About This RoleAs Production Manager at General Matter, you'll build and run the fabrication floor at a new multi-building manufacturing site in Paducah, Kentucky, which produces process piping and steel fabrications for the nuclear industry. You'll own daily execution across the welding and process piping cells: schedule, labor, throughput, quality at the point of fabrication, and floor safety. You'll take the operation from first production to a full two-shift rate. You'll hire the team of supervisors, shift and cell leads, and operators, set a lean daily operating rhythm, and deliver work that holds up in an NRC-regulated quality environment. This is a rare chance to stand up a production organization from the ground up and see your decisions shape a facility that is critical to American nuclear fuel.
You'll spend regular time on an active fabrication floor with welding, grinding, overhead cranes and forklifts, where PPE is required, with or without reasonable accommodation. You'll also travel up to about 25%, to other company sites, suppliers and vendors.
If you seek high impact and are excited by fast-paced, intense, Skunkworks-style projects, we encourage you to apply to join our team.
Responsibilities- Run the daily production schedule and a lean operating system (tier meetings, standard work, visual management and continuous improvement) to hit on-time delivery to internal customers, tracking schedule attainment and on-time completion by job.
- Build and deploy the team: hire production supervisors, shift and cell leads, a scheduler/planner and operator cohorts in step with the ramp plan, and balance labor across cells and shifts to protect throughput and control overtime.
- Drive first-pass quality and 5S discipline in every cell, partnering with Weld Development and Quality so work follows approved procedures, welder qualifications stay current and traceability holds up in a nuclear quality and safety program (10 CFR Part 70).
- Lead a strong floor safety culture with the site EHS function: near-miss reporting, job hazard analyses, lifting and rigging, hot work and PPE.
- Escalate material, equipment, manpower and engineering constraints early, and work with Process Engineering and Maintenance on equipment install, commissioning, cell layout and first-article builds across two manufacturing buildings.
- Run the floor through the MES and ERP/MRP system and the daily production tracker; own the production budget and report KPIs including throughput, units per labor hour, WIP aging, overtime and 5S audit score.
Basic Qualifications- Evidence of exceptional ability (prior projects, portfolio of work, completed products, etc.).
- Strong understanding of engineering fundamentals, and the ability to run trade studies (cell layout, capacity, staffing, make vs. buy) and make clear recommendations from first principles even with partial information.
- Bachelor's degree in engineering, manufacturing, operations or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
- 8+ years in manufacturing production leadership, including 4+ years managing supervisors and multi-shift hourly teams.
- Core strength in lean manufacturing: 5S, standard work, visual management, tiered daily meetings, value stream mapping and continuous improvement, with measurable gains in throughput, quality and cost.
- Proven production management: owning the daily schedule, capacity and labor planning, and KPI accountability (schedule attainment, throughput, overtime, safety), including ramping a team to rate.
- Experience in a regulated quality environment (nuclear, aerospace, defense, pressure equipment or similar) and hands-on use of an MES and ERP/MRP system to run production.
- Ability to work extended hours and weekends as necessary.
- Must be a U.S. person, as this role requires regular access to export-controlled environments, and able to obtain and maintain the site access authorization required for the role.
Preferred Skills and Experience- Experience in a fast-paced engineering or highly technical environment, with a resourceful approach to delivering under tight timelines or budget constraints.
- Process piping or steel fabrication experience (pipe spool, pressure piping, structural steel weldments), ideally with a hands-on welding background or direct leadership of welding crews.
- Working knowledge of GTAW, GMAW, FCAW and SMAW processes, ASME B31 piping codes, welding procedure specifications, welder qualifications and NDE.
- Experience in nuclear-industry fabrication or another NRC-regulated quality program.
- Lean Six Sigma Green or Black Belt; AWS Certified Welding Inspector (CWI) or familiarity with AWS D1.1.
- Track record of standing up production in a start-up, greenfield or brownfield facility.
Compensation and BenefitsThe base salary range for this role is $120k-$170k annually.
Compensation bands are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual level and base pay is determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on job-related skills, education, experience, technical capabilities and internal equity. Please note that the stated salary range is an estimate and may be adjusted based on market conditions, business needs, or other factors. In addition to base salary, for full-time hires, you may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of stock options, and access to medical, vision & dental coverage as well as access to a 401(k) retirement plan.
