Plant Quality Manager

Poclain Hydraulics, Inc; Sturtevant (WI); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Poclain Hydraulics, Inc is seeking a Plant Quality Manager for our North American operations. You will lead quality for products, processes, and services, reporting to the Vice President of Operations.

Responsibilities span customer, supplier, production, and project quality, with aftermarket service and lifecycle focus. You will manage a local team while collaborating with colleagues globally to translate quality roadmaps into practical improvements in Yorkville and across sites.

Qualifications

• Experience leading manufacturing quality teams.
• Experience with precision machining, castings, and forgings.
• Ability to manage quality systems and audits.
• Proven problem-solving using structured methods.
• Experience supporting new product introductions and aftermarket quality.
• Familiarity with Lean manufacturing and continuous improvement.

Responsibilities

• Set direction for quality and improvement plans.
• Develop and coach quality engineers and technicians.
• Strengthen quality across the plant with cross-functional partnerships.
• Lead QRQC-based root-cause analysis and corrective actions.
• Represent the customer through audits and feedback.

Skills

Team leadership

Quality management

Lean manufacturing

Problem solving

Customer audits

Job description

Lead a team. Influence an operation. Connect across a global organization.

You’ve built your expertise in manufacturing quality. Now bring that experience to a role where you can shape how an entire operation approaches it.

As Plant Quality Manager at Poclain Hydraulics, you’ll lead quality for our North American products, processes, and services. Reporting to the Vice President of Operations, you’ll guide customer, supplier, production, and project quality, along with aftermarket service—giving you influence across the full product lifecycle.

You’ll lead a local team with connections across a global manufacturing organization. Working with international colleagues, you’ll exchange expertise and help turn Poclain’s global quality initiatives into practical improvements in Yorkville. Those connections offer opportunities to learn from other operations and contribute your own experience to shared challenges.

Your leadership will show up in the people you develop, the problems your team solves, and the confidence customers place in our products. You’ll also have the authority to act when quality is at risk, including stopping production to protect the customer.

What you’ll do

Set the direction for quality. Translate customer expectations, Poclain Group standards, and business objectives into clear priorities and improvement plans.

Develop your team. Lead and coach quality engineers, technicians, and aftermarket service employees, building technical capability and accountability.

Strengthen quality across the plant. Partner with manufacturing and other departments to prevent defects and make quality part of everyday decisions.

Solve problems at their source. Lead structured problem-solving through Quick Response Quality Control (QRQC), ensuring corrective actions address root causes and deliver lasting results.

Represent the customer. Lead customer quality communications, manage customer audits, and turn feedback into improvements.

Maintain effective quality systems. Oversee audit readiness, certification requirements, and alignment with Poclain Group standards.

Connect local and global priorities. Deploy quality roadmaps through the Poclain Excellence System and work with colleagues across the organization to advance improvement.

Support quality throughout the product lifecycle. Guide supplier and project quality activities, support new product introductions, and oversee aftermarket and warranty processes.

What you’ll bring

You know how to move between technical detail and business priorities. You’re comfortable on the plant floor, credible with customers, and able to help people understand both what needs to change and why.

Your experience includes:

Leading manufacturing quality teams, including quality engineers and technicians.

Working with precision machining, castings, and forgings, with an understanding of manufacturing methods, material characteristics, and common defects.

Managing quality systems, preparing for audits, and supporting certification requirements.

Applying structured problem-solving methods and verifying that corrective actions are effective.

Supporting quality planning and new product introduction.

Using Lean manufacturing and continuous improvement principles.

Working with aftermarket service and warranty administration.

Building cooperation across departments while maintaining clear expectations and accountability.

Bring your experience to Poclain

If you enjoy developing people, tackling complex manufacturing challenges, and working with colleagues whose experience extends across countries and operations, we’d like to hear from you.