Charlotte, North Carolina.
This is a unique opportunity for someone who enjoys ownership, independence, and solving real problems. You will serve as the primary on-site maintenance resource, supporting production equipment, packaging systems, refrigeration, utilities, and general facility needs.
There is no maintenance team reporting into this role. You will be the main maintenance presence at the site, so we are looking for someone who is confident working independently, setting priorities, partnering with operations, and knowing when to bring in outside vendors or additional support.
Our Charlotte facility produces fresh, ready-to-eat foods including sandwiches, salads, wraps, fruit, parfaits, snacks, and other packaged products. Your work will directly support food safety, equipment reliability, production uptime, and the overall success of the facility.
What You’ll Be Doing
- Serve as the primary on-site maintenance contact for the Charlotte facility.
- Perform preventive, corrective, and emergency maintenance on production, packaging, refrigeration, utility, and facility equipment.
- Respond quickly to equipment breakdowns and work to restore production safely and efficiently.
- Troubleshoot mechanical, electrical, pneumatic, hydraulic, and basic control system issues.
- Prioritize maintenance needs based on safety, food quality, downtime, and production impact.
- Partner closely with Production, Sanitation, Quality Assurance, Safety, and site leadership.
- Coordinate with outside vendors, contractors, and equipment manufacturers when specialized support is needed.
- Identify recurring equipment issues and recommend practical, long-term solutions.
- Maintain accurate work orders, preventive maintenance records, parts usage, vendor documentation, and equipment history.
- Support equipment startups, shutdowns, changeovers, sanitation needs, and planned maintenance activities.
- Maintain critical spare parts, tools, shop areas, and maintenance workspaces.
- Support installation, setup, testing, and commissioning of new equipment or facility upgrades.
- Perform general facility maintenance involving doors, lighting, plumbing, drains, compressed air, and building systems.
- Follow all food safety, GMP, sanitation, lockout/tagout, and workplace safety requirements.
- Communicate clearly with leadership regarding equipment condition, repair timelines, vendor needs, and operational risks.
Equipment You May Support
- Flow wrappers
- Tray sealers
- Clamshell and sandwich wedge packaging equipment
- Conveyors and product-handling systems
- Labelers and date coders
- Scales and checkweighers
- Metal detectors
- Motors, pumps, sensors, gearboxes, belts, bearings, chains, and pneumatic systems
- Refrigeration, HVAC, compressed air, plumbing, lighting, drains, and general facility systems
What We’re Looking For
- Strong hands-on maintenance experience in food manufacturing, packaging, distribution, or industrial production.
- Ability to work independently and confidently manage competing priorities.
- Strong knowledge of mechanical, electrical, pneumatic, and hydraulic systems.
- Ability to troubleshoot equipment issues from start to finish.
- Experience with preventive maintenance, equipment reliability, and root-cause problem solving.
- Ability to read electrical schematics, mechanical drawings, equipment manuals, and maintenance instructions.
- Working knowledge of lockout/tagout and industrial safety practices.
- Strong communication, organization, and follow-through.
- Ability to stay calm, make sound decisions, and act with urgency during production interruptions.
- High school diploma or GED required.
Experience That Will Help You Stand Out
- Ready-to-eat food manufacturing
- USDA, FDA, HACCP, SQF, or BRC environments
- Flow wrappers, tray sealers, conveyors, labelers, metal detectors, or checkweighers
- CMMS systems
- Basic PLC troubleshooting
- Refrigeration, HVAC, utilities, welding, fabrication, plumbing, or machining
- Experience managing vendors and contractors
- Technical school, trade certification, or associate degree
- Experience serving as the sole or primary maintenance resource for a facility
You’ll Probably Love This Role If You Are
- Independent and comfortable owning the maintenance function
- The person people call when something stops working
- Calm under pressure
- Resourceful and solutions-focused
- Organized and dependable
- Serious about safety and food quality
- Comfortable balancing hands-on repairs with planning and documentation
- Confident communicating with operators, leaders, and outside vendors
- Focused on lasting fixes instead of temporary patches
- Someone who takes pride in leaving equipment better than they found it
Compensation
- $90,000 annual salary
- Bonus eligible
- Full-time, salaried position
Schedule and Work Environment
This is a full-time, on-site role. The schedule may include weekends, holidays, overtime, rotating coverage, or after-hours support based on production and business needs.
Our Charlotte facility is refrigerated and fast-paced. The environment may include cold temperatures, wet floors, food ingredients, cleaning chemicals, production noise, and active machinery.
Physical Requirements
- Ability to stand, walk, bend, reach, kneel, climb, and work in confined or elevated areas.
- Ability to lift, push, pull, or carry up to 50 pounds.
- Ability to safely work around machinery, compressed air, chemicals, and production equipment.
- Ability to wear all required PPE and food safety gear.
Why Fresh & Ready?
This role gives you real ownership.
You will have the opportunity to become the trusted maintenance partner for the Charlotte facility, improve equipment reliability, solve meaningful problems, and make a visible impact on the operation every day.
If you enjoy working independently, taking initiative, and being the person who helps keep everything moving, we would love to meet you.
Fresh & Ready Foods is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants are considered without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic.
Pay: $85,000.00 - $90,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- Dental insurance
- Employee assistance program
- Retirement plan
- Tuition reimbursement
Work Location: In person
