Maintenance & Reliability Manager

Maintenance & Reliability Manager

The Maintenance & Reliability Manager is a critical operational leadership role responsible for developing, rebuilding, and sustaining a world-class maintenance and reliability organization within a high-volume industrial manufacturing environment. This position provides strategic and technical leadership for all maintenance, facilities, equipment reliability, automation, and industrial infrastructure activities supporting machining, assembly, heat treat, paint, material handling, and related manufacturing operations.

This individual must possess deep technical expertise in industrial manufacturing systems, including CNC machining centers, PLC-controlled automation, robotics, hydraulics, pneumatics, electrical systems, and advanced manufacturing technologies. The role requires a highly experienced leader capable of transforming reactive maintenance practices into a proactive, data-driven reliability-centered maintenance program.

The ideal candidate will bring strong engineering capability, exceptional leadership presence, and a proven track record of building maintenance organizations, implementing preventive and predictive maintenance systems, improving equipment uptime, reducing downtime, and driving operational excellence in complex manufacturing environments.

This role is highly strategic and hands-on and requires a leader who can effectively operate both at the executive level and on the manufacturing floor.

Strategic Maintenance Leadership

• Rebuild, modernize, and lead the facility's maintenance and reliability program to support operational growth, equipment stability, productivity, quality, and safety objectives.
• Develop and execute a long-term maintenance and asset reliability strategy aligned with business and operational goals.
• Establish a culture of accountability, urgency, technical excellence, continuous improvement, and proactive problem solving within the maintenance organization.
• Serve as a key operational leader partnering closely with Operations, Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, EH&S, and Leadership teams.

Reliability & Maintenance Program Development

• Design, implement, and sustain a comprehensive Preventive Maintenance (PM), Predictive Maintenance (PdM), and Reliability-Centered Maintenance (RCM) program.
• Drive transformation from reactive maintenance to planned and predictive maintenance methodologies.
• Develop maintenance standards, SOPs, troubleshooting protocols, escalation processes, and equipment reliability strategies.
• Implement KPI-driven maintenance management systems including:
• MTBF (Mean Time Between Failure)
• MTTR (Mean Time to Repair)
• Equipment uptime/downtime analysis
• Planned vs. reactive work ratios
• OEE support metrics
• Maintenance cost tracking
• Lead root cause failure analysis (RCFA) initiatives and corrective action implementation.

Technical & Manufacturing Systems Expertise

• Provide advanced technical leadership supporting:
• CNC machining centers
• Multi-axis machining equipment
• PLC systems and industrial controls
• Robotics and automation systems
• Hydraulic and pneumatic systems
• Industrial electrical systems
• Servo motors and drives
• Industrial networking and controls integration
• Heat treat and paint systems
• Assembly and testing equipment
• Support troubleshooting and repair of complex manufacturing equipment and critical production systems.
• Lead equipment upgrades, modernization projects, automation initiatives, and capital improvement activities.

CMMS & Asset Management

• Lead optimization and administration of the Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS).
• Establish equipment hierarchy, PM structures, maintenance workflows, inventory controls, and reporting systems within the CMMS.
• Improve spare parts strategy, inventory accuracy, and critical parts availability to reduce downtime risk.
• Utilize maintenance analytics and reliability data to drive decision-making and resource planning.

Leadership & Talent Development

• Lead, coach, mentor, and develop maintenance technicians and maintenance leadership across multiple shifts.
• Establish technical training plans and workforce development strategies to strengthen maintenance capability and bench strength.
• Build a high-performance maintenance culture focused on safety, responsiveness, technical competency, and continuous improvement.
• Hold teams accountable to performance expectations, workmanship standards, and operational priorities.

Contractor & Facilities Management

• Direct and manage all external contractors, vendors, and service providers supporting maintenance and facilities operations.
• Ensure contractor compliance with company safety, quality, and operational standards.
• Oversee maintenance and reliability of all building systems, utilities, grounds, and infrastructure.

Safety, Compliance & Continuous Improvement

• Ensure compliance with OSHA, NFPA, environmental, and all applicable regulatory requirements.
• Lead maintenance-related safety initiatives, risk mitigation efforts, and machine safeguarding improvements.
• Champion Lean Manufacturing, TPM, Six Sigma, and continuous improvement methodologies across the maintenance organization.
• Support operational excellence initiatives and plant-wide productivity improvements.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in:
• Mechanical Engineering
• Electrical Engineering
• Industrial Engineering
• Manufacturing Engineering
• or related engineering discipline required.
• Minimum 10–15 years of progressive leadership experience in industrial/manufacturing maintenance environments.
• Minimum 7–10 years of direct maintenance leadership experience managing technical teams in complex manufacturing operations.
• Demonstrated success rebuilding, transforming, or significantly improving maintenance and reliability programs within industrial manufacturing facilities.
• Extensive experience supporting CNC machining operations and highly automated manufacturing equipment.
• Strong expertise with:
• PLC systems
• CNC controls
• Industrial automation
• Robotics
• Hydraulics/pneumatics
• Electrical troubleshooting
• Reliability engineering
• CMMS systems
• Proven experience implementing:
• Preventive Maintenance programs
• Predictive Maintenance technologies
• TPM initiatives
• Reliability-centered maintenance methodologies
• Strong project management capability with experience leading capital projects and equipment installations.
• Excellent leadership, communication, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
• Strong business acumen with the ability to align maintenance strategy to operational and financial objectives.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in precision machining, hydraulic systems, or heavy industrial manufacturing environments strongly preferred.
• Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma certification preferred.
• Reliability certifications (CMRP, CRL, etc.) preferred.
• Experience supporting multi-site or global manufacturing operations preferred.

Physical & Work Environment Requirements

• Ability to work in an industrial manufacturing environment including exposure to noise, heat, moving mechanical equipment, oils, and industrial chemicals.
• Ability to walk production areas extensively and respond to manufacturing support needs.
• Ability to lift up to 40 pounds occasionally.
• Must be able to climb ladders, access elevated platforms, and work around industrial machinery safely.
• Must be able to wear required PPE and comply with all plant safety requirements.