Maintenance Manager - Frozen Food Facility

ZipRecruiter; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 135,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in the food manufacturing industry is seeking a Maintenance Manager for their facility in Los Angeles. This role is crucial for ensuring operational excellence through equipment reliability, safety improvements, and effective maintenance programs. Candidates should possess a Bachelor's degree in engineering and extensive experience in USDA-regulated environments along with strong leadership and troubleshooting skills.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of progressive maintenance leadership in a USDA/FDA-regulated food manufacturing environment.
• Ability to work flexible schedule including weekends or emergency call-ins.
• Bilingual in Spanish and English strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop maintenance team for timely and safe equipment upkeep.
• Manage preventive and predictive maintenance to reduce downtime.
• Ensure compliance with USDA, FDA, and OSHA regulations.

Skills

Troubleshooting skills

Leadership

Communication

Organizational skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Electrical, or Industrial Engineering

Tools

CMMS platforms (e.g., MP2, Fiix, eMaint, or SAP PM)

Job description

Job DescriptionJob DescriptionSalary: $100,000 - $135,000

Position Summary:

The Maintenance Manager will lead and oversee all mechanical, electrical, and utility-related operations across our frozen food production facility. This role is responsible for driving equipment reliability, safety improvements, preventive maintenance, and capital projects that ensure operational excellence. The ideal candidate brings deep experience in USDA-regulated environments, ammonia refrigeration systems, horizontal form-and-seal packaging lines, and automated processing equipment.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead, coach, and develop a skilled maintenance team to ensure timely and safe repair, installation, and upkeep of facility equipment and systems.
• Manage preventive and predictive maintenance programs to reduce downtime and extend equipment life.
• Oversee mechanical and electrical troubleshooting on production lines, including ovens, spiral freezers, packaging conveyors, horizontal form-and-seal machines, metal detectors, and PLC-controlled systems.
• Ensure compliance with USDA, FDA, OSHA, and environmental health regulations across all maintenance activities.
• Plan, scope, and execute capital projects, including facility upgrades, refrigeration system modifications, and equipment installations.
• Monitor and manage departmental budget, including labor, spare parts inventory, and capital expenditures.
• Collaborate with Production, QA, and Sanitation teams to maximize uptime and meet production goals.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on root-cause analysis, energy efficiency, and process optimization.
• Maintain CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System) for work orders, PM tracking, and asset management.
• Champion a culture of safety and lead by example in all safety and compliance procedures.
• Schedule and assign work based on skillset, urgency, and business needs; manage weekend and off-hour response rotations.
• Partner with HR on team performance, conflict resolution, and training needs.

Qualifications:

• Bachelors degree in mechanical, Electrical, or Industrial Engineering (or equivalent experience).
• 5+ years of progressive maintenance leadership in a USDA/FDA-regulated food manufacturing environment.
• Strong troubleshooting skills on PLC systems, electrical panels, pneumatics, and hydraulics.
• Working knowledge of ammonia refrigeration systems ().
• Experience with horizontal form-and-seal packaging equipment ().
• Exceptional leadership, organizational, and communication skills.
• Bilingual in Spanish and English strongly .
• Ability to work a flexible schedule, including weekends or emergency call-ins.

Experience With:

• Ammonia refrigeration systems and related safety protocols
• Horizontal form-and-seal packaging machines
• Cold chain/frozen food operations (spiral freezers, blast freezers)
• CMMS platforms (e.g., MP2, Fiix, eMaint, or SAP PM)
• Lean manufacturing or TPM (Total Productive Maintenance) initiatives
• Industrial safety standards and Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) compliance

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