Operations Manager

Job Description

Job Description

American Drillpipe, LLC — Plant / Production Manager – Startup & Quality Systems  

Location: Chickasha, Oklahoma (on-site) 

About ADP American Drillpipe is a domestic friction-weld drill pipe manufacturer building toward API Q1 and API Spec 5DP certification. We run a modern friction-weld line (200-ton welder), post-weld heat treatment, and in-house inspection, serving oil & gas and adjacent markets (geothermal, mining, water well, HDD). This is a ground-floor, build-it-right role: you'll help bring the line online, stand up the quality system that governs it, and run day-to-day production as we scale. 

Benefits / Perks  

• Competitive compensation
• Career growth as the company scales toward full production
• Ground-floor role in a debt-free, family-owned manufacturer

Job Summary We are seeking an experienced Plant / Production Manager to help bring our friction-weld drill pipe line online and run it once live. You'll work hands-on with Engineering to install and validate equipment, with the Director of Quality to implement our API Q1 quality management system, and then own daily production as the operation scales. This is a buildout-phase role demanding mechanical aptitude, strong process discipline, and the drive to get a manufacturing operation and its quality system built right the first time.

• Assist with installation, setup, and commissioning of production equipment (friction welder, PWHT induction system, machining and handling equipment)
• Support equipment validation and qualification activities, including documenting installation and performance verification for QMS records
• Help establish preventive maintenance practices and equipment readiness routines
• Coordinate with Engineering on PLC/controls integration and process parameter setup
• Troubleshoot equipment issues during startup and early production

Production

 

• Manage daily production on the friction-weld line, including operator station assignments and rotation schedules
• Coordinate material flow from inbound receiving through welding, PWHT, inspection, and outbound shipping
• Schedule production runs and staffing to meet delivery commitments
• Oversee shop-floor housekeeping, equipment readiness, and safety practices
• Manage inbound/outbound logistics, including coordination of off-hours truck loading
• Track and report production metrics (throughput, scrap/rework, on-time delivery, downtime)
• Help build and train the production crew as the line ramps to full capacity

Quality Systems Implementation (in support of the Director of Quality)

 

• Assist in developing and rolling out shop-floor procedures and work instructions aligned to API Q1 and 5DP
• Help implement document control and records practices on the production floor
• Support qualification of externally-provided processes (tool joints, heat treat, upsetting) by gathering and organizing supplier conformance records
• Drive adoption of QMS procedures by the production crew during buildout
• Support internal readiness activities ahead of the certification audit

Authority note: The Director of Quality retains quality authority, nonconformance disposition, and final product acceptance. Engineering retains ownership of equipment design, process parameters, and qualification authority. This role executes production and supports equipment validation and QMS implementation; it does not hold independent quality or engineering sign-off.

• 5+ years of manufacturing operations or production supervision; drill pipe, OCTG/tubular, or heavy-industrial fabrication strongly preferred
• Mechanical aptitude and hands-on experience installing, commissioning, or maintaining production equipment
• Experience bringing a new line or facility online (greenfield/startup or major expansion) strongly preferred
• Working knowledge of welding, heat treatment, and NDE/inspection processes
• Hands-on experience with API Q1, API 5DP, ISO 9001, or a comparable quality system—building or implementing it, not just working under one
• Demonstrated ability to lead and develop a shop-floor crew
• Strong organizational and documentation skills—procedures, records, recordkeeping discipline
• Excellent verbal and written communication
• Willing to work on-site in Chickasha, OK during a demanding buildout phase