Utilities Engineer

Utilities Expert Engineer

Location: Chicago, IL

Reports To: VP, Engineering

Travel: Up to 50%

Position Summary

We are seeking an experienced Utilities Expert Engineer to provide technical leadership for the critical infrastructure systems that support a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility.

This role will lead the design, installation, commissioning, operation, and optimization of mechanical utility systems, including industrial refrigeration, boilers, steam, compressed air, chilled water, HVAC, and related infrastructure.

The successful candidate will play a critical role in developing efficient, reliable, sustainable, and compliant utility systems that enable safe and uninterrupted manufacturing operations.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership for mechanical utility systems, including refrigeration, boilers, steam, compressed air, chilled water, HVAC, and related infrastructure.
• Lead engineering design reviews, equipment selection, technical specifications, and contractor coordination for major utility infrastructure projects.
• Develop utility systems that optimize energy efficiency, reliability, maintainability, and operating costs.
• Establish maintenance strategies, operating procedures, monitoring programs, and reliability standards for critical utility assets.
• Lead commissioning, startup, validation, and handover of utility systems into full-scale manufacturing operations.
• Collaborate with Engineering, Operations, EHS, Facilities, Maintenance, and external contractors to ensure systems meet operational and regulatory requirements.
• Establish and monitor key performance indicators for utilities, energy consumption, reliability, and cost.
• Lead root-cause investigations and continuous improvement initiatives involving utility systems.
• Identify and implement opportunities for energy efficiency, resource conservation, waste reduction, and sustainability improvements.
• Provide technical guidance to project teams, contractors, equipment suppliers, and engineering partners.
• Support long-term utility infrastructure planning and capacity requirements for evolving manufacturing operations.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Chemical, or a related engineering discipline.
• 10+ years of progressive utilities engineering experience within manufacturing.
• Extensive hands-on experience with industrial refrigeration and mechanical utility systems in high-volume production environments.
• Proven experience leading complex capital projects, including engineering design, contractor management, commissioning, and startup.
• Strong knowledge of utility infrastructure, including refrigeration, boilers, steam, compressed air, chilled water, HVAC, and related systems.
• Strong understanding of environmental, health, safety, and regulatory requirements associated with industrial utility systems.
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams and influence contractors, suppliers, and technical stakeholders.
• Strong analytical, troubleshooting, root-cause analysis, and project management capabilities.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in an engineering or related technical discipline.
• Experience in FMCG, food & beverage, CPG, or other high-volume manufacturing environments.
• Experience managing large-scale industrial refrigeration and utility infrastructure.
• Experience supporting capital programs valued at $50M or greater.
• Familiarity with modern energy-efficiency technologies, green building practices, and sustainability programs.
• Experience developing utility infrastructure for new or significantly expanded manufacturing facilities.
• Experience supporting multi-site or global manufacturing operations.

Core Competencies

• Utilities & Infrastructure Engineering
• Industrial Refrigeration
• Capital Project Leadership
• Commissioning & Startup
• Energy Efficiency
• Sustainability
• Reliability Engineering
• Environmental Compliance
• Contractor Management
• Cross-Functional Leadership
• Continuous Improvement
• Root Cause Analysis
• Operational Excellence
• Technical Communication

What Success Looks Like

Success in this role means delivering reliable, efficient, sustainable, and compliant utility infrastructure capable of supporting world-class manufacturing operations. The successful candidate will ensure critical utility systems are commissioned effectively, operate safely and reliably, meet applicable requirements, and continuously improve in efficiency, cost, and environmental performance.