The Director of Fabrication will provide leadership across estimating, QA/QC, safety, production, project execution, scheduling, material management, facility operations, and workforce planning to ensure fabrication work is executed safely, efficiently, on schedule, within budget, and in accordance with company and client quality requirements. The Director will work closely with Construction, Engineering, Project Management, Project Controls, Supply Chain, Finance, and Executive Leadership to ensure the fabrication facility supports both internal projects and external fabrication opportunities.
Key Responsibilities
Business Unit Leadership & P&L
Provide overall leadership and accountability for the Fabrication Business Unit.
Own and manage the fabrication facility's annual P&L, revenue, gross margin, overhead, and profitability targets.
Develop annual operating plans, budgets, forecasts, and business objectives.
Monitor backlog, revenue projections, shop loading, labor requirements, and capacity utilization.
Establish and track key performance indicators for safety, quality, productivity, schedule, cost, and profitability.
Identify opportunities to improve margins, productivity, throughput, and overall financial performance.
Participate in strategic planning for growth of the company's fabrication capabilities and market presence.
Fabrication Operations & Production
Ensure projects are properly planned, staffed, sequenced, and executed to meet required delivery dates.
Maintain visibility of shop capacity and develop short- and long-term production forecasts.
Establish production goals and monitor actual performance against planned hours and production quantities.
Drive improvements in labor productivity, workflow, material handling, equipment utilization, and shop layout.
Coordinate production priorities across multiple projects and clients.
Ensure fabrication activities are properly integrated with engineering, procurement, construction, and project schedules.
Estimating & Preconstruction
Review and approve all fabrication estimates prior to executive review.
Ensure estimates accurately reflect labor productivity, material requirements, equipment, subcontracting, indirect costs, schedule requirements, and risk.
Establish and maintain fabrication estimating standards, historical productivity data, and estimating metrics.
Participate in bid reviews and major proposal decisions.
Review estimate-to-actual performance and incorporate lessons learned into future estimates.
Support development of competitive fabrication pricing while maintaining required margins and risk controls.
Financial & Project Controls
Monitor project budgets, earned hours, actual hours, productivity, cost-to-complete, and forecasted margins.
Review fabrication project financial performance regularly with Project Management and Finance.
Ensure accurate forecasting of revenue, cost, and gross margin.
Identify unfavorable cost or schedule trends early and implement corrective action.
Monitor fabrication backlog and resource loading to ensure appropriate staffing and capacity.
Develop measurable productivity standards for major fabrication activities.
Quality Assurance / Quality Control
Provide executive oversight of the fabrication QA/QC program.
Ensure compliance with applicable ASME, AWS, API, client specifications, project requirements, and company quality procedures.
Ensure appropriate welding procedures, welder qualifications, inspection requirements, NDE, documentation, and turnover packages are maintained.
Support continuous improvement of the company's Quality Management System.
Monitor weld rejection rates, NCRs, rework, repair rates, and other quality KPIs.
Ensure quality issues are identified, documented, corrected, and incorporated into lessons learned.
Maintain a strong culture where quality is built into the work rather than inspected in after completion.
Qualifications
Required
10+ years of progressive experience in industrial fabrication, construction, manufacturing, or EPC operations.
5+ years in a significant fabrication leadership role.
Demonstrated experience managing pipe fabrication and/or modular fabrication operations.
Strong understanding of welding, fitting, piping, structural fabrication, modular assembly, and industrial construction.
Demonstrated ability to manage budgets, forecasts, labor productivity, and financial performance.
Strong understanding of fabrication estimating and project controls.
Experience managing multiple projects and competing production priorities.
Strong leadership and organizational-development skills.
Ability to communicate effectively with craft employees, supervisors, project teams, clients, and executive leadership.
Preferred
Experience with both pipe fabrication and modular/skid fabrication.
Experience within an EPC or industrial construction organization.
Knowledge of ASME and AWS fabrication requirements.
Experience with ASME code fabrication and applicable quality programs.
Experience implementing Lean manufacturing, production tracking, or fabrication
Physical Requirements
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is constantly required to stand and walk for long periods of time; sit; bend; use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools, or controls; reach with hands and arms; balance; stoop; talk or hear. The employee may occasionally lift up to 50 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.
Work Environment
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is exposed to certain conditions that require the use of personal protective equipment such as Safety Glasses with Side Shields and gloves. Temperature of work area may be affected by outside temperatures. Industrial lighting provided. The noise level in the work environment is usually minimal but can be greater when using equipment.
