Food Manufacturing - Engineering Lead

Caresoft Global

Chirk

On-site

GBP 85,000 - 105,000

Full time

2 days ago

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Job summary

Caresoft Global is recruiting an Engineering Lead for a major chocolate processing facility in Chirk, Clwyd. You will lead mechanical, electrical and instrumentation teams, driving a programme to move from reactive maintenance to proactive, predictive maintenance while championing Lean manufacturing across the site.

You will shape long-term asset strategies, capital investment roadmaps and business cases to secure future investment, ensuring compliance and asset reliability within a complex

Qualifications

Significant leadership experience in manufacturing/process industries.
Proven success in maintenance and reliability programmes.
Experience implementing Lean manufacturing methodologies.
Experience transitioning maintenance to preventive/predictive approaches.
Strong knowledge of CMMS, ideally SAP.
Experience managing multidisciplinary engineering teams.
Understanding of asset management and reliability engineering.

Responsibilities

Lead engineering, maintenance and technical teams across disciplines.
Drive maintenance transformation to predictive maintenance.
Develop asset management strategies and CAPEX roadmaps.
Ensure compliance with health, safety and environmental standards.
Balance operational priorities with long-term engineering objectives.

Skills

Engineering leadership

Maintenance & reliability

Lean Manufacturing

CMMS SAP

Multi-disciplinary teams

Asset management

Stakeholder influence

Education

Engineering degree

Tools

SAP CMMS

Job description

Contract: Initial 6-Month Contract

Hours: 36 Hours per Week, Monday to Friday

Engineering Lead | Heavy Process Manufacturing | Lean Transformation | Asset Reliability

CS Technical Recruitment are recruiting for an experienced Engineering Lead to join a key manufacturing facility based in Chirk, Clwyd.

This is a fantastic opportunity for a senior engineering professional to take ownership of engineering operations within a complex and challenging heavy process environment. The successful candidate will lead the site's engineering strategy, drive a preventative maintenance culture, implement Lean principles, and help shape future investment plans for a facility that plays a critical role within the company's wider manufacturing network.

This role would suit an established Engineering Manager, Engineering Lead or Senior Maintenance Manager with experience in food, chemical, packaging, FMCG, automotive or other heavy process manufacturing environments.

About the Site

The Chirk facility is a unique manufacturing operation, acting as one of the first stages of the chocolate manufacturing process.

The site receives and processes cocoa beans, converting them into semi-finished products which are supplied to other manufacturing facilities, as well as producing cocoa powder products for customer distribution.

Operations are split across both process and packaging, with approximately two-thirds of the site focused on processing activities and one-third dedicated to packaging operations.

The manufacturing process includes:

Cocoa bean handling and storage in silos
Large-scale roasting operations
Milling, pressing and blending systems
Automated packing and distribution facilities

The site presents a fascinating engineering challenge, combining modern manufacturing practices with legacy equipment. Some of the original roasting assets date back to the site's opening in 1968, creating a diverse asset base requiring strong engineering leadership, reliability planning and investment strategy.

The Role

As Engineering Lead, you will be responsible for the overall engineering performance of the facility, leading multidisciplinary engineering teams across mechanical, electrical and instrumentation disciplines.

You will drive the site's maintenance transformation programme, moving engineering activities from a reactive approach to a proactive preventative and predictive maintenance culture, whilst championing Lean Manufacturing principles throughout the plant.

You will also play a key role in developing long-term asset management strategies, capital investment roadmaps and business cases to secure future investment across the site.

Key Responsibilities

Engineering Leadership & Team Management

Lead, coach and develop engineering, maintenance and technical teams
Manage engineering resource planning and capability development
Provide technical leadership across complex engineering challenges
Drive a culture of accountability, engagement and continuous improvement
Collaborate with Production, Quality, Supply Chain and HSE teams

Lean Manufacturing & Continuous Improvement

Champion Lean Manufacturing methodologies across the site
Implement and sustain:
TPM
5S
SMED
Value Stream Mapping
Eliminate waste and improve operational efficiency
Monitor and improve key metrics including:
MTBF
MTTR

Maintenance Transformation

Continue the transition from reactive to preventative and predictive maintenance

Develop structured maintenance strategies for critical assets

Utilise SAP CMMS to optimise maintenance planning and execution

Introduce and develop condition-based monitoring techniques

Improve equipment reliability and reduce unplanned downtime

Asset Management & CAPEX

Develop site-wide asset management strategies

Lead reliability improvement initiatives

Support equipment upgrades and replacement projects

Develop investment roadmaps and capital expenditure business cases

Balance operational priorities with long‑term engineering objectives

Compliance & Safety

Ensure compliance with all relevant health, safety and environmental legislation

Maintain engineering standards, documentation and procedures

Support audit readiness and regulatory compliance activities

Requirements - Essential

Significant engineering leadership experience within manufacturing or process industries
Proven success leading maintenance and reliability improvement programmes
Experience implementing Lean Manufacturing methodologies
Demonstrated success transitioning maintenance strategies from reactive to preventative/predictive approaches
Strong knowledge of CMMS systems, ideally SAP
Experience managing multidisciplinary engineering teams
Strong understanding of asset management and reliability engineering
Ability to influence stakeholders and secure investment for engineering improvement activities

Preferred Industry Backgrounds

Food Manufacturing

FMCG

Chemical Processing

Heavy Manufacturing

Packaging

Automotive Manufacturing

Other complex process environments

Degree qualified in an Engineering discipline
Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt
Experience with predictive maintenance technologies
Knowledge of Industry 4.0 and data-driven maintenance strategies

Why Apply?

This is an excellent opportunity to join a site with significant engineering complexity and genuine opportunities to make an impact.

You will inherit a challenging but rewarding environment where you'll be responsible for improving reliability, implementing Lean methodologies, influencing future investment decisions and helping shape the long‑term engineering strategy of the facility.

The business is looking for an experienced engineering leader who can quickly understand the operation, build credibility with stakeholders and begin delivering improvements from day one.

Candidates should be comfortable working with an ageing asset base where engineering judgement, strategic thinking and practical problem‑solving are critical to success.

Additional Info