Director of Fabrication

At MacDonald-Miller Facility Solutions (“MacMiller”) we make buildings work better. As the Northwest’s leading mechanical contracting firm, we design, deliver and service HVAC, plumbing and automation system solutions for commercial buildings. With our over 1,600 employees across 15 offices, there is a breadth and variety of work to keep you engaged and inspired. 

We enjoy a well-respected history of exceeding our customers’ expectations and executing with distinction. Our clients trust their toughest projects with our integrated teams, including: 

• New construction – Engineering, fabrication and installation of mechanical systems for new projects following lean construction practices 
• Special projects – Retrofits and mechanical repairs for existing buildings for new efficiencies 
• Service - scheduled preventative maintenance ensuring tenant comfort, and 24/7 emergency response 
• Building performance – Control systems, fault detection, energy services and remote monitoring 
• Energy and Sustainable Solutions -  Acting as the Prime Contractor, we deliver design-build, energy-efficient solutions in the built environment for both private and public sector clients.

People love to work at MacDonald-Miller, and it’s because we all share the same Core Culture Values:

Collaboration  – Diverse players, one team, a common vision.  Collaboration is our foundation and critical to the success of the company. Every team member is valued and brings a diversity of strengths to help us meet our common vision.

Dedication –   We are dedicated to personal and professional excellence. We execute with distinction by doing the right thing and following through on our commitments.

Safety –   Everyone deserves a safe workplace.  Safety is more than hardhats and boots, it’s an attitude and the environment we create. Every day, everyone goes home to their families.

Community –   We are proud to be part of MacDonald-Miller.  We actively seek to build relationships and know each other as individuals. Together we create an environment that is welcoming, caring, and trusting.

Innovation –   We are committed to continuous,  creative problem solving .  Innovation is how we stay an industry leader. We always strive to challenge and better ourselves.

Fun!– Take the work seriously, but never take ourselves too seriously.  It’s possible to be both serious professionals and good-natured people you enjoy working with. We strive to be both.

Requirements

Director of Fabrication - This Is Where You Come In

MacDonald-Miller is looking for a Director of Fabrication to lead the performance, growth, and strategic development of fabrication operations across our enterprise. Overseeing our Seattle (Norfolk), Portland, and Kennewick facilities, you will ensure our shops have the people, processes, technology, equipment, and capacity to support the company’s expanding Off-Site Manufacturing (OSM) strategy.

As MacDonald-Miller grows its offsite capabilities—particularly multi-trade racks, pipe and duct spooling, equipment skids, risers, and modular assemblies for Mission Critical and data center clients nationwide—you will build the operational foundation to deliver increasingly complex work safely, efficiently, and consistently.

Serving as the connection point between fabrication, field operations, estimating, preconstruction, project management, and executive leadership, you will align what we sell with what our shops can reliably deliver. You will own enterprise fabrication planning, production performance, capacity and capital investment, quality systems, and shop financial metrics while partnering with Trade Superintendents, Trade General Foremen, and Union Halls to ensure our workforce can scale with demand.

This is a highly visible leadership role for a strategic, hands-on operator who can translate business growth into practical execution. You will shape the future of MacDonald-Miller’s fabrication network, build high-performing teams, and establish the systems and standards that make fabrication a measurable, predictable, and scalable competitive advantage.

Top Deliverables for Success

1. Enterprise Fabrication Strategy & OSM Growth

• Develop and maintain a three-to-five-year enterprise fabrication plan aligned with company strategy, target markets, backlog, and pipeline forecasts. Present progress, risks, and investment recommendations to executive leadership on a regular cadence.
• Identify opportunities to increase prefabrication across eligible scopes and expand capabilities in multi-trade racks, pipe and duct spooling, equipment skids, risers, and modular assemblies.
• Define the long-term shop network strategy, including facility specialization, regional capacity allocation, load balancing, and make-or-buy or strategic partnership decisions.
• Build business cases for facility expansion, equipment investments, and automation, including cutting, beveling, welding, duct fabrication, and material handling systems. Secure approvals and lead implementation.
• Evaluate fabrication partners, offsite assembly and staging yards, and third-party modular providers to extend capacity, address specialized needs, and support geographic expansion.
• Monitor market trends, emerging technologies, competitor capabilities, and client expectations to identify opportunities that strengthen MacDonald-Miller’s OSM offering.

2. Fabrication Operations & Shop Network Performance

• Oversee fabrication operations across all current and future facilities, including sheet metal, plumbing, piping, structural components, and multi-trade assemblies.
• Establish consistent enterprise operating standards, trade-specific procedures, work instructions, and performance expectations while allowing for necessary differences between facilities and trades.
• Own shop capacity planning and six-to-18-month load forecasts, integrating project pipeline, labor availability, space, equipment, and production requirements to anticipate constraints before they affect delivery.
• Coordinate regularly with Shop Leadership, Field Superintendents, Project Management, and VDC/Detailing to align production schedules, fabrication releases, and field installation requirements.
• Lead shop infrastructure and capital improvement projects, overseeing scope, permitting, procurement, subcontractor coordination, budgets, schedules, and execution.
• Build a strong shop leadership structure with clear roles, decision-making authority, accountability, and succession plans. Partner with Trade Superintendents, Trade General Foremen, and Union Halls to maintain and develop the workforce required to meet demand.

3. OSM & Mission Critical Execution

• Lead fabrication planning and execution for Mission Critical projects, including data centers and hyperscale clients, ensuring assemblies meet project-specific tolerances, cleanliness standards, documentation requirements, and quality expectations.
• Establish prefabrication release schedules that align detailing, material availability, shop production, transportation, and field installation milestones.
• Champion Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DfMA) by engaging VDC/Detailing early in design and developing standardized, repeatable assemblies that can be consistently estimated, detailed, and fabricated.
• Oversee OSM logistics, including packaging, staging, shipping, rigging, transportation, and just-in-time delivery of large or complex assemblies.
• Standardize fabrication documentation, including traveler packages, material traceability, inspection records, pressure test documentation, and quality sign-offs, to support ISO 9001 implementation and Mission Critical client requirements.

4. Sales, Preconstruction & Commercial Alignment

• Partner with Sales, Business Development, Preconstruction, and Estimating on pursuits requiring fabrication expertise, particularly multi-trade racks, spooling, and modular solutions for data center clients nationwide.
• Evaluate fabrication feasibility, available capacity, lead times, production constraints, and cost assumptions during pursuit and project planning to ensure commitments are achievable.
• Support client presentations, project interviews, shop tours, and technical discussions, communicating fabrication capabilities and identifying opportunities to improve project outcomes.
• Establish a formal feedback loop between Estimating and fabrication operations to compare estimated and actual labor, material usage, productivity, and costs. Use the findings to improve estimating accuracy, pricing, and future production planning.
• Collaborate directly with clients and general contractors to understand project requirements and develop practical, high-quality fabrication solutions.

5. Quality, Safety & Environmental Compliance

• Lead the enterprise fabrication quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) program, establishing the systems, documentation, and accountability needed to achieve ISO 9001 certification with increasing internal ownership and minimal reliance on external consultants.
• Develop and maintain shop quality procedures, inspection criteria, internal audit programs, and corrective and preventive action processes aligned with company QA/QC standards and project-specific quality plans.
• Establish and monitor quality and production KPIs, including rework, defect rates, test failures, throughput, productivity, and schedule performance. Use results to prioritize and implement continuous improvements.
• Foster a proactive safety culture across all fabrication facilities, ensuring compliance with OSHA requirements and company policies while driving improvements in ergonomics, equipment safety, material handling, and incident prevention.
• Own Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) management across fabrication facilities, maintaining current site plans and compliance with applicable industrial stormwater permits, including Washington Ecology's Industrial Stormwater General Permit and Oregon DEQ's 1200-Z permit.
• Ensure required stormwater best management practices (BMPs), inspections, sampling, and reporting are completed on schedule. Lead corrective actions when benchmarks are exceeded and coordinate with EHS on agency inspections, facility modifications, and permit coverage.
• Train shop personnel on stormwater compliance, spill prevention and response, material storage, and housekeeping practices.

Role & Impact: What Success Looks Like in Your First 12 Months

Within your first year, you will establish a clear operational baseline and demonstrate measurable progress in the following areas:

• Enterprise strategy: A three-to-five-year fabrication plan is developed, aligned with the OSM growth strategy, and approved by executive leadership.
• Quality systems: An ISO 9001 implementation plan is established, with defined ownership, milestones, resources, and a clear path to certification.
• Performance management: Standard shop productivity, capacity, cost, schedule, and quality metrics are established across all facilities and reported monthly to Operations leadership.
• Capacity planning: A forward-looking shop load forecast is integrated into company pipeline and resource planning, improving visibility into labor, equipment, and space requirements.
• Infrastructure investment: Priority shop upgrades or capital improvement projects are underway and progressing against approved budgets and schedules.
• Environmental compliance: SWPPPs are current at all fabrication facilities, required inspections and reporting are completed on schedule, and permit compliance is actively managed.
• Estimating accuracy: A documented estimating-to-fabrication feedback process is operational, with measurable improvements in cost data accuracy and synchronization.
• Leadership effectiveness: The shop leadership structure is defined, critical roles are filled, and clear accountability reduces the need for Project Managers and Operations leaders to backfill fabrication management responsibilities.

Your Background: What Will Help You Thrive in This Role?

You Should Have

• 10+ years of progressive experience in mechanical, plumbing, or sheet metal fabrication, manufacturing, or construction operations, including at least five years leading shop or manufacturing operations.
• A demonstrated track record of scaling or improving fabrication or prefabrication operations, with measurable gains in productivity, throughput, quality, efficiency, or capacity.
• Experience leading multi-site operations through other leaders, with the ability to establish consistent standards while accounting for regional and trade-specific needs.
• Strong knowledge of mechanical contracting, including sheet metal, plumbing, and piping systems, and an understanding of how fabricated assemblies integrate with field installation.
• Experience managing operating budgets, capital investments, equipment procurement, material purchasing, and cost controls.
• Working knowledge of lean manufacturing, process optimization, and continuous improvement methodologies.
• Proficiency with fabrication management and design tools such as Stratus or equivalent platforms, Revit, AutoCAD, Navisworks, Bluebeam, and Microsoft Office.
• The ability to read and interpret construction drawings and specifications across your primary trade and associated trades.
• Strong analytical skills, including the ability to develop meaningful performance metrics, evaluate trends, and translate data into operational decisions.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to present recommendations to executive leadership and communicate effectively with clients, field teams, and shop personnel.
• A thorough understanding of OSHA standards, workplace safety practices, and applicable environmental and regulatory compliance requirements.
• A bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing, Construction Management, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Your Leadership Style: How Colleagues Will Describe You

• Strategic and forward-thinking. You anticipate business needs and build the capacity, infrastructure, and capabilities required to support future growth.
• Operationally credible. You understand fabrication from the shop floor to the executive level and can translate business objectives into practical execution.
• A builder of systems and organizations. You establish clear processes, accountability, and standards without creating unnecessary bureaucracy.
• A trusted business partner. You bring sound judgment, financial awareness, data, and practical solutions to decisions involving capacity, investment, quality, and performance.
• A decisive problem solver. You stay composed under pressure, identify root causes, and bring the right people together to resolve challenges.
• Committed to continuous improvement. You challenge assumptions, identify better ways of working, and turn successful improvements into sustainable practices.
• Collaborative and influential. You build alignment across Estimating, Preconstruction, Project Management, VDC/Detailing, Field Operations, and Shop teams.
• Invested in developing people. You recognize talent, coach emerging leaders, establish accountability, and build teams that can perform independently and consistently.
• Positive and grounded. You lead with professionalism, curiosity, humility, sound judgment, and a sense of humor.

What Motivates You

• Building something that lasts. You want to create a fabrication organization that becomes a long-term competitive advantage for MacDonald-Miller.
• Scaling what works. You enjoy transforming successful practices into repeatable systems, processes, technologies, and operating models that support growth.
• Making a measurable impact. You are motivated by improvements in productivity, quality, cost, schedule reliability, and customer satisfaction.
• Solving complex challenges. You thrive at the intersection of fabrication, construction, technology, operations, and business strategy.
• Creating predictability. You take pride in reducing uncertainty, eliminating bottlenecks, and building an operation that project teams can depend on.
• Developing strong teams. You find satisfaction in building capable leaders, creating clear accountability, and helping people reach their potential.
• Leading meaningful change. You want the authority and opportunity to challenge established practices and implement improvements that deliver lasting results.
• Working for a company that invests in its people and future. You value an organization committed to developing its workforce, improving its capabilities, and pursuing long-term growth.
• Shaping the future of fabrication. You want to help define what world-class fabrication looks like at MacDonald-Miller and build the organization capable of delivering it.

Benefits

Compensation: $155,000 – $200,000 annually, plus company vehicle

MacDonald-Miller Facility Solutions presently provides employee coverage for:

• Medical, dental, vision for employees (coverage available for dependents for shared premium).
• 401k retirement plan including generous Company matching.
• Vacation and Sick Compensation (PTO), and Holiday Pay
• Disability income protection including short term and long-term disability.
• Employee and dependent life insurance.
• Wellness Program.
• Employee Assistance Program.

Where You Will Work

The Fabrication Manager will be based primarily at the Norfolk Fab Shop, located at 3701 South Norfolk St., Seattle, WA, with regular travel to other regional shop locations as project demands require. The role includes regular time on the shop floor and may occasionally require work outside standard business hours to support project milestones, critical deadlines, or infrastructure upgrade activities.

Equal Opportunity Employer

MacDonald-Miller Facility Solutions is committed to equal employment opportunities for all individuals, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status.