Cell Leader – Plastics Extrusion

Orange Recruitment; Wrexham; On-site; GBP 36,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

Silvergate Plastics in the United Kingdom seeks a Cell Leader for Plastics Extrusion to oversee shift-based production, drive performance, and maintain safety, quality, and productivity in a fast-paced environment.

The role requires hands-on leadership, coordination across lines, and a focus on continuous improvement and SQCDPE metrics to meet output targets.

Responsibilities

• Drive daily, weekly, and monthly production targets, ensuring maximum efficiency and output.
• Organise and coordinate priorities across all lines and weigh stations to ensure mixes are ready and the production schedule is met.
• Continuous communication with the QC department to highlight issues and taking steps to rectify immediately.
• Monitor and report performance metrics to management and relevant staff members via emails, providing clear updates on progress against targets.
• Promote a results-driven culture, ensuring team members understand and work towards key objectives.
• Lead daily shift meetings to communicate SQCDPE (Safety, Quality, Cost, Delivery, People, Engineering) metrics.
• Ensure all team members are informed of current performance, priorities, and any operational challenges.
• Encourage team engagement and accountability through structured communication.
• Train, coach, and develop extrusion operators to improve skill levels and operational performance.
• Support a multi-skilled workforce, ensuring flexibility across the team to meet production demands.
• Manage shift manning levels to optimise productivity and maintain coverage across shifts.
• Setting clear expectations for your team, identifying gaps in knowledge and providing relevant training.
• Work closely with the Quality Department to ensure products meet required specifications and standards.
• Support investigations into quality issues and implement corrective actions.
• Drive a culture of continuous improvement within the team.
• Identify barriers preventing the team from achieving output and quality targets and communicating this upwards.
• Actively learn, take ownership of, and become the subject matter expert in clean-down and start-up processes for critical grade materials across all extrusion lines.
• Train and develop team members in these processes to ensure consistency and adherence to required standards.
• Take responsibility for maintaining and controlling process parameters to ensure product quality and minimise waste.
• Monitor machine performance and report downtime, faults, and maintenance issues promptly. Suggest performance improvement ideas to maximise output.
• Liaise with maintenance teams to ensure timely resolution and minimal disruption to production.
• Act as a Health & Safety champion, promoting safe working practices at all times.
• Ensure compliance with all HSE policies and procedures.
• Proactively identify and address potential risks.
• Good housekeeping is your primary safety control. 25% of all workplace accidents are caused by slips, trips and falls. Own housekeeping activities and delegate roles to your team.
• Maintain high housekeeping standards across the production area (5S principles).
• Ensure workspaces are organised, clean, and safe.
• Improve and maintain effective shift handovers, ensuring accurate and detailed information transfer between Team Leaders and senior staff.
• Ensure continuity of operations across shifts through clear communication of priorities, issues, and actions.
• Undertake and organise cross-blending and re-bagging activities when required, ensuring materials are handled efficiently and in line with quality standards.
• Drive awareness and understanding of performance targets across all team members.
• Motivate the team to perform in a fast-paced, adaptable production schedule.

Job description

Job Title: Cell Leader – Plastics Extrusion – Silvergate Plastics

Department: Production

Reports To: Production Manager / Managing Director

Role Overview

The Team Leader in the plastics extrusion department is responsible for leading and coordinating shift-based production activities to achieve output, quality, and efficiency targets. This role requires a hands‑on leader who can drive performance, ensure clear communication, and maintain high standards across safety, quality, and productivity in a fast‑paced manufacturing environment.

Key Responsibilities

Production & Performance

• Drive daily, weekly, and monthly production targets, ensuring maximum efficiency and output.
• Organise and coordinate priorities across all lines and weigh stations to ensure mixes are ready and the production schedule is met.
• Continuous communication with the QC department to highlight issues and taking steps to rectify immediately. Ensuring reworks are highlighted quickly and priority is changed accordingly.
• Monitor and report performance metrics to management and relevant staff members via emails, providing clear updates on progress against targets.
• Promote a results-driven culture, ensuring team members understand and work towards key objectives.

SQCDPE Communication

• Lead daily shift meetings to communicate SQCDPE (Safety, Quality, Cost, Delivery, People, Engineering) metrics.
• Ensure all team members are informed of current performance, priorities, and any operational challenges.
• Encourage team engagement and accountability through structured communication.

Team Leadership & Development

• Train, coach, and develop extrusion operators to improve skill levels and operational performance.
• Support a multi-skilled workforce, ensuring flexibility across the team to meet production demands.
• Manage shift manning levels effectively to optimise productivity and maintain coverage across
• Setting clear expectations for your team, identifying gaps in knowledge and providing relevant training.

Quality & Continuous Improvement

• Work closely with the Quality Department to ensure products meet required specifications and standards.
• Support investigations into quality issues and implement corrective actions.
• Drive a culture of continuous improvement within the team.
• Identify barriers preventing the team from achieving output and quality targets and communicating this upwards.

Process Ownership & Technical Capability

• Actively learn, take ownership of, and become the subject matter expert in clean-down and start-up processes for critical grade materials across all extrusion lines.
• Train and develop team members in these processes to ensure consistency and adherence to required standards.
• Take responsibility for maintaining and controlling process parameters to ensure product quality and minimise waste.

Maintenance & Downtime Reporting

• Monitor machine performance and report downtime, faults, and maintenance issues promptly. Suggest performance improvement ideas to maximise output.
• Liaise with maintenance teams to ensure timely resolution and minimal disruption to production.

Health, Safety & Environment

• Act as a Health & Safety champion, promoting safe working practices at all times.
• Ensure compliance with all HSE policies and procedures.
• Proactively identify and address potential risks.
• Good housekeeping is your primary safety control. 25% of all workplace accidents are caused by slips, trips and falls. Own housekeeping activities and delegate roles to your team.

Housekeeping & Standards

• Maintain high housekeeping standards across the production area (5S principles).
• Ensure workspaces are organised, clean, and safe.

Shift Coordination & Communication

• Improve and maintain effective shift handovers, ensuring accurate and detailed information transfer between Team Leaders and senior staff.
• Ensure continuity of operations across shifts through clear communication of priorities, issues, and actions.

Operational Support

• Undertake and organise cross-blending and re-bagging activities when required, ensuring materials are handled efficiently and in line with quality standards.

Target Awareness & Engagement

• Drive awareness and understanding of performance targets across all team members.
• Motivate the team to perform in a fast-paced, adaptable production schedule.

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change, or new ones may be assigned at any time.