Plant / Production Manager

N-K Manufacturing Technologies; Grand Rapids (MI); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

N-K Manufacturing Technologies in Grand Rapids, MI, seeks a Production Manager to lead shop floor operations on-site in a fast-paced plastics environment. The role focuses on safety, quality, productivity, and meeting customer demands.

You will drive continuous improvement, develop the production team, manage staffing and training, and collaborate with Engineering on process changes and commercialization while tracking KPIs and OEE.

Qualifications

• Experience leading shop-floor operations in a plastic injection molding environment.
• Strong track record in safety, quality, and productivity improvements.
• Experience with Layered Process Audits (LPA) and OEE reporting.
• Ability to manage staffing, training, and performance evaluations.
• Ability to collaborate with Engineering during commercialization and process changes.

Responsibilities

• Act as on-site representative to customers and leadership.
• Oversee all production in injection molding; ensure quality and efficiency.
• Lead day-to-day operations for the IML department, including equipment.
• Manage staffing, attendance, and training for hourly team members.
• Drive KPIs and OEE reporting; lead root cause investigations.

Skills

Leadership

Manufacturing operations

Quality & CI

Safety & compliance

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering or Manufacturing

Job description

Summary

A Production Manager leads and oversees shop floor operations to ensure safe, efficient, and high-quality production while meeting internal and external customer demands. This role is responsible for driving operational performance, maintaining accountability and discipline, supporting continuous improvement initiatives, and developing production teams in a fast-paced manufacturing environment. The Production Manager plays a key role in achieving production, quality, safety, staffing, and cost objectives while fostering a positive and performance-driven culture.

Essential Duties And Responsibilities

• The plant manager will serve as the primary on-site representative of the company, acting as a liaison with customers, corporate leadership, and external stakeholders.
• The plant manager is responsible for managing all production. This role requires strategic decision-making, operational oversight, leadership of department heads, and maintaining compliance with company policies and regulatory requirements. This role demands a focus on quality, efficiency, and continuous improvement in plastic injection molding.
• Lead day-to-day operations for the IML injection molding department, including molding machines, automation, tooling, and product and case handling systems.
• Oversee equipment and tooling setup, changeovers, processing, and maintenance to support production efficiency and output goals.
• Monitor production specifications, quality samples, and process controls to ensure compliance with customer and engineering requirements.
• Ensure department procedures, work instructions, and compliance documentation are maintained through the internal document control system.
• Conduct thorough and timely Layered Process Audits (LPA) within assigned production areas.
• Manage department performance across safety, quality, productivity, and key operational metrics.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Engineering and other internal teams during commercialization, process changes, and improvement initiatives.
• Support production planning activities to align staffing, materials, and operational priorities with production schedules.
• Monitor daily staffing levels, manage attendance coverage, and develop contingency plans to support operational continuity. Manage incident investigations, safety alerts, corrective actions, and safety training for employees, contractors, and visitors.
• Lead root cause investigations and implement corrective and preventive actions for quality and production issues.
• Support workforce management activities, including hiring, onboarding, retention, performance evaluations, promotions, corrective actions, and terminations for hourly team members.
• Track, maintain, communicate KPIs and operational performance to management team. Provide data for OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness).