Operations Manager - Aerospace Materials

PPG Industries, Inc; Shelby (NC); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental

Life insurance

Retirement plan

Paid vacation & holidays

Employee Assistance Program

Disability/Leave

Job summary

PPG Industries, Inc. in Shelby, NC seeks an Operations Manager - Aerospace Materials to build and lead a world-class manufacturing operation from the ground up. You will drive safety, quality, delivery, and cost while embedding an Integrated Work System and servant leadership.

You will recruit and develop teams, establish procedures, and ensure disciplined execution in a greenfield specialty chemical environment on site at the Shelby facility.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, operations, or related field or commensurate experience.
• Minimum 7 years’ manufacturing leadership experience.
• Experience in chemical, coatings, sealants, or specialty materials manufacturing preferred.
• Greenfield or startup experience preferred.
• Lean/Six Sigma certification preferred.
• Strong leadership, problem-solving, and communication skills required.

Responsibilities

• Lead the startup and ramp-up of a greenfield manufacturing operation, including system development, commissioning, organization design, hiring, and workforce training.
• Champion a zero-loss culture by embedding safety as a core value and implementing proactive safety, hazard identification, and root‑cause problem solving.
• Establish and sustain manufacturing standards, operating procedures, visual management systems, and an integrated operating system that drives disciplined execution.
• Model servant leadership through a strong floor presence, employee engagement, coaching, mentoring, and capability development.
• Build a culture of ownership, accountability, teamwork, and continuous learning across the organization.
• Drive operational excellence through lean manufacturing, continuous improvement, loss elimination, and adherence to standard work.
• Utilize data, KPIs, and performance metrics to improve safety, quality, throughput, yield, productivity, and cost performance.
• Recruit, develop, and lead high-performing cross‑functional teams, establishing clear expectations and accountability systems.
• Oversee production operations, including scheduling, material flow, inventory management, and collaboration with supply chain and planning functions.
• Deliver business results by achieving safety, quality, delivery, and cost objectives while managing operational budgets and resources.

Skills

Leadership

Problem-solving

Communication

Lean/Six Sigma

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering or operations

Job description

Operations Manager - Aerospace Materials

Shelby, NC

Are you a passionate and driven Operations Professional who is looking to take their career to new heights? Then look no further than this opportunity with PPG's Aerospace business! We are looking for someone who can see the future of aviation specialty chemicals and take our exceptional products to the next level!

As the Operations Manager - Aerospace Materials you will be responsible for building and leading a world-class manufacturing operation from the ground up. This role will establish and sustain a high-performance culture rooted in servant leadership, total employee ownership, and a zero-loss mindset. The Operations Manager will drive safety, quality, delivery, cost, and capability while embedding an Integrated Work System aligned with best-in-class models such as P&G.

This leader will operate as a hands‑on, floor-focused coach who develops people, builds systems, and ensures disciplined execution of standard work in a greenfield specialty chemical manufacturing environment.

This is an On‑Site role reporting to the Shelby, NC facility. In this role you will report to the Plant Manager.

Responsibilities

• Lead the startup and ramp-up of a greenfield manufacturing operation, including system development, commissioning, organization design, hiring, and workforce training.
• Champion a zero-loss culture by embedding safety as a core value and implementing proactive safety, hazard identification, and root‑cause problem solving practices.
• Establish and sustain manufacturing standards, operating procedures, visual management systems, and an integrated operating system that drives disciplined execution.
• Model servant leadership through a strong floor presence, employee engagement, coaching, mentoring, and capability development.
• Build a culture of ownership, accountability, teamwork, and continuous learning across the organization.
• Drive operational excellence through lean manufacturing, continuous improvement, loss elimination, and adherence to standard work.
• Utilize data, KPIs, and performance metrics to improve safety, quality, throughput, yield, productivity, and cost performance.
• Recruit, develop, and lead high-performing cross‑functional teams, establishing clear expectations and accountability systems.
• Oversee production operations, including scheduling, material flow, inventory management, and collaboration with supply chain and planning functions.
• Deliver business results by achieving safety, quality, delivery, and cost objectives while managing operational budgets and resources.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, operations, or related field or commensurate experience required.
• Minimum 7 years’ manufacturing leadership experience required.
• Experience in chemical, coatings, sealants, or specialty materials manufacturing is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated success in greenfield or startup environments preferred.
• Lean/Six Sigma certification preferred.
• Strong leadership, problem-solving, and communication skills required.
• Only U.S. Citizens, Green Card holders, and political asylees or refugees are eligible to apply.

Benefits

PPG offers comprehensive benefits such as Health, Dental, Life, Retirement Plan, Paid Vacation & Holidays, Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Disability/Leave, and other Voluntary benefit offerings. Actual benefit offerings confirmed at the time of hire.