Job Title: Maintenance Operations Manager
Address: Middlebury, IN
Pay Range: $110,000 – $115,000/year salary with 7.5% bonus opportunity
Type of Facility: Heritage Cheese Production – Horn, Barrel, and Curds of various cheeses
Must Have:
- Minimum of 5 years of experience in maintenance roles, with at least 3 years in a supervisory or leadership capacity within a manufacturing environment, preferably in food or dairy processing.
- Proven expertise in mechanical systems, troubleshooting, and preventive maintenance, with a focus on dairy processing and production equipment.
- Knowledge of industrial automation (e.g., Allen-Bradley), high-pressure steam, boilers, and pumps.
- Strong organizational and planning skills, with the ability to effectively prioritize tasks and manage technician workloads to minimize downtime and maximize operational efficiency.
- Demonstrated leadership and communication skills, with the ability to engage, mentor, and develop a skilled team of maintenance technicians while fostering accountability and continuous improvement.
- Knowledge of regulatory standards, including SQF, OSHA, environmental compliance, and other industry-specific requirements (such as FDA and HACCP).
- Experience with work order scheduling and using CMMS/ERP systems to prioritize, assign, and track maintenance work efficiently to minimize downtime.
- Ability to assess plant operations, prioritize maintenance tasks, and implement corrective actions to maintain plant readiness and ensure smooth operation.
- Willingness to be on call.
*Must be able to pass all pre-employment screenings including drug screen, background and criminal checks*
Company Description:
Our client was established in 1916 as a dairy farmer-owned and operated milk marketing cooperative and dairy processor. As one of the largest dairy cooperatives in the U.S., the client serves dairy farmers and employs approximately 625 people. In addition to a cheese plant and a dairy product plant, the client operates two SQF Level 3 dairy ingredient plants. Products made at the client’s plants include fluid milk, cheese, ultra-filtered milk, ice cream, butter, nonfat dry milk, cream, and condensed skim milk.
Company Benefits:
- Competitive pay rate
- Health and wellness benefits with medical coverage through Blue Cross Blue Shield, including mental health benefits
- Paid time off
- Retirement including 401k with employer contributions
- Employee appreciation events and recognition awards
- Employee wellness initiatives
- Employee feedback and suggestion forums
Client is looking for an experienced Maintenance Operations Manager to join the team, in the cheese-making Middlebury, IN facility. As a hands-on Maintenance Manager, you will ensure operational efficiency and equipment reliability while fostering team engagement and effectively prioritizing maintenance efforts. The ideal candidate will support continuous improvement initiatives, manage operations staffing and scheduling to meet customer demand, manage contractors, and develop and execute capital projects to maintain and enhance the plant’s infrastructure.
As a key player in the team, you will focus on developing a culture of active employee engagement, continuous improvement, and leadership development. You'll also oversee the accuracy of maintenance work and champion cross-departmental collaboration to maximize operational efficiency. In addition, this position involves participation in an on-call rotation with the Plant Engineer, ensuring plant support during off-hours.
This role is ideal for a seasoned professional eager to make a tangible impact while growing their career in a supportive, high-performance environment.
Primary Responsibilities:
Leadership & Team Management:
- Lead and manage the maintenance and operations team across a 3-shift schedule, building a culture of safety, customer service, ownership, and urgency.
- Set clear performance goals, inspire team engagement, and enforce disciplined prioritization to transform a disengaged workforce into a high-performing unit.
- Develop training programs to boost technical skills and empower rapid troubleshooting of mechanical and electrical systems.
- Prepare annual operating budgets and track actual results versus budget focusing on labor efficiency, minimizing product shrink and downgrades and a focus on continuous improvement.
- Provide decisive, hands-on leadership to resolve complex issues and model accountability.
- Work with Human Resources to ensure staffing levels meet production needs
Process & Reliability Management:
- Ensure equipment readiness for milk reception and production startups, minimizing delays.
- Oversee Reliability-Centered Maintenance (RCM) programs to reduce unplanned downtime.
- Implement Preventive (PM) and Predictive (PdM) maintenance strategies, prioritizing tasks that maximize plant uptime.
- Implement and monitor KPIs (e.g., OEE, downtime reduction) tied directly to plant performance, holding the team accountable for measurable outcomes.
- Lead root cause analysis for failures, driving swift and effective corrective actions.
Quality Control/Sanitation:
- Work with Quality/Sanitation to ensure all products are produced in compliance with company standards and regulatory requirements.
- Implement and enforce quality control processes, including sampling and testing procedures.
- Investigate any product quality issues and implement corrective actions.
- Maintain and manage documentation for quality assurance purposes.
- Work to achieve excellent ratings for SQF and other customers and regulatory inspections.
Health and Safety:
- Ensure compliance with all health, safety, and environmental regulations.
- Monitor plant safety protocols and conduct regular safety meetings and drills.
- Address any safety concerns or violations in a timely manner.
- Ensure maintenance activities meet PMO, OSHA, FDA, and other regulatory standards.
- Promote a safe working environment per IOSHA standards.
Continuous Improvement:
- Identify and implement continuous improvement initiatives to enhance plant efficiency, reduce waste, and optimize maintenance processes.
- Foster a culture of proactive problem-solving and innovation within the maintenance team.
Contractor Management:
- Select, oversee, and coordinate contractors for outsourced maintenance and project work, ensuring quality, timeliness, and adherence to budget.
- Manage contractor relationships to support the plant’s needs while maintaining cost efficiency.
Capital Project Development:
- Develop and maintain a list of smaller capital projects to address immediate and future infrastructure needs, ensuring the plant’s long-term reliability and performance.
- Assess the plant’s condition to identify both current repair and maintenance needs and future requirements, prioritizing projects based on impact and urgency.
- Plan, execute, and manage capital projects under a defined complexity threshold, including budgeting, scheduling, and coordination with internal and external stakeholders.
Budget & Resource Management: