HSE Specialist

Occupational Health And Safety Specialist

This position's overall mission is to help ensure occupational health and safety compliance, implement best practices, and continuously improve safety performance. Supporting operations in Knoxville, TN, this role works across departmental lines to support safe production processes and fosters a proactive safety culture throughout the facility.

Responsibilities & Duties

• Be present on the manufacturing floor, seek to understand operational challenges, and be a sought-after resource for risk mitigation and safety performance.
• Ensure compliance with all applicable occupational safety and health regulations and Kelvion standards. Assist Operations in understanding, planning, and execution.
• Coordinate safe work permit processes and job hazard analysis for high-risk activities (e.g., hot work, confined space entry), ensuring proper risk controls and approvals are in place.
• Conduct regular safety audits, workplace inspections, and risk assessments to identify hazards and compliance gaps.
• Collaborate with manufacturing, engineering, and maintenance teams to integrate safety controls into equipment and processes (e.g., machine guarding, ventilation systems) and ensure safe and ergonomic conditions.
• Lead and/or support the implementation of safety improvement initiatives (e.g., engineering controls, procedural changes, or facility modifications) aimed at mitigating hazards and continuously enhancing safety performance.
• Coordinate and ensure effective implementation of the safety function for key safety programs, such as PPE hazard assessments, chemical exposure sampling and mitigation, fire protection, lockout/tagout, machine guarding, and emergency preparedness and response.
• Coordinate, develop and deliver effective safety training.
• Lead or participate in incident investigations and facilitate root cause analysis.
• Track, analyze, and report safety performance metrics for site and corporate management review, highlighting progress and areas for continuous improvement.
• Maintain required safety documentation and records to ensure accurate, up-to-date compliance reporting and audit readiness.
• Participate in broader continuous improvement initiatives with a safety focus, collaborating with colleagues and management to embed safety considerations into operational excellence efforts.
• Contribute to building a safety-focused culture that empowers production teams to perform their work in a safe, compliant manner.
• All other duties as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Working knowledge of occupational safety and health regulations and industry/engineering standards (e.g. ISO, ANSI, NFPA, ASME).
• Strong technical, analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively in a fast-paced production environment.
• Building positive relationships and influencing stakeholders.
• Manufacturing process understanding.
• Data analysis and reporting.
• Continuous improvement mindset, with a demonstrated commitment to cultivating a positive safety culture across the organization.

Education And Experience (Required Levels)

• Bachelor's degree in Occupational Health & Safety, or BS in other with ASP, CSP, or CHMM.
• 2-5 years of experience in occupational health and safety (HSE) roles within a manufacturing environment (metal fabrication or heavy industry preferred).
• Prefer Certified Safety Professional (CSP)
• Prefer experience with safety management systems (e.g., ISO 45001)
• Prefer Professional Engineer (PE) license or Engineer-in-Training (FE) designation (Eng. Title).

Physical Requirements

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to stand; reach with hands, arms, and shoulders. The employee is occasionally required to walk; sit; climb or balance; stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl; and talk and hear. The employee occasionally will be required hand lift and/or move objects up to 25 pounds.

Work Environment

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.