Position Summary
The plant manager plays a critical role in optimizing production processes, equipment reliability, and product quality in a high-volume wood shavings animal bedding manufacturing environment. This role requires a strong engineering background, hands-on mechanical aptitude, and the ability to work closely with maintenance, production, and quality teams to improve throughput, reduce downtime, and control costs while maintaining safety and environmental compliance.
Key Responsibilities
Process & Production Engineering
· Take full ownership of end-to-end manufacturing processes.
· Analyze and optimize production flows to identify bottlenecks, capacity constraints, and inefficiencies; develop and execute improvement plans that drive measurable gains in output, consistency, and EBITDA.
· Lead and manage continuous improvement initiatives using Lean, Six Sigma, Kaizen, or similar methodologies, with a strong focus on waste reduction, labor optimization, and margin expansion.
· Establish, standardize, and enforce SOPs, work instructions, and process documentation to ensure operational discipline, repeatability, and scalability across shifts and facilities.
· Own process performance metrics and dashboards (e.g., OEE, throughput, yield, scrap, downtime, labor efficiency), regularly reviewing results with plant leadership and driving corrective actions.
· Partner closely with Operations, Maintenance, Quality, Safety, and Finance to resolve systemic issues, perform root-cause analysis, and sustain improvements in a fast-paced, results-oriented environment.
· Support capital planning and execution by evaluating process-related CapEx opportunities, developing business cases, and ensuring projects deliver targeted ROI and payback.
Equipment & Mechanical Support
- Provide hands-on technical support for mechanical systems including grinders, hammer mills, dryers, conveyors, screens, baggers, and dust collection systems.
- Partner with maintenance to troubleshoot recurring mechanical and process-related issues.
- Support preventive and predictive maintenance programs to improve equipment uptime and reliability.
- Assist with equipment selection, specification, installation, commissioning, and performance validation.
People Management & Labor Optimization
- Directly supervise and develop hourly and salaried team members, including production leads, technicians, or process operators, as applicable.
- Set clear performance expectations and provide ongoing coaching, feedback, and performance evaluations.
- Partner with HR and operations leadership on hiring, onboarding, training, and workforce planning.
- Optimize labor utilization across shifts by aligning staffing levels with production demand and equipment capability.
- Identify opportunities to reduce labor cost per ton through process improvement, cross-training, automation, and improved scheduling.
- Establish and track labor productivity KPIs such as tons per labor hour, overtime percentage, absenteeism, and rework.
- Promote a culture of accountability, safety, and continuous improvement on the plant floor.
Capital Projects
- Support or lead capital improvement projects, including cost justification, ROI analysis, layout design, and implementation.
- Coordinate with vendors, contractors, and internal teams during equipment upgrades or plant expansions.
- Ensure projects are delivered safely, on time, and within budget.
Quality & Compliance
- Ensure product meets customer specifications for moisture, particle size, dust content, and packaging integrity.
- Support quality investigations and root cause analysis for customer complaints or internal quality issues.
- Assist with environmental, health, and safety compliance related to wood processing and dust management.
· Champion a strong safety-first culture across all shifts and departments.
· Ensure compliance with OSHA, state, and local safety regulations, including requirements specific to wood processing and combustible dust.
· Identify, assess, and mitigate workplace hazards through job safety analyses (JSAs), risk assessments, and regular safety audits.
· Lead or support incident investigations, near-miss reporting, and root cause analysis; implement corrective and preventive actions.
- Track and report HSE KPIs
Data, Reporting & KPIs
- Monitor and analyze production KPIs such as throughput, yield, downtime, scrap, and energy usage.
- Use data to identify trends, quantify improvement opportunities, and track results.
- Collaborate with operations leadership to support budgeting, forecasting, and cost reduction initiatives.
Work Environment & Physical Requirements:
This position operates in a manufacturing environment with exposure to moving mechanical parts, industrial noise, airborne dust, and varying temperatures. The role requires standing, walking, climbing stairs/ladders, and occasionally lifting up to 50 pounds. Use of required personal protective equipment (PPE) is mandatory.
Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job.
Education
- Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related field.
Experience
- 3–7+ years of experience in a manufacturing environment, preferably wood products, building materials, agriculture, or bulk/packaged consumer goods.
- Direct experience working with mechanical equipment and industrial processing systems.
Technical Skills
- Strong mechanical aptitude with the ability to diagnose and resolve equipment and process issues.
- Working knowledge of industrial machinery, rotating equipment, and material handling systems.
- Familiarity with Lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, or continuous improvement tools.
- Ability to read and interpret mechanical drawings, P&IDs, and equipment manuals.
- Proficient in Microsoft Excel and basic data analysis; experience with CMMS, ERP, or BI tools is a plus.
Soft Skills
- Hands-on, roll-up-your-sleeves mindset.
- Strong problem-solving and root cause analysis skills.
- Effective communicator able to work with operators, maintenance technicians, engineers, and leadership.
- Comfortable working in a fast-paced, industrial manufacturing environment.
We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and make employment decisions without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable federal, state, or local law.
Job Type: Full-time
Pay: $140,000.00 - $160,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
- Relocation assistance
- Vision insurance
Work Location: In person
