Senior Maintenance Supervisor - Food

Maintenance Supervisor

Job Summary

We are recruiting for a Maintenance Supervisor to support a large food manufacturing operation. The role is responsible for overseeing day-to-day maintenance activities across a fast-paced production environment, ensuring equipment reliability, operational efficiency, and compliance with safety and quality standards.

The successful candidate will lead a team of maintenance technicians and contractors, coordinating planned and reactive maintenance activities to minimise downtime and support production targets. This role requires strong technical knowledge, people leadership capability, and a proactive approach to continuous improvement.

Key Responsibilities

• Plan, coordinate, and supervise daily maintenance activities to ensure efficient completion of planned and reactive engineering work.
• Lead maintenance teams to support production performance, minimise equipment downtime, and maintain operational continuity.
• Manage preventative maintenance programmes for manufacturing equipment and site assets to ensure equipment reliability and compliance with engineering standards.
• Coordinate breakdown response activities and ensure timely resolution of engineering issues affecting production.
• Support engineering improvement projects, equipment upgrades, and modification works to improve operational efficiency and plant performance.
• Work closely with internal stakeholders and external contractors to deliver maintenance projects safely and effectively.
• Monitor spare parts usage and inventory levels to support maintenance effectiveness and minimise operational risk.
• Support budget control by managing maintenance spend and identifying cost-effective engineering solutions.
• Ensure maintenance activities are carried out in accordance with health & safety, food safety, environmental, and quality standards.
• Communicate engineering priorities, maintenance standards, and operational updates effectively across teams.
• Participate in site incident response and business continuity activities where required.
• Promote continuous improvement initiatives across engineering and production operations.
• Complete additional engineering and supervisory duties as required.

Candidate Requirements

Qualifications

• Technical qualification in Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related discipline preferred.
• Relevant vocational, technical, or apprenticeship-based engineering training considered advantageous.

Experience & Skills

• Previous experience within a manufacturing maintenance environment, ideally food manufacturing or FMCG.
• Experience leading or supervising engineering or maintenance teams within a production setting.
• Strong understanding of mechanical, electrical, pneumatic, hydraulic, refrigeration, or utility systems.
• Experience managing planned preventative maintenance programmes and responding to equipment breakdowns.
• Ability to interpret engineering drawings, schematics, and technical documentation.
• Strong fault-finding and problem-solving capability.
• Experience coordinating contractors and supporting engineering projects.
• Good communication and organisational skills with the ability to work cross-functionally.
• Familiarity with health & safety and food manufacturing compliance standards.
• Comfortable using maintenance systems and standard Microsoft Office applications.

Physical & Working Requirements

• Ability to work within a manufacturing environment, including periods of standing, walking, climbing, lifting, and working around production equipment.
• Ability to lift and move equipment or components where required.

Leadership Responsibility

• Responsible for supervising and developing a team of maintenance engineers and technicians within a manufacturing operation.