Position: MPI Manufacturing Operations Manager
Location: Calera, AL
Directly Reports to: Director of Operations
Job Descriptionperformance, safety excellence, operational discipline, and continuous improvement initiatives while ensuring effective communication and operational continuity across shifts.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Operational Leadership & Production Execution
- Lead daily manufacturing operations, across multiple shifts, to ensure safe, stable, and efficient production performance.
- Own execution of production schedules, operational priorities, and recovery plans.
- Maintain a strong presence on the manufacturing floor to drive accountability, urgency, and operational discipline ensuring the safety of all team members remains priority.
- Monitor production performance, staffing levels, equipment utilization, workflow constraints, and schedule risks.
- Coordinate rapid response and recovery efforts for downtime, material shortages, equipment failures, quality issues, and staffing challenges.
- Ensure manufacturing activities align with customer requirements, business priorities, and production capacity.
- Ensure compliance with all company safety policies, OSHA requirements, environmental regulations, and operational standards.
- Ensure operator readiness, process capability, and production readiness for new products.
- Support production transition planning and operational readiness activities.
Leadership & Workforce Development
- Lead, coach, mentor, and develop supervisors, leads, machinists, operators, and production personnel.
- Establish clear expectations for safety, quality, productivity, and accountability.
- Conduct routine floor audits, leadership observations, and operational reviews.
- Support workforce planning, onboarding, training, cross-training, succession planning, and performance management.
- Promote a culture centered on safety, teamwork, accountability, communication, and continuous improvement.
CNC Manufacturing & Technical Operations
- Oversee CNC machining operations, including workflow scheduling, machine utilization, tooling coordination, and operational efficiency.
- Support CNC programming activities including G-code edits, CAM support, program optimization, and setup improvements.
- Ensure machining processes conform to specifications, drawings, GD&T requirements, and customer expectations.
- Validate manufacturing routings through time studies and process reviews.
Partner with Engineering to develop tooling, fixtures, gauges, and job aids that improve safety, efficiency, repeatability, and manufacturing flexibility.
QualificationsRequired Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Manufacturing Engineering, Operations Management, Industrial Engineering, or related field; equivalent education and work experience will be considered in lieu of a degree.
- Minimum of five (5) years of manufacturing leadership experience in an industrial manufacturing environment with minimum of three (3) years leading supervisors, team leads, and production employees.
- Strong knowledge of CNC machining, tooling, blueprint reading, GD&T, and manufacturing processes.
- Experience with New Product Introduction (NPI), First Article Inspection (FAI), and PPAP requirements.
- Knowledge of Lean Manufacturing principles and continuous improvement methodologies.
- Experience with ERP/MRP systems and manufacturing reporting tools.
- Strong leadership, communication, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
- Demonstrated ability to lead operational recovery efforts and workforce accountability systems.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience in high-mix, low-volume manufacturing environments.
- Lean Manufacturing certification and/or Six Sigma training.
- Experience with Microsoft Dynamics 365 or equivalent ERP system.
Physical Requirements & Work Environment
- Ability to stand, walk, climb, bend, stoop, kneel, and reach throughout manufacturing facilities for extended periods.
- Ability to occasionally lift up to 50 pounds.
- Ability to work in environments with noise, dust, vibration, heat, cold, and industrial equipment.
- Must wear required PPE, including safety glasses, hearing protection, steel-toed footwear, and other protective equipment as required.
- Ability to work flexible hours as necessary to support production demands and multiple shifts.
- Ability to effectively communicate in a manufacturing environment.
Additional InformationExcellent benefits include 9 paid holidays plus 2 floating holidays, 3 weeks PTO, 401k and company health insurance plans, Education Assistance, a Wellness Program, and EAP.Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.
