Plant Manager

Company Overview:

Balfour Beatty Total Power Group (TPG), headquartered in Goldsboro, North Carolina, is a specialized business unit of Balfour Beatty US dedicated to the design, engineering, manufacturing, testing, commissioning, and lifecycle support of traction power and critical electrical power systems. Since 1990, TPG has been a trusted provider of customized electrification solutions for the rail, transit, aviation, industrial, and mission-critical infrastructure markets throughout North America.

Operating from an 80,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Goldsboro, TPG designs and manufactures high-quality electrical equipment including DC and AC switchgear, rectifier units, containerized substations, surge arresters, protective relays, and other custom-engineered power distribution systems. The company provides comprehensive turnkey services spanning system design, equipment fabrication, systems integration, factory and field testing, commissioning, operations and maintenance training, and long-term technical support.

Position Summary:

The Plant Manager is responsible for leading all aspects of plant operations to ensure safe, efficient, and cost-effective production while maintaining the highest standards of quality and customer satisfaction. This role oversees production, maintenance, engineering, quality, safety, inventory, and personnel to achieve operational excellence and continuous improvement.

Key Responsibilities:

Operations Management:

• Direct and oversee daily manufacturing operations to meet production schedules and customer requirements.
• Develop and implement strategies to improve productivity, efficiency, and operational performance.
• Establish and monitor production metrics and implement corrective actions when necessary.
• Ensure effective utilization of labor, equipment, and materials.
• Manage plant capacity planning and workflow optimization.

Production Scheduling:

• Develop, implement, and oversee the master production schedule to ensure customer delivery requirements and business objectives are met.
• Coordinate production schedules with Estimating, Project Management, Supply Chain, Purchasing, and Inventory Control to balance customer demand, material availability, and manufacturing capacity.
• Optimize production sequencing to maximize equipment utilization, minimize changeover time, and improve overall plant efficiency.
• Monitor production progress daily, identify scheduling conflicts or bottlenecks, and adjust schedules as necessary to maintain on-time delivery.
• Ensure labor, equipment, and raw materials are aligned with production requirements while maintaining cost efficiency.
• Collaborate with maintenance and engineering teams to incorporate planned maintenance and capital projects into production schedules with minimal operational disruption.
• Lead Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) and production planning meetings to align manufacturing priorities with customer demand and strategic business goals.
• Develop contingency plans to address unexpected equipment failures, material shortages, labor constraints, or changes in customer demand.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives that enhance scheduling accuracy, production flow, inventory optimization, and on-time customer delivery performance.

Leadership & Team Development:

• Lead, coach, and develop supervisors, managers, and production personnel.
• Establish performance expectations and conduct regular performance evaluations.
• Foster a culture of accountability, teamwork, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Promote employee engagement and professional development.
• Manage staffing requirements, succession planning, and workforce planning.

Safety & Regulatory Compliance:

• Champion a culture of workplace safety.
• Ensure compliance with OSHA, environmental, and company safety regulations.
• Partner with Safety in incident investigations and implement corrective actions.
• Participate in regular safety inspections and audits, take and implement corrective measures, and promote preventive safety initiatives.

Quality Management:

• Ensure products consistently meet customer specifications and quality standards.
• Partner with Quality Assurance/Control to resolve production issues.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on reducing defects and waste.
• Maintain compliance with ISO, customer, and industry quality standards where applicable.

Financial Management:

• Develop and manage annual plant operating budgets.
• Monitor plant financial performance including labor, material, and overhead costs.
• Identify opportunities for cost reduction without compromising safety or quality.
• Analyze key performance indicators (KPIs) and implement improvement initiatives.

Continuous Improvement:

• Lead Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, Kaizen, or other continuous improvement initiatives.
• Drive improvements in Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE).
• Reduce downtime, scrap, rework, and production bottlenecks.
• Support automation and process improvement projects.

Maintenance & Asset Management:

• Ensure preventive and predictive maintenance programs are effectively executed.
• Maximize equipment uptime and reliability.
• Coordinate capital improvement and equipment replacement projects.
• Collaborate with engineering to improve manufacturing capabilities.

Supply Chain & Inventory:

• Coordinate with purchasing, planning, and logistics teams to ensure material availability.
• Optimize inventory levels and warehouse operations.
• Support on-time delivery objectives.
• Improve supply chain efficiency and inventory accuracy.

Customer Focus:

• Ensure customer expectations for quality, delivery, and service are consistently achieved.
• Support customer audits and corrective action activities.
• Collaborate with Sales and Customer Service to resolve operational issues impacting customers.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Business, Operations Management or verifiable experience will be considered in lieu of degree.  
• 7–10 years of progressive manufacturing leadership experience.
• Minimum 5 years managing manufacturing operations in a supervisory or management capacity.
• Strong understanding of Lean Manufacturing principles.
• Experience managing budgets and financial performance.
• Knowledge of OSHA and environmental regulations.
• Proficiency with ERP/MRP systems and Microsoft Office applications.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt certification.
• Experience with ISO 9001, IATF 16949, or other quality management systems.
• Experience leading multi-shift manufacturing operations.
• Project management experience.

Required Skills:

• Strong leadership and people management
• Strategic planning and execution
• Financial and business acumen
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• Problem-solving and decision-making
• Conflict resolution and coaching
• Continuous improvement methodologies
• Production planning and scheduling
• Change management
• Data analysis and KPI management

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):

• Safety Incident Rate
• Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE)
• Production Throughput
• On-Time Delivery
• First Pass Yield
• Scrap and Waste Reduction
• Labor Productivity
• Manufacturing Cost per Unit
• Inventory Accuracy
• Employee Turnover and Retention
• Customer Quality Complaints
• Budget Performance

Working Conditions:

• Primarily based in a manufacturing environment.
• Frequent exposure to machinery, noise, and varying temperatures.
• Ability to walk the production floor for extended periods.
• Occasional lifting of up to 25 pounds.
• May require evenings, weekends, or on-call availability to support production.

Success Factors:

The ideal Manufacturing Plant Manager demonstrates:

• A commitment to safety and operational excellence.
• Strong leadership with the ability to motivate diverse teams.
• A leadership style focused on respect, collaboration, and team work.
• A data-driven approach to decision-making.
• Exceptional organizational and planning skills.
• A continuous improvement mindset focused on quality, efficiency, and customer satisfaction.
• The ability to balance strategic objectives with day-to-day operational execution.