Engineering Manager – Food Manufacturing

About the role

This senior leadership position is responsible for overseeing the engineering function at a large‑scale, highly automated food production site. Reporting directly to the Site General Manager, the Engineering Manager will drive operational performance, asset reliability, safety and continuous improvement across the plant.

Key responsibilities

• Lead the site engineering function covering maintenance, reliability, utilities and capital projects.
• Develop and implement preventative, predictive and reliability‑centred maintenance strategies.
• Improve equipment uptime, OEE and overall plant performance.
• Oversee utilities such as steam, refrigeration, compressed air, HVAC, water treatment and related infrastructure.
• Conduct root‑cause analysis and resolve recurring engineering and operational issues.
• Manage engineering budgets, CapEx planning and cost‑control initiatives.
• Ensure compliance with safety, quality and regulatory standards.
• Lead and develop engineering managers, engineers and technicians.
• Collaborate with Operations, Quality, EHS and senior leadership to support site objectives.

Required profile

• Degree qualified in Mechanical, Electrical, Manufacturing, Automation or a related engineering discipline.
• Significant senior engineering leadership experience in manufacturing, food processing or highly automated production environments.
• Proven track record managing maintenance, reliability and engineering functions at site level.
• Strong understanding of utilities management and critical plant infrastructure.
• Experience delivering engineering and capital projects safely and within budget.
• Demonstrated ability to drive OEE, reliability and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills.

Required skills

• CMMS systems
• Predictive maintenance
• Reliability‑centred maintenance
• Utilities management
• Mechanical engineering
• Electrical engineering
• Automation engineering

What we offer

• Senior leadership role within a large‑scale manufacturing operation.
• Significant influence over site operations and engineering strategy.
• Opportunity to lead major engineering and operational improvement initiatives.
• Long‑term career growth in a respected, growing business.