Powder Coating Technical Speialist

F3 Metalworx, Inc; Erie (Erie County); On-site; USD 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Paid time off

401(k)

Life insurance

Job summary

F3 Metalworx, Inc. in Erie, PA seeks a Powder Coating Technical Specialist to drive a process-driven operation based on Lean principles.

The role is hands-on on the production floor, optimizing lines, diagnosing coating defects, and building processes, training, and mentoring to raise quality, consistency, and throughput. The position reports to the VP of Operations and offers opportunities to shape the future of the department.

Qualifications

• Over 10 years of hands-on powder coating experience.
• Strong knowledge of Lean/Six Sigma methods.
• Ability to train, coach, and mentor floor teams.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office/365 (Outlook, Excel, Teams).
• Ability to diagnose coating defects and optimize processes.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the technical authority on the powder coating floor, working on-line.
• Evaluate and implement new processes to improve quality, efficiency, and throughput across lines and ovens.
• Apply Lean/Six Sigma techniques to reduce bottlenecks and waste.
• Diagnose and resolve coating defects using technical knowledge of chemistry, temps, and application parameters.
• Oversee the operation, cleaning, and maintenance of automated powder coating equipment (Nordson).
• Support standard powder coating and specialty Teflon processes.
• Collaborate with Quality to reduce customer escapes and drive zero-defect performance.
• Coach, train, and mentor team members and build buy-in for new processes.
• Use data and KPIs to monitor line performance and report gaps to leadership.

Tools

Nordson powder coating systems

MIE Trak

Excel

Job description

F3 Metalworx, a leading sheet metal fabrication company, based in Erie, PA, is a single, one-stop resource for customers across industrial fabrication and powder coating markets. From wash and pretreatment through electrostatic powder and Teflon application, their finishing operations serve customers in a variety of industries. As F3 Metalworx continues to grow, they are investing in the technical expertise needed to build a best-in-class powder coating operation across their North East and Erie, PA locations.

The Opportunity

On behalf of our client, F3 Metalworx, Decision Associates is seeking a hands-on Powder Coating Technical Specialist to bring deep technical expertise to our powder coating operation. This role is central to our growth strategy, heavily focused on implementing a process-driven operation built on Lean principles. You'll spend the majority of your time on the floor, evaluating and optimizing our lines, diagnosing coating defects, and building the processes, training, and mentoring that raise the bar for quality, consistency, and throughput. This is a highly visible, technically demanding role reporting directly to the VP of Operations, with real opportunity to shape the future of the department.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the technical authority on the powder coating floor, spending the majority of your time directly on the line
• Evaluate existing processes and implement new ones to improve quality, efficiency, and flow across three powder lines, four ovens, and a batch booth
• Apply Lean/Six Sigma techniques to identify and eliminate bottlenecks and waste
• Diagnose and resolve coating defects, drawing on deep technical knowledge of chemical composition, oven time/temperature/speed, and application parameters
• Oversee the operation, cleaning, and maintenance of the automated application equipment, including Nordson powder coating systems
• Support both standard powder coating and specialty Teflon coating processes
• Partner closely with the Quality team to reduce customer escapes and drive toward zero-defect performance
• Coach, train, and mentor the team, building buy-in for new processes across the floor
• Use data and KPIs to monitor line performance and report gaps to leadership

Requirements

• 10+ years of hands-on, career-track powder coating experience
• Experience across multiple substrates (steel, galvanized, aluminum, stainless) and pretreatment chemistries
• Experience across multiple powder chemistries and specialty finishes; Teflon coating knowledge preferred
• Strong working knowledge of Lean/Six Sigma methods, including process mapping
• Comfortable diagnosing and resolving coating defects with minimal reliance on formal testing
• Experience with automated application equipment (e.g., Nordson) strongly preferred
• Job shop or high-mix production background preferred
• Strong communicator who is comfortable training, coaching, and mentoring others
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office/365 (Outlook, Excel, Teams); MIE Trak experience a plus
• Health, vision, and dental insurance
• Paid time off
• 401(k)
• Short- and long-term disability insurance
• Life insurance

F3 Metalworx, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer.