Senior Operations Engineering Manager

Vulcan Elements is manufacturing American rare-earth permanent magnets for a secure, resilient future. With a focus on national security and economic resiliency, we serve critical industries such as defense, aerospace, and automotive powering a high-technology future. Vulcan Elements is building a team of ambitious professionals committed to Mission Focus, Technical Excellence and Integrity.  

This leader is hired ahead of equipment installation to build and lead the Magnet Manufacturing organization, including production operators, operations engineers and technicians. Working closely with the Commissioning Leader, this role will develop and support the commissioning plan, equipment startup sequence and field activities while ensuring the operating team is ready for turnover. The leader will own process performance during production qualification and ramp, including safety, throughput, OEE, yield, quality and cost; establish the sintered-block cost of goods sold (COGS) model; and own the Magnet Manufacturing operations budget.  

Responsibilities  

• Own Magnet Manufacturing operational readiness across hydrogen decrepitation, jet milling, blending, pressing, sintering and heat treatment, providing Operations input from design review and factory acceptance testing through site acceptance, commissioning, process qualification and production turnover.  
• Partner with Manufacturing Engineering, Process Technology, Capital Execution, Automation & Digital Manufacturing, Maintenance, Quality and EHS on powder transfer and containment, equipment layout and access, instrumentation, sampling, maintainability, controls and material flow; serve as the Operations acceptance authority for equipment turnover.  
• Work with the Commissioning Leader to develop and support the integrated commissioning plan, equipment startup sequence, resource plan and execution activities; ensure Operations provides personnel, operating procedures, training and field support at the required milestones.  
• Prepare operators, technicians and operations engineers for equipment startup and qualification; support commissioning execution, then lead production ramp following operational turnover, using process data to improve output, quality, availability and repeatability.  
• Design and grow the Magnet Manufacturing organization for high-volume, multi-shift production: staffing model, supervisors and shift leads, operator coverage, operations engineering and technician support, escalation paths and daily floor leadership. Build the headcount plan backward from commissioning and production ramp milestones.  
• Recruit, onboard and develop operators, engineers and technicians in phases; establish qualification standards, training and cross-training, technical troubleshooting capability, standard work and shift handoff routines so the team can safely own the process at turnover.  
• Partner with EHS on job hazard analysis, pre-startup safety reviews, procedures and emergency response for hydrogen, reactive and combustible fine powders, inert atmospheres, dust collection, high-temperature furnaces, moving machinery, oxygen/moisture ingress and LOTO.  
• Own manufacturing performance measures - throughput, equipment and line OEE, availability, first-pass quality, stepwise and overall material yield, scrap/rework, labor productivity and key consumables. Define consistent measurement methods, loss categories and shop-floor data capture before startup.  
• Partner with Process Manufacturing Engineering, Process Technology and Quality to implement control plans, critical process parameters, sampling and traceability, product specifications and statistical monitoring that deliver consistent, qualified sintered blocks to downstream machining.  
• Lead the operations engineering and technician teams in structured troubleshooting and continuous improvement of bottlenecks, cycle times, powder losses, furnace performance, downtime and process variation; partner with Maintenance and Engineering to convert startup lessons into reliable standard work.  
• Establish and maintain the area cost of goods sold (COGS) model with Finance and Supply Chain, connecting material conversion and yield, direct and indirect labor, power and process gases, tooling and consumables, maintenance and scrap/rework to cost per kilogram of qualified sintered block.  
• Own the Magnet Manufacturing operations budget and staffing forecast from commissioning through production ramp and steady state, including labor, utilities, process gases, consumables, operating supplies and production support; manage monthly actual-to-budget variances, resource requirements and corrective actions.  
• Translate OEE, throughput, yield and material losses into unit-cost improvement priorities; optimize equipment utilization, staffing, energy use, consumable life and material recovery in partnership with technical and support teams.  

Responsibilities and tasks outlined are not exhaustive and may change as determined by the needs of the business.  

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Materials Science, Metallurgical, Chemical, Mechanical, Manufacturing or Industrial Engineering, or a related technical discipline.  
• 8+ years in complex industrial manufacturing, including 5+ years leading production, operations engineering or technical teams in a continuous or multi-shift environment.  
• Strong working knowledge of industrial process equipment, automated materials handling, controlled-atmosphere or thermal processing, production controls, material balances and drivers of process variation and equipment performance.  
• Demonstrated experience in greenfield or major-expansion commissioning, including close collaboration with a commissioning leader on integrated plans, operating readiness, startup execution, equipment turnover and production ramp.  
• Proven ability to build and lead operators, engineers and technicians, including staffing plans, hiring, technical training, qualification, standard work and frontline leadership development.  
• Direct accountability for OEE, throughput and process yield, with strong command of root-cause analysis, manufacturing quality systems, statistical process control and data-driven improvement.  
• Experience establishing manufacturing cost models and managing operating budgets, standard-versus-actual cost performance, productivity and resource forecasts.  
• Demonstrated leadership of safety and compliance in a high-hazard manufacturing environment, including LOTO, combustible or reactive materials, gas handling, thermal hazards and safe startup.  

Must be a U.S. Person due to required access to U.S. export-controlled information or facilities.  

  Preferred Qualifications

• Direct experience manufacturing NdFeB magnets, powder metallurgy products, advanced ceramics or comparable precision sintered materials.  
• Knowledge of hydrogen decrepitation, jet milling, magnetic-field pressing, controlled-atmosphere sintering, heat treatment or oxygen-sensitive powder processing.  
• Experience commissioning automated equipment with international suppliers, including FAT/SAT, robotics or controls integration and process technology transfer.  
• Experience with automotive or defense manufacturing requirements, process capability, control plans, product traceability, PPAP, IATF 16949 or AS9100.  
• Experience deploying MES, historian/shop-floor data collection, advanced process monitoring or digital manufacturing systems; Lean or Six Sigma experience is a plus.  

Physical and Environmental Requirements  

The position requires regular presence on the production floor and the ability to navigate all areas of the facility. Candidates must be able to climb stairs, stand and walk for extended periods, and work in environments that may be hot, humid, or noisy. The role also requires the use of personal protective equipment, including respirators, and adherence to all applicable safety policies, procedures, and regulatory requirements. Employees must be able to complete required fit testing, wear appropriate PPE for the duration of assigned tasks, and respond safely to changing conditions within the production environment.