Plant Engineer

Gage Products Company; Ferndale (MI); On-site; USD 80,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k)

401(k) matching

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Life insurance

Paid time off

Parental leave

Tuition reimbursement

Professional development assistance

Retirement plan

Flexible spending account

Job summary

Gage Products Company seeks an experienced Plant Engineer to lead capital projects and drive process improvements across our chemical manufacturing operations. This hands-on role requires steering projects from concept through completion, improving safety, efficiency, and product quality while collaborating with Operations, Maintenance, and Engineering teams.

The ideal candidate has 5+ years in chemical processing, strong knowledge of PFDs/P&IDs, equipment specs, and project scheduling.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in chemical, mechanical, or closely related engineering required.
• Five+ years of engineering experience in chemical manufacturing or related process industry preferred.
• Experience executing capital projects from concept to handoff.
• Familiarity with PFDs, P&IDs, equipment specs, calculations, and contractor coordination.

Responsibilities

• Lead capital and process-improvement projects from concept to design, install, and handoff.
• Develop scopes, cost estimates, schedules, equipment specs, bid packages, and CAPEX requests.
• Identify and implement improvements in safety, throughput, solvent-recovery yield, quality, and energy efficiency.
• Provide engineering support for chemical processing systems including distillation, tanks, pumps, piping, heat exchangers, and utilities.
• Coordinate with internal stakeholders and external vendors during project execution.
• Ensure compliance with permits, OSHA, environmental requirements, and engineering standards.
• Develop commissioning/startup plans and turnover documentation.
• Analyze process and production data to identify constraints and improvement opportunities.

Skills

Capital project mgmt

Process improvements

Chem manufacturing

PFDs & P&IDs

Instrumentation

Project scheduling

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree in chemical/mechanical engineering

Tools

CAD

CMMS

Process historians

Process simulation software

Job description

Join Gage Products Company - Where Your Engineering Expertise Makes an Impact!

For 90 years, Gage Products Company has built a reputation as a world‑class leader in specialty chemicals and solvents. We may be a smaller company, but we operate at a high level, and that means our people have the opportunity to make a real impact.

We are looking for an experienced Plant Engineer to lead capital projects, drive process improvements, solve complex manufacturing challenges, and help shape the future of our operations. This is a hands‑on role for an engineer who enjoys taking projects from concept through completion and seeing their work directly improve safety, efficiency, quality, and production.

If you’re looking for a role where your ideas are valued, your expertise is trusted, and you can see the results of your work, we’d like to hear from you.

PRINCIPAL RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Lead capital and process‑improvement projects from concept development and financial justification through design, installation, commissioning, documentation, and operational handoff.
• Develop project scopes, cost estimates, schedules, equipment specifications, bid packages, and capital‑authorization requests.
• Identify and implement improvements in plant safety, throughput, solvent‑recovery yield, product quality, energy efficiency, waste reduction, labor utilization, and operating cost.
• Provide engineering support for chemical‑processing systems, including distillation, blending, tank farms, pumps, piping, heat exchangers, vacuum systems, utilities, and material‑transfer operations.
• Troubleshoot chronic or technically complex process and equipment problems using operating data, structured root‑cause analysis, 8D, A3, or other approved problem‑solving methods.
• Perform or coordinate process calculations, including material and energy balances, equipment sizing, heat‑transfer evaluations, hydraulic calculations, and utility‑load estimates.
• Develop and maintain engineering documentation, including PFDs, P&IDs, equipment specifications, process descriptions, control narratives, operating limits, and commissioning records.
• Lead or participate in Management of Change reviews, process hazard analyses, pre‑startup safety reviews, JSAs, incident investigations, and corrective‑action implementation.
• Ensure engineering changes comply with applicable company requirements, permits, OSHA regulations, environmental requirements, and recognized engineering practices.
• Coordinate engineering firms, equipment suppliers, contractors, Operations, Maintenance, Controls, EHS, Quality, and other internal stakeholders during project execution.
• Develop commissioning and startup plans, acceptance criteria, operator‑training requirements, and project‑turnover documentation.
• Analyze process, laboratory, production, maintenance, and historian data to identify constraints, recurring losses, and improvement opportunities.
• Support the evaluation, piloting, scale‑up, and implementation of new technologies, equipment, and solvent‑recovery processes.
• Support customer‑complaint investigations when process or equipment performance may have contributed to the issue.
• Provide technical support during planned shutdowns, startups, abnormal operating conditions, and significant equipment failures.
• Verify that completed projects achieve their intended safety, operational, financial, and environmental benefits.
• Support Lean Manufacturing, continuous‑improvement, and Gage Production System initiatives.
• Provide technical guidance to junior engineers, interns, maintenance personnel, and project teams as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS (Skills, knowledge, experience):

• Bachelor’s degree in chemical, mechanical, or closely related engineering discipline required.
• Five or more years of engineering experience in chemical manufacturing, solvent recovery, refining, coatings, specialty chemicals, or a comparable process industry preferred.
• Demonstrated experience executing capital projects through startup and handoff.
• Working knowledge of pumps, piping, tanks, pressure vessels, heat exchangers, distillation, utilities, instrumentation, and industrial controls.
• Experience with PFDs, P&IDs, equipment specifications, process calculations, and contractor coordination.
• Familiarity with MOC, PHA, PSSR, incident investigation, and industrial process‑safety practices.
• Proficiency with Excel and project‑scheduling tools; experience with CAD, CMMS, process historians, or process‑simulation software preferred.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to present technical and financial recommendations to plant leadership.
• Ability to manage multiple projects while maintaining safety, quality, cost, and schedule discipline.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Able to stand or sit for long periods of time
• Able to lift a minimum of 50 lbs.
• Able to withstand extreme weather both hot and cold

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $80,000.00 - $95,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Dental insurance
• Employee assistance program
• Flexible spending account
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Parental leave
• Professional development assistance
• Retirement plan
• Tuition reimbursement
• Vision insurance

Application Question(s):

• How many years of professional engineering experience do you have?
• Do you have professional engineering experience in a chemical or process manufacturing environment?
• Have you independently led or managed capital projects from concept through installation, commissioning, and operational handoff?

Work Location: In person