Maintenance Manager

Job Description

We're partnering with a well-established, family-owned beverage co-manufacturer to help them identify an experienced Maintenance Manager to lead the a team of 20 across 3 shifts for a plant in the Chicago area. Reporting to the Director of Engineering & Maintenance, the successful candidate will oversee preventative maintenance, equipment reliability and uptime, and facilities in a fast paced food manufacturing environment. The ideal candidate brings strong technical ability, a high sense of ownership, and the people skills to lead across multiple shifts and personalities. You'll lead the plant's maintenance function while building a disciplined, reliability-focused operation that supports production performance and long-term growth.

What You'll Do

• Lead, coach, and develop the maintenance team Provide clear direction, scheduling, and work prioritization for a team of 10-15 maintenance technicians. Build a strong, accountable team through coaching, training, and performance management.
• Own plant equipment reliability Oversee maintenance activities across all production and processing equipment, including fillers, cappers, conveyors, mixers, pasteurizers, and packaging systems. Ensure consistent equipment performance to support production throughput.
• Drive preventive and predictive maintenance programs Develop and manage structured maintenance systems using CMMS tools. Monitor KPIs such as MTTR, MTBF, and downtime trends to improve asset reliability and reduce failures.
• Lead troubleshooting and downtime response Act as the primary escalation point for equipment failures and production disruptions. Coordinate internal teams and external vendors to quickly restore operations while identifying root causes and implementing long-term solutions.
• Ensure safety and regulatory compliance Maintain compliance with OSHA safety standards and food manufacturing regulations including GMP, SQF, FDA, USDA, and allergen control requirements. Support audits and lead corrective actions related to maintenance and equipment reliability.
• Manage MRO inventory and vendor relationships Oversee maintenance parts inventory to ensure availability of critical components while controlling costs. Build strong partnerships with equipment vendors and service providers.
• Support capital projects and equipment upgrades Collaborate with engineering and operations teams on equipment installations, plant shutdowns, and capital improvement initiatives. Ensure maintenance readiness for new and upgraded systems.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives Lead efforts focused on downtime reduction, root cause analysis, and reliability engineering. Support Lean manufacturing initiatives and identify opportunities to improve asset utilization and operational efficiency.

Why This Role

• Leadership & Team Impact You'll lead and develop a skilled maintenance team, creating structure, accountability, and long-term capability within the function.
• Operational Ownership You'll own equipment reliability and maintenance performance, directly impacting plant uptime, efficiency, and production success.
• High-Impact Role Your work will play a critical role in minimizing downtime, improving productivity, and ensuring safe, compliant operations.
• Growth Environment Join a stable, growing manufacturing organization where your leadership and ideas will drive meaningful operational improvements.
• On-Site Leadership This role is based on-site, offering hands-on involvement with production, engineering, and plant leadership teams.

What Success Looks Like

Successful Maintenance Managers in this role will:

• Maintain high equipment uptime across all production lines
• Reduce unplanned downtime through structured maintenance programs
• Build a strong, accountable, and technically capable maintenance team
• Ensure safe operations and full regulatory compliance
• Deliver measurable improvements in equipment reliability and plant productivity

Who You Are

• A proven maintenance leader with at least 3 years of supervisory experience
• Experienced in manufacturing maintenance, ideally within high-speed production environments
• Strong in mechanical and electrical troubleshooting
• Skilled in preventive and predictive maintenance systems and CMMS tools
• Comfortable working cross-functionally with Production, Quality, and Operations teams
• A hands-on problem solver with strong analytical and decision-making skills
• Organized and capable of balancing daily execution with longer-term reliability improvements

Required Qualifications

• 5-8 years of maintenance experience in a manufacturing environment
• Minimum 3 years of leadership or supervisory experience in plant maintenance
• Experience supporting high-speed production or packaging equipment
• Strong mechanical and electrical troubleshooting skills
• Experience using CMMS systems to manage maintenance programs
• Working knowledge of safety procedures including LOTO and confined space

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in food or beverage manufacturing environments
• Familiarity with GMP, SQF, FDA, USDA, or other food safety standards
• Experience with predictive maintenance tools (vibration analysis, thermal monitoring)
• Basic PLC troubleshooting and automation knowledge
• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Industrial Technology, or related field
• Arc Flash training