Metal Operations Manager Research Triangle Park, NC

Vulcan Elements Inc.; North Carolina; On-site; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Vulcan Elements Inc. is seeking a Metal Operations Manager to lead day-to-day metallurgical operations in a high-temperature environment.

You will manage a team of technicians and operators, coordinate production runs, and ensure safety and regulatory compliance across startup, steady-state, and shutdown phases. The role requires hands-on metallurgical experience combined with disciplined operations management and a strong safety culture, with relocation from Durham, NC to Benson, NC as

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent hands-on experience in metallurgy or related field.
• Demonstrated experience managing operations in high-temperature or metallurgical environments.
• Strong understanding of operational safety in hot metal and electrically energized systems.
• Experience developing or maintaining SOPs and operational documentation.
• Direct experience with induction melting or vacuum furnaces, metallothermic reduction, or electrochemical/molten salt processes.

Responsibilities

• Lead, train, and manage a team of technicians and operators conducting hot metal production.
• Plan and execute production runs to meet quality, throughput, and schedule objectives.
• Ensure startup, steady-state operation, shutdown, and turnaround activities are executed consistently.
• Allocate personnel, equipment, and materials to support production and experimental campaigns.
• Serve as escalation point for abnormal operations and troubleshooting.
• Enforce safety procedures, PPE, and lockout/tagout practices.
• Lead pre-job briefings, hazard reviews, and post-run debriefs.
• Promote a culture where unsafe conditions are identified, reported, and corrected promptly.
• Contribute to development and continuous improvement of SOPs, work instructions, checklists, and training materials.

Skills

Metallurgy

Materials Science

Chemical Engineering

Mechanical Engineering

Operations management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Metallurgy

Bachelor's degree in Materials Science or related field

Job description

Vulcan Elements is manufacturing American rare-earth permanent magnets for a secure, resilient future. With a focus on national security and economic resiliency, we serve critical industries such as defense, aerospace, and automotive powering a high-technology future. Vulcan Elements is building a team of ambitious professionals committed to Mission Focus, Technical Excellence and Transparency.

As the Metal Operations Manager you are responsible for leading day-to-day metallurgical operations to safely and reliably produce on-specification metals using high-temperature and electrochemical processes, including vacuum induction melting, metallothermic reduction, and electrolysis. This role manages an operations team and works closely with engineering and R&D to ensure consistent execution, continuous improvement, and a strong safety culture.

The ideal candidate combines hands-on metallurgical experience with disciplined operations management and a deep respect for the hazards inherent to hot metal processing.

This role begins in Durham, NC and is expected to move to Benson, NC upon completion of new facility.

Responsibilities

• Lead, train, and manage a team of technicians and operators conducting hot metal production.
• Plan and execute production runs to meet quality, throughput, and scheduleobjectives.
• Ensure consistent execution of startup, steady-state operation, shutdown, and turnaround activities.
• Allocate personnel, equipment, and materials to support both production and experimental campaigns.
• Serve as the escalation point for abnormal operations and troubleshooting.
• Enforce safety procedures, PPE requirements, and lockout/tagout practices.
• Lead pre-job briefings, hazard reviews, and post-run debriefs.
• Promote a culture where unsafe conditions areidentified, reported, and corrected without hesitation.
• Contribute to the development, review, and continuous improvement of:
  • Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
  • Work instructions and checklists
  • Training materials and qualification standards

Responsibilities and tasks outlined are not exhaustive and may change as determined by the needs of the business.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Metallurgy, Materials Science, Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or equivalent hands-on experience.
• Demonstrated experience managing operations in high-temperature or metallurgical environments.
• Strong understanding of operational safety in hot metal and electrically energized systems.
• Experience developing ormaintainingSOPs and operational documentation.
• Direct experience with one or more of the following:
• Induction melting or vacuum furnaces
• Metallothermic reduction
• Electrochemical or molten salt processes

Must be a U.S. Person due to required access to U.S. export-controlled information or facilities.

Preferred

• Experience in pilot plants, demonstration facilities, or early-stage commercial operations.
• Familiarity with process scale-up and experimental operations.
• Experience working under formal EHS, ISO, or regulated industrial systems.
• Hands-on troubleshooting experience with furnaces, power supplies, and thermal systems.

As set forth in Vulcan Elements’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy,we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.