Plant Manager / Beverage Manufacturer

Job Description

Job Description

NVE Pharmaceuticals

15 Whitehall Road / Andover, NJ 07821

JOB DESCRIPTION:

NVE Pharmaceuticals is seeking an experienced Plant Manager to lead daily operations at our manufacturing facility in Andover, New Jersey. This is a key leadership role responsible for driving safe, efficient, compliant, and high-quality plant performance across production, quality, maintenance, warehousing, inventory, and related operational functions.

The Plant Manager will provide both strategic direction and hands-on leadership to ensure the facility meets production goals, customer requirements, regulatory expectations, and company performance targets. The ideal candidate is a strong manufacturing leader who can build accountable teams, improve processes, solve problems quickly, and create a culture focused on safety, quality, productivity, teamwork, and continuous improvement.

POSITION SUMMARY:

The Plant Manager is responsible for leading all aspects of plant operations, including production planning, manufacturing execution, staffing, safety, quality compliance, equipment reliability, inventory coordination, cost control, and operational performance. This role works closely with senior leadership and cross-functional departments to ensure products are manufactured safely, on schedule, within budget, and in accordance with applicable quality and regulatory standards.

The successful candidate will be a hands-on leader with strong experience in a regulated manufacturing environment, preferably within pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, food, beverage, supplement, or related manufacturing. This person must be comfortable managing day-to-day plant activity while also improving systems, developing people, and planning for long-term operational growth.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Leadership and Plant Operations:

• Lead all daily plant operations to ensure safety, quality, service, cost, and productivity goals are achieved.
• Provide clear direction, coaching, and accountability to production supervisors, department leaders, and plant personnel.
• Oversee production schedules, labor planning, workflow, and resource allocation to meet customer demand and delivery requirements.
• Monitor plant performance and key operating metrics, including output, efficiency, downtime, quality results, waste, labor utilization, and on-time completion.
• Establish performance expectations and drive accountability throughout the plant.
• Maintain a visible leadership presence on the production floor and actively support supervisors and employees in resolving operational issues.
• Foster a high-performance culture built on teamwork, communication, urgency, ownership, and continuous improvement.

Production Performance and Continuous Improvement:

• Drive operational excellence by improving production efficiency, reducing downtime, minimizing waste, and strengthening process reliability.
• Identify bottlenecks, recurring issues, and opportunities for improvement in production, staffing, equipment, materials, and workflow.
• Lead or support continuous improvement initiatives, including Lean Manufacturing, root cause analysis, process improvement, and cost reduction projects.
• Collaborate with Maintenance to improve equipment reliability, preventive maintenance execution, line performance, and production uptime.
• Support effective line startups, changeovers, new product runs, and process changes.
• Develop sustainable systems and procedures that improve consistency, efficiency, and accountability.

Cross-Functional Collaboration:

• Work closely with Quality, Maintenance, Supply Chain, Warehousing, Purchasing, Human Resources, Finance, and senior leadership to support plant and business goals.
• Coordinate with internal teams to ensure materials, staffing, equipment, documentation, and resources are available to meet production needs.
• Serve as an escalation point for operational, quality, staffing, customer service, supply chain, and production issues.
• Communicate clearly and regularly with leadership regarding plant performance, risks, opportunities, staffing needs, and improvement plans.
• Support customer requirements, business priorities, and company growth initiatives through strong plant execution.

People Development and Team Management:

• Lead, mentor, and develop supervisors and plant team members.
• Build a culture of accountability, respect, teamwork, safety, and continuous improvement. 
• Support hiring, onboarding, training, performance management, employee engagement, and retention efforts.
• Ensure employees understand expectations, performance goals, safety requirements, quality standards, and production priorities.
• Address performance issues promptly and professionally through coaching, follow-up, and appropriate corrective action when needed.
• Develop bench strength and support succession planning within the plant.

Financial and Resource Management:

• Manage plant labor, materials, supplies, overtime, waste, and operating expenses responsibly.
• Support budgeting, forecasting, cost control, and capital planning activities.
• Evaluate equipment, staffing, and process needs to support current and future production requirements.
• Recommend and support capital improvement projects that improve safety, quality, capacity, efficiency, or cost performance.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Required:

• Minimum of 3 years of progressive manufacturing or operations experience.
• Minimum of 3 years of leadership experience in a manufacturing environment, including supervision of managers, supervisors, or cross-functional plant teams.
• Experience in a regulated manufacturing environment such as pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, dietary supplement, food, beverage, cosmetics, chemical, or related production.
• Strong understanding of production planning, manufacturing operations, quality systems, safety requirements, inventory control, and equipment reliability.
• Demonstrated success improving operational performance, reducing downtime, increasing efficiency, and developing teams.
• Experience using production data, KPIs, and performance metrics to make decisions and drive improvement.
• Strong leadership, communication, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
• Ability to prioritize, multi-task, and adapt in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, including Excel and Outlook.

Preferred:

• Experience with GMP, FDA-regulated manufacturing, HACCP, SQF, Lean Manufacturing, or other continuous improvement systems.
• Strong mechanical aptitude or experience partnering closely with maintenance and engineering teams.
• Experience managing plant budgets, labor planning, cost control, and capital improvement projects. 
• Bilingual English/Spanish communication skills are a plus.

KEY COMPETENCIES:

• Safety-first leadership.
• Quality and compliance mindset.
• Hands-on manufacturing leadership.
• Strong operational execution.
• Team development and accountability.
• Data-driven problem solving.
• Continuous improvement orientation.
• Clear communication across all levels.
• Strong sense of urgency and ownership.
• Ability to balance daily execution with long-term planning.

PHYSICAL AND WORK ENVIRONMENT REQUIREMENTS:

• Ability to work in a manufacturing, warehouse, and office environment.
• Must be able to walk throughout the facility, including production, warehouse, and support areas.
• Regular exposure to production equipment, noise, temperature variations, and standard manufacturing conditions.
• Ability to stand, walk, bend, and move as needed to support plant operations.
• Willingness to work extended hours, weekends, or respond to urgent plant needs when business conditions require.

Benefits:

• Competitive hourly pay with overtime opportunities.
• Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance.
• 401(k) retirement plan.
• Paid time off and paid holidays.
• Career growth and advancement opportunities in a stable manufacturing environment.