Engineering & Maintenance Lead

NMS Recruit Ltd t/a Russell Taylor Group; Chester; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

Russell Taylor Group is seeking an Engineering & Maintenance Lead in Chester to head the engineering and maintenance function at a site investing in new capabilities and moving toward 24/7 production.

You will work closely with the General Manager and Production teams to improve equipment reliability, minimise downtime and coach engineers and technicians for continuous improvement and safety.

Qualifications

• Educated to HNC, HND or degree in Mechanical, Electrical or Multi-skilled.
• Previous experience leading an engineering or maintenance team within manufacturing.
• Strong understanding of engineering safety and permit-to-work systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead, plan and allocate work across the engineering and maintenance team.
• Coordinate planned, preventative and condition-based maintenance, plus reactive breakdowns.
• Drive improvements in plant reliability and maintenance performance.
• Ensure permit-to-work, safe isolation and lock-out/tag-out procedures.
• Monitor KPIs like MTBF, MTTR and maintenance mix.
• Manage budgets, spares and external contractors.

Education

HNC/HND or degree in Mechanical/Electrical/Multi-skilled

Leadership

Maintenance planning

Problem-solving

Communication

Tools

CMMS

Job description

Engineering & Maintenance Lead

Chester

Up to £75,000

Are you an experienced engineering professional with a passion for team leadership, plant reliability and continuous improvement?

We are recruiting for an Engineering Leader to join a growing manufacturing operation in Cheshire. This is an exciting opportunity to lead day-to-day engineering and maintenance activities at a site investing in new process capabilities and transitioning towards 24/7 production.

Working closely with the General Manager and Production teams, you will play a key role in improving equipment reliability, minimising downtime and developing a strong, safety-focused engineering team.

As Engineering Lead, you will coordinate the engineering and maintenance function, ensuring equipment and plant operations remain safe, efficient and reliable as production demands increase.

Responsibilities

• Leading, planning and allocating work across the engineering and maintenance team.
• Coordinating planned, preventative and condition-based maintenance, alongside reactive breakdown support.
• Driving improvements in plant reliability, equipment uptime and maintenance performance.
• Ensuring compliance with permit-to-work, safe isolation and lock-out/tag-out procedures.
• Monitoring maintenance KPIs, including MTBF, MTTR and planned versus reactive maintenance.
• Managing maintenance budgets, critical spares and external contractors.
• Supporting the installation, commissioning and handover of new equipment.
• Coaching and developing engineers and technicians, including training, competency management and apprenticeships.
• Working collaboratively with Production to coordinate shutdowns and minimise disruption.
• Providing on-call support when required to support a 24/7 manufacturing operation.

The Person

• Educated to HNC, HND or degree in Mechanical, Electrical or Multi-skilled.
• Previous experience leading an engineering or maintenance team within a manufacturing or process-driven environment.
• A strong understanding of engineering safety, permit-to-work systems and safe isolation procedures.
• Experience using a CMMS to plan, monitor and improve maintenance activities.
• Excellent leadership, communication and problem-solving skills.
• A proactive approach to preventative maintenance, reliability and continuous improvement.
• IOSH or NEBOSH health and safety qualification.
• Experience working within a 24/7 or continuous-process manufacturing environment (Desirable)

Important Information

We endeavour to process your personal data in a fair and transparent manner. In applying for this role, Russell Taylor will be acting within your interest and will contact you in relation to the role, either by email, phone or text message. For more information see our on our website. It is important you are aware of your individual rights and the provisions the company has put in place to protect your data. If you would like further information on the policy or GDPR please get in touch with us