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At Kelso Industries, 4,000+ employees across 40+ companies work together to deliver exceptional HVAC, mechanical, plumbing, refrigeration, and electrical solutions nationwide. Join us to grow your career, make an impact, and be part of a team where innovation, excellence, and safety come first.
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Job Title: Production Manager – Pipe Fabrication
Location: Duncan, SC
Job Type: Full-time
Job Summary: We are seeking an experienced and operationally focused Production Manager to lead and coordinate daily fabrication operations at our pipe fabrication facility. This role is the operational hub of the shop—translating project priorities into executable production schedules, bridging communication between Project Managers and the shop floor Superintendent, and ensuring the right materials are allocated and ready to support spool release and fabrication sequences.
The Production Manager owns the rhythm of the shop. Success in this role means spools move through fabrication in the right order, material shortages are resolved before they impact the floor, shipping commitments are met, and Project Managers have accurate, real-time visibility into fabrication status. This is a hands-on coordination role that requires strong organizational discipline, clear communication, and a thorough understanding of pipe fabrication workflows.
Key Responsibilities:
Production Scheduling & Spool Prioritization
- Develop and maintain the master fabrication schedule, prioritizing spool release and production sequences based on project delivery dates, field installation milestones, and client-driven critical path requirements.
- Collaborate with Project Managers to understand spool priority rankings and translate those priorities into daily and weekly shop floor work assignments in coordination with the Superintendent.
- Monitor production throughput against schedule, identify bottlenecks or capacity constraints, and proactively adjust work sequencing to protect delivery commitments.
Project Manager & Shop Floor Liaison
- Serve as the primary operational interface between Project Managers and the shop floor Superintendent, ensuring project scope, priority changes, and schedule updates are accurately communicated and reflected in production planning.
- Attend project coordination meetings and provide fabrication status updates, including percent-complete by spool, material readiness, and projected release dates for upcoming work packages.
- Manage and communicate the impact of scope changes, hold releases, or material delays on the fabrication schedule, providing revised lookahead schedules as conditions change.
Shipping & Delivery Coordination
- Develop and manage outbound shipping schedules aligned with field installation sequences, coordinating with the Superintendent to ensure completed spools are inspected, marked, and staged for timely release.
- Coordinate with freight carriers, rigging vendors, or in-house logistics resources to schedule pickups and deliveries that meet project site requirements and minimize field crew downtime.
- Maintain accurate shipping logs and documentation, including packing lists, weld traceability records, and MTR packages required for regulated-market deliveries to industrial clients.
Receiving & Material Inventory Management
- Work closely with the receiving department to track inbound material status, verify that purchased pipe, fittings, flanges, and specialty items are received, inspected, and available for allocation prior to spool release.
- Maintain material allocation records by project and spool, ensuring that inventory is committed against the correct job and that shortages are identified and expedited before they delay the shop floor.
- Coordinate with Project Managers and purchasing on material procurement priorities, substitution approvals, and vendor lead times to support the production schedule.
ERP & Production Data Management
- Utilize material resource planning (MRP) software (Odoo) to manage spool release status, material allocation, labor tracking, and production progress; experience with fabrication-specific ERP/MRP platforms is a plus.
- Maintain accurate production records within the system, ensuring that spool status, material consumption, and shipping data are kept current and accessible to Project Managers and leadership.
- Identify and communicate gaps or inefficiencies in current ERP utilization and support continuous improvement of how production data is captured and reported.
Quality, Safety & Continuous Improvement
- Support the Superintendent in maintaining a safe and organized shop environment, reinforcing compliance with OSHA standards, company safety policies, and PPE requirements.
- Coordinate with Quality Control to ensure that fabricated spools are released only after required inspections, weld documentation, and NDE are complete and recorded.
- Track and report key production KPIs including on-time spool completion, material shortage frequency, shipping accuracy, and schedule adherence to operations leadership.
Team Coordination & Workforce Communication
- Facilitate daily or weekly production standup meetings with the Superintendent and lead fabricators to review priorities, surface constraints, and align the team on the day's critical path work.
- Act as an escalation point for shop floor issues that affect schedule or quality, coordinating resolution across Project Management, Engineering, QC, and Procurement as needed.
- Contribute to a culture of accountability, craftsmanship, and continuous improvement across fabrication operations.
Qualifications & Skills:
Technical Skills
- Associate's or Bachelor's degree in Construction Management, Industrial Technology, Engineering, or related field; or equivalent hands-on experience in pipe fabrication operations.
- 5+ years of experience in a production planning, scheduling, or operations coordination role within a pipe fabrication, mechanical contracting, or industrial manufacturing environment.
- Demonstrated experience developing and managing fabrication schedules with spool-level priority logic in a multi-project shop environment.
- Working knowledge of pipe fabrication workflows including spool release, fit-up, welding, NDE, hydrostatic testing, and shipping documentation (packing lists, MTRs, weld logs).
- Experience serving in a liaison or coordination role between project management and shop operations, with a track record of clear, accurate, and timely communication across both functions.
- Proficiency with ERP, MRP, or production management software; experience with fabrication-specific platforms (e.g., Stratus, Odoo, or similar) is a strong plus.
- Proficiency reading isometric drawings, spool sheets, bill of materials, and pipe fabrication documentation.
- Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple projects and shifting priorities in a fast-paced fabrication environment.
Professional Attributes
- Highly organized with a natural bias toward proactive communication and early problem identification
- Comfortable operating at the intersection of project management, shop operations, procurement, and logistics
- Data-driven and process-oriented, with a focus on schedule adherence and material readiness
- Clear and direct communicator who can translate shop floor reality into actionable information for Project Managers and leadership
- Calm under pressure with strong problem-solving instincts when schedules shift or materials fall short
Benefits:
- Competitive salary and performance-based incentives.
- Health, dental, and vision insurance.
- 401(k) with company match.
- Paid time off and company holidays.
Why Join Kelso Industries?
Join us and be part of a team dedicated to creating efficient, sustainable, and high-performance environments that make a lasting impact across the industrial, commercial, and institutional sectors.
Here you will experience:
Growth Opportunities: Develop new skills, take on exciting challenges, and advance your career in meaningful ways.
Company Culture: You'll thrive in an environment that supports your growth, values your contributions, and makes work fulfilling and enjoyable.
Impact: Your work directly contributes to meaningful outcomes, allowing you to see the difference you make and feel a sense of purpose every day.
Competitive Compensation & Benefits: You'll be rewarded fairly for your contributions while enjoying perks that enhance your financial security, health, and overall well-being.
Kelso Industries celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We do not discriminate in any aspect of employment based on race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, age, veteran status, disability, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local employment discrimination laws where Kelso does business
