Maintenance Leader

Asahi Kasei; Port Colborne; On-site; CAD 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

An innovative company is seeking a Maintenance Leader to oversee operations at a new lithium battery separator manufacturing facility. This role involves developing maintenance strategies, leading a team, and ensuring the reliability of manufacturing equipment. The ideal candidate will possess strong problem-solving skills and a background in engineering, with a commitment to safety and continuous improvement. Join a forward-thinking organization dedicated to advancing battery technology and contributing to the growing electric vehicle market in North America. This is an exciting opportunity to make a significant impact in a rapidly evolving industry.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of plant maintenance management experience required.
• Must be proficient in Excel and Minitab for data analysis.
• Experience with TPM or similar maintenance management systems preferred.

Responsibilities

• Plan and implement maintenance strategies and policies.
• Drive the implementation of CMMS and optimize maintenance operations.
• Supervise installations, repairs, and ensure compliance with safety standards.

Skills

Problem-solving

Interpersonal skills

Data analysis

Project management

Continuous Improvement tools

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering

P.Eng. (Professional Engineer) license

Tools

Excel

Minitab

CMMS

Power BI

Job description

The Asahi Kasei Group operates with a commitment of creating for tomorrow. Our business sectors,Materials, Homes, and Health Care, contribute to the development of society by anticipating the changing needs of those around the world. We look for candidates that offer a fresh perspective and a variety of skills to help us achieve our commitment.

Asahi Kasei is a long-trusted supplier of lithium-ion battery separators – polymer-based microporous membranes that are a key component of the lithium batteries used to power electric vehicles, renewable energy storage systems, and more. We are currently seeking applications to fill the following job opening at Asahi Kasei Battery Separator Canada, where we are in the process of constructing a new lithium battery separator manufacturing facility to support increasing North American demand.

Company: Asahi Kasei Battery Separator Canada Corporation

Job Description:

About the Role

We are seeking a highly skilled Maintenance Leader to be a part of the new plant operations team based in Port Colborne, ON. Being the Maintenance Leader means that the company’s physical assets and facilities are under your jurisdiction, in terms of maintenance, development, expansion and sustenance. Being an intuitive professional with innate problem-solving abilities is the ideal skill set that this job requires. As a key member of plant operations staff, this role will develop the maintenance team’s objectives and targets to facilitate strong environmental, safety, and plant/production reliability performance that align with site wide operational goals.

Reporting Relationships

This position initially will report to the Sr. Director of Operations and will eventually build a plant maintenance team.

Asahi Kasei Values

• Sincerity – Being sincere with everyone
• Challenge – Boldly taking challenges, continually seeking change
• Creativity – Creating new value through unity and synergy

Key Accountabilities

• Plan and implement maintenance strategies and policies.
• Work with Director of Operations, process engineering team, and EHS team to define priority of maintenance project execution according to the business needs.
• Drive the implementation, use and optimization of CMMS and other necessary IT technology.
• Responsible for collecting and analyzing maintenance data, and implementation of improvement activities correspondingly.
• Issue reports for maintenance results (weekly, monthly, annual, etc.)
• Responsible for risk assessment, occupational safety and health standards to ensure site safety.
• Responsible for coordination of external contractors.
• During plant’s construction, the incumbent is responsible for the following:
  • Complete all the necessary documents including Maintenance standards, training programs and procedures etc. with Japan team.
  • Complete the maintenance organization structure including workflow etc. with Japan team.
  • Participate in planning and interviews of maintenance members’ recruitment.
  • Participate in planning and in outsourcing to contractors.
• Supervise installations and repairs, schedule inspections, manage budgets, and ensure compliance with construction and production schedules according to specifications.
• Strive towards the seamless running of the facility and the equipment of the company through efficient facility management work.
• Adhere to safety standards and legal regulations while executing maintenance management tasks and programs.
• Learn about new processes, procedures and equipment that are being used worldwide, and try to adopt relevant processes into the company’s management work.
• Plan immediate corrective action to downtime, gather data, and analyze the root cause. Plan preventive actions to improve equipment reliability and machine uptime while running at nominal capacity.

• Develop and coordinate the plant preventive maintenance plan, as well as to set / plan maintenance and machine shut down to achieve maximum reliability of manufacturing equipment.

• Ensure maintenance develops into a proactive organization via the success and sustainment of Total Production Maintenance (TPM) system. Identify and drive results for key performance indicators to achieve target maintenance performance.

• Champion site power and other utilities reliability as well as monitoring energy consumption and energy conservation and improvement.

• Provide technical leadership to ensure proper installation, operation, consistency of applications, and long-term viability of manufacturing equipment.
• Train, guide and evaluate staff members as the head of maintenance.

• Support projects and other technical activities that include equipment design, automation, modification, purchase, installation, parts inventory control and commissioning to make sure maintenance considerations are integrated.

• Maintain the facilities buildings and grounds in a cost-effective manner that creates a positive image to customers and community.

• Foster an environment of root cause problem solving as well as corrective action to prevent future reoccurrence.

• Assure the use of processes, maintenance standard and best practice including the Most Effective Technology (MET).

• Be proactive and integral leader for continuous improvement opportunities to improve plant EH&S risk and overall manufacturing cost.

• Encourage innovation, over achievement, teamwork, excellence in the work.

• Participate in employee performance management including goal setting, performance expectations, performance reviews, regular feedback, development planning, and improvement plan.

• Provide regular communication to all team members and meaningful feedback to any employee concerns.

• Provide on and off-hour emergency response including equipment repair, damage control, and assignment of support personnel as needed.

• Stay current on technological changes such as retrofitting machinery to meet today’s new laws and efficiency standards.

Qualifications

Education Background:

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering is required; degree in mechanical or electrical engineering is preferred.
• P.Eng.(Professional Engineer) license is preferred.

Knowledge & Experience:

• 7+ years of relevant plant maintenance management experience with exceptional ability to solve problems in complex scenarios with multiple constraints, required.
• Must be proficient in Excel, and Minitab is strongly preferred (primarily to perform data analysis).
• Direct experience with continuous 24/7 process is preferred.
• Must be familiar with and have a strong commitment to PDCA methodology.
• Six Sigma and Lean manufacturing experience are strongly preferred.
• Materials Engineering & Compounding (Extrusion) and CAD skills are a plus.
• Familiarity with database systems such as Power BI is a plus.
• Must possess strong problem-solving skills and experience with typical Continuous Improvement problem solving tools such as fishbone, 5 why, process flow map, etc.
• Experience in TPM or similar top maintenance management system is preferred.
• Must have previous project management experience.
• Ability to analyze data to determine solutions and improvement opportunities is required.
• Process instruction and report writing ability are required.
• Knowledge of IATF16949 is preferred.
• Experience working for a global organization with cross-cultural interaction is preferred.
• A second or third language, especially Japanese language skill, is a plus.

Key Attributes:

• Must possess good interpersonal skills – to be a team player and facilitator.
• Must possess bias for action and have process driven logical thinking and planning skills.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with ability to communicate effectively to diverse audiences across all levels of the organization is required.
• Must be self-motivated and have the ability to inspire, motivate, and develop others.

• Must have strong process orientation – must be structured in approach to the role.

Travel:

• Must be able and willing to travel up to 20% domestically and abroad for training and visiting other company locations.

Schedule:

• Must be able and willing to work a flexible schedule for emergencies and to attend in-person meetings and conference calls outside of normal business hours. The incumbent can flex working hours to accommodate.

Working Environment

This position will be based in a temporary structure on or near a construction site until the permanent office is built in 2026. The final work environment will be at a 24/7 manufacturing operation. This position is in support of manufacturing and requires working in a production environment around chemicals. The manufacturing facility will be a state of the art in terms of automation and being temperature and humidity controlled. This will be a clean and comfortable environment due to the nature of the products being produced.

Work will require standing and walking for up to 80% of the time. Lighting and temperature are controlled and adequate. You may be required to lift up to 35 pounds and/or apply force necessary to push, pull, or otherwise move objects.

This position has been identified as safety sensitive and involves operating heavy equipment and frequent exposure to chemicals and moving mechanical parts in a construction and manufacturing environment.

In this position, you will work with cross cultural and cross functional teams. The incumbent will be required to spend few months (approx. 2~5 months) in Japan learning the product and training on maintenance procedures. Occasional travel may be required to other Asahi Kasei facilities for training, learning, and sharing. Visits to vendors to support equipment purchases may be required, and the ability to travel internationally is a must.

About Us

Asahi Kasei Battery Separator Canada, an Asahi Kasei Company, is a pioneer in battery technology and a long-trusted supplier of lithium battery separators, which are polymer-based microporous membranes that are key components of lithium-ion batteries (LIB) used in consumer electronics and electric vehicles.

The company’s Hipore brand of separators have been commercially available since the lithium battery market’s inception in the early 1990s and they are found primarily in electric drive vehicles (EDVs) as well as in consumer electronics (CE) such as smartphones, tablets and personal computers. Hipore membrane separators bring high porosity and excellent energy transfer, while contributing to battery safety and reliability, and they are especially well matched for the high-capacity batteries required for power plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and full battery (BEV) vehicles.

Asahi Kasei is accelerating its next phase of global growth with proactive investment and capacity expansion in battery separators to meet increasing demand for electric vehicle applications. We are now in the early phases of staffing our new greenfield site, in Port Colborne, Ontario, Canada, which will further build our LIB separator infrastructure for automotive applications to meet growing demand in North America where significant expansion of electric vehicle production is forecasted.

The Asahi Kasei Group is a diversified group of companies led by holding company Asahi Kasei Corp., with operations in the material, homes, and health care business sectors. With more than 49,000 employees around the world, the Asahi Kasei Group serves customers in more than 100 countries. We are Creating for Tomorrow!

For more information, go to www.ak-bsc.ca.

Location Information

Port Colborne, Ontario is a charming harbour town situated in the Niagara Region on the coast of Lake Erie. The Niagara Region is made up of 12 municipalities and has a population of approximately 478,000. It is an international trade hub with industries ranging from agriculture, construction, manufacturing, technology, tourism, transportation and warehousing. There are two regional airports, easy access to four international airports, railway, and other public transportation. It is home to Brock University, Niagara College Canada, McMaster University, as well as public and private schools that offer a selection of concentrations. The area offers a safe, affordable lifestyle with a hometown community feel. Recreational attractions include Humberstone Speedway, Niagara Falls, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, the Welland Canal, Canada’s largest casino, wineries, sporting and entertainment venues for concerts and festivals. Other amenities include the Niagara Heath System, a variety in dining, farmer’s markets, ample parks, trails and outdoor activities. Within driving distance, the greater Ontario province offers modern cities and countryside that are rich in culture, history, and natural beauty. It is about a 90-minute drive to Mississauga, Toronto, and Brampton.

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As an equal opportunity employer, Asahi Kasei is dedicated to fostering a diverse and inclusive workforce. Asahi Kasei believes that its diverse workforce strengthens the company’s ability to adapt and thrive in a changing world.