Project Manager

OptiCool; Town of Webster (NY); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

OptiCool is seeking a Project Manager to oversee cross-functional projects in the data center and liquid cooling space. You will coordinate engineering, procurement, manufacturing, and testing to deliver on-time, on-budget solutions that meet customer expectations.

The role requires managing project plans, milestones, and risks while maintaining clear communication with sales, design, QA, and finance teams.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Business, Project Management, Manufacturing, Operations, or a related field preferred.
• 5+ years of project management experience within data centers or mission critical environments preferred.
• Experience managing multiple projects simultaneously and with cross-functional teams.
• Strong understanding of project scheduling, resource planning, cost management, and risk management.
• Demonstrated ability to manage customer-facing projects.
• Strong organizational and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to read and understand engineering drawings, specifications, bills of materials, and technical documentation.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, particularly Excel, Word, Outlook, and project scheduling tools.

Responsibilities

• Manage projects from kickoff through engineering, procurement, manufacturing, testing, shipment, installation support, and final customer acceptance.
• Develop comprehensive project plans, schedules, milestones, and deliverables.
• Establish project priorities and coordinate resources to maintain schedule commitments.
• Monitor project progress and address schedule, cost, quality, and resource issues.
• Maintain accurate project documentation, schedules, action-item lists, and status reports.
• Conduct regular project meetings and ensure clear communication among stakeholders.
• Ensure objectives, scope, budget, schedule, and customer requirements are understood by the team.
• Track performance against milestones and KPIs.
• Serve as the primary project contact for assigned customers and maintain strong relationships.
• Coordinate with Mechanical, Electrical, Controls, Applications, and other engineering resources.

Skills

Project management

Cross-functional collaboration

Communication skills

Excel

Scheduling tools

Engineering drawings

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Business, PM, Manufacturing or related field

Tools

ERP/MRP systems

MS Office

Job description

OptiCool is positioned at the intersection of advanced thermal management, data center infrastructure, and liquid cooling technology. This role provides an opportunity to work on technically complex projects supporting the rapidly evolving data center industry while collaborating with engineering, manufacturing, supply chain, and customer teams.

The successful candidate will play a critical role in ensuring OptiCool delivers high-quality cooling solutions on time, on budget, and to customer expectations.

The Project Manager provides overall project coordination and accountability while partnering with OptiCool’s functional teams. Functional ownership remains with the respective departments, including Sales, Applications & Design, Engineering, Procurement, Manufacturing, Quality, Service, Operations, and Finance. The Project Manager is responsible for maintaining the overall project plan, tracking departmental and customer commitments, identifying dependencies and risks, communicating project status, and escalating issues that may impact scope, schedule, cost, quality, or customer commitments.

Project Management

• Manage projects from initial project kickoff through engineering, procurement, manufacturing, testing, shipment, installation support, and final customer acceptance.
• Develop comprehensive project plans, schedules, milestones, and deliverables.
• Establish project priorities and coordinate resources to maintain schedule commitments.
• Monitor project progress and proactively address schedule, cost, quality, and resource issues.
• Maintain accurate project documentation, schedules, action-item lists, and status reports.
• Conduct regular project meetings and maintain clear communication among all stakeholders.
• Ensure project objectives, scope, budget, schedule, and customer requirements are clearly understood by the project team.
• Track project performance against established milestones and key performance indicators.

Customer Management

• Serve as the primary project contact for assigned customers after project award.
• Establish and maintain strong customer relationships throughout the project lifecycle.
• Conduct customer project kickoff meetings and regular project status reviews.
• Communicate project schedules, milestones, risks, changes, and corrective actions.
• Respond professionally and promptly to customer concerns and project issues.

Project Coordination

• Coordinate closely with Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Controls Engineering, Applications Engineering, and other technical resources.
• Ensure engineering deliverables are completed in accordance with project requirements and schedule.
• Coordinate with Supply Chain and Purchasing to ensure required materials and components are available according to the project schedule.
• Monitor long-lead components and critical-path materials.
• Coordinate with Manufacturing to ensure projects are released and scheduled appropriately.
• Monitor production progress against the project schedule.
• Monitor project costs and financial performance.Track actual costs against project budgets and approved estimates.
• Coordinate final inspections, factory acceptance testing, functional testing, and customer acceptance requirements.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Business, Project Management, Manufacturing, Operations, or a related field preferred.
• 5+ years of project management experience within data centers or mission critical environments preferred
• Experience managing multiple projects simultaneously.
• Experience working with cross-functional engineering, manufacturing, supply chain, and quality teams.
• Strong understanding of project scheduling, resource planning, cost management, and risk management.
• Demonstrated ability to manage customer-facing projects.
• Strong organizational and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to read and understand engineering drawings, specifications, bills of materials, and technical documentation.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, particularly Excel, Word, Outlook, and project scheduling tools.

Preferred Qualifications

• PMP or equivalent project management certification.
• Experience with engineered-to-order manufacturing.
• Experience with ERP/MRP systems.
• Experience with Lean Manufacturing or continuous improvement methodologies.
• Mechanical or electrical engineering background.
• Experience managing projects involving custom equipment or systems.
• Experience coordinating customer factory acceptance testing.
• Experience working with national or international customers.