PLANT MANAGER

Position Summary

The Plant Manager is responsible for the overall leadership, execution, and performance of manufacturing operations. This position directs day-to-day production activities and is accountable for safety, quality, delivery, productivity, cost, staffing, employee performance, and effective utilization of plant resources. The Plant Manager is directly responsible for meeting monthly shipment goals.

The Plant Manager maintains a strong presence on the shop floor and works closely with Production, Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, Production Control, Scheduling, Customer Service, Purchasing, and senior leadership to ensure customer requirements and company objectives are achieved. The Plant Manager has primary operational and personnel authority within manufacturing and ensures that technical recommendations and process improvements are effectively implemented and sustained.

Supervisory Responsibility: Production supervisors, Production Support and Manufacturing personnel

Duties and Responsibilities

• Lead daily manufacturing operations to achieve safety, quality, delivery, productivity, and cost objectives.

• Direct production activities and priorities to meet manufacturing schedules and customer delivery requirements.

• Plan and coordinate staffing, machine capacity, equipment, materials, tooling, overtime, and other resources based on production and business needs.

• Maintain an active shop-floor presence to address production, personnel, workflow, safety, and operational issues.

• Monitor key manufacturing performance indicators, including labor efficiency, throughput, machine utilization (MUT data), scrap, rework, and downtime.

• Identify production constraints and collaborate with Scheduling, Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, and other technical resources to resolve issues and improve processes, tooling, equipment, capacity, and workflow.

• Collaborate with Purchasing to provide lead times and set-up times and/or technical information during the quoting process.

• Ensure manufacturing processes, work instructions, quality requirements, safety standards, and company policies are consistently followed.

• Partner with Quality to address nonconforming product, corrective actions, recurring quality issues, and customer requirements.

• Drive continuous improvement efforts to improve safety, quality, productivity, efficiency, delivery, cost, and utilization of plant resources.

• Communicate production status, capacity concerns, significant delays, personnel issues, and resource needs to senior leadership.

• Collaborate with Customer Service and senior leadership to maintain positive customer relations.

• Support new-product introductions, process changes, equipment installations, and other manufacturing initiatives.

• Perform other plant management and operational responsibilities as required.

Leadership

• Provide leadership, direction, coaching, and accountability to production supervisors and manufacturing personnel.

• Manage employee performance, attendance, productivity, conduct, safety compliance, and adherence to company policies.

• Conduct performance evaluations and participate in hiring, onboarding, training, employee development, corrective action, and disciplinary decisions.

• Identify employee training and skill-development needs and support development of a capable, flexible manufacturing workforce.

• Establish clear expectations and build a culture of teamwork, accountability, problem-solving, employee development, and continuous improvement.

Required Training & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in manufacturing, Engineering, Operations Management, Business, or a related field; significant relevant manufacturing leadership experience considered.

• 10+ years of progressive manufacturing experience, including significant responsibility for leading production personnel and manufacturing operations.

• Experience in precision machining, CNC machining, aerospace, defense, or another high-mix/high-precision manufacturing environment required.

• Strong knowledge of manufacturing processes, production scheduling, workflow, capacity planning, tooling, equipment capabilities, and resource allocation.

• Demonstrated experience leading supervisors, foremen, and production employees and managing employee performance.

• Proven ability to manage competing production priorities while maintaining safety, quality, productivity, and customer delivery requirements.

• Demonstrated success improving manufacturing performance, productivity, workflow, efficiency, and operational execution.

• Working knowledge of quality systems, manufacturing documentation, inspection requirements, and continuous improvement principles.

• Advanced blueprint reading, understanding of technical drawings, and manufacturing documentation.

• Experience with ERP/MRP systems and production planning tools preferred.

Preferred Skills

• Strong leadership and people-management skills with the ability to establish expectations, coach employees, and maintain accountability.

• Sound judgment and decisive problem-solving skills in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.

• Strong understanding of CNC machining and precision manufacturing operations.

• Ability to balance customer delivery requirements with capacity, staffing, quality, cost, and operational constraints.

• Strong communication, organizational, prioritization, and time-management skills.

• Ability to collaborate effectively with engineering and technical personnel while maintaining clear operational authority and accountability.

• Results-oriented approach with a strong commitment to safety, quality, customer satisfaction, and continuous improvement.

• Ability to develop employees and build an effective, accountable manufacturing team.

Organizational Relationship

The Plant Manager is accountable for manufacturing execution, personnel management, production priorities, resource allocation, and overall plant performance. The Senior Manufacturing Operations Engineer and other technical resources provide technical analysis, engineering expertise, process development, and recommended solutions. The Plant Manager is responsible for operational decisions and for ensuring approved solutions are effectively implemented and sustained.

Visual Acuity

Ability to read blueprints, production documentation, computer screens, reports, and other manufacturing information and to observe manufacturing operations and work areas.

Hearing Ability

Working Conditions

Regular presence throughout the manufacturing facility and production areas is required.

The employee may be required to follow other job-related instructions and to perform other job-related duties as requested, subject to all applicable state and federal laws.

Physical Requirements

Never Occasionally

(.25 – 2.5 hrs/day) Frequently

(2.5 – 5.5 hrs/day) Continuously

(5.5 – 8 hrs/day)

Sit X

Stand X

Walk X

Drive X

Reach above X

Bend/stoop X

Use hands for pushing/pulling X

Use hands for fine manipulation X

Lift/carry 0-10 lbs X

Lift/carry 10-20 lbs X

Lift/carry 20-50 lbs X

Lift/carry 50-100 lbs X

Lift/carry over 100 lbs X