Senior Manager - Plant Engineering & Maintenance

Air Liquide; Newport (DE); On-site; USD 150,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Air Liquide Newport, DE is seeking a Senior Manager - Plant Engineering & Maintenance to lead process control, capital projects and asset reliability in a 24/7 manufacturing environment. Responsibilities include directing automation, PLC/HMI upgrades, design documentation, and safe, compliant operations while partnering with production and process engineering teams.

You will also drive maintenance planning, KPI tracking in CMMS, and staff development to sustain high availability and cost

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or higher in engineering or related field.
• Experience leading engineering and maintenance teams in manufacturing.
• Strong knowledge of process control and automation systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead site engineering operations across automation and control systems.
• Oversee capital project scoping, cost estimation, and commissioning.
• Direct maintenance and asset reliability activities to ensure plant availability.

Skills

Process control systems

Capital project management

Asset reliability

Team leadership

Automation systems

Education

Engineering degree

Tools

PLC

HMI

Data acquisition

CMMS/MOC

Job description

R10103320 Senior Manager - Plant Engineering & Maintenance (Open)

Location: Newport, DE (MEDAL) - Manufacturing - Production

Air Liquide Global E&C Solutions is a technology partner of choice for the design, engineering and construction of leading-edge processing facilities and related infrastructures worldwide. We enable our customers to optimize the use of the planet's natural resources in order to provide clean and sustainable energy thanks to our people and their capability to innovate constantly. Through cutting edge innovation applied to our proprietary technology we contribute to the transformation of the energy industry and help to preserve & protect the atmosphere of our planet. Looking back on decades of operational expertise within the world leader in gases for industry, health and the environment, we develop creative, safe, reliable and competitive solutions for our customers, proposing a sustainable worldwide offer of best-in-class plants in a dynamically changing marketplace.

Air Liquide's ambition is to be a leader in its industry, deliver long term performance and contribute to sustainability - with a strong commitment to climate change and energy transition at the heart of its strategy.

How will you CONTRIBUTE and GROW?

We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace that embraces the unique perspectives of our employees, our customers, patients, community stakeholders, and cultures across the world. We believe that a variety of backgrounds makes our team stronger and more innovative. At Air Liquide we RESPECT, HONOR and VALUE diversity.

Air Liquide is hiring for a Senior Manager- Plant Engineering & Maintenance in Newport, DE.

We are looking for you!

The Senior Manager - Plant Engineering & Maintenance provides strategic and operational leadership over process control systems, capital project implementation, and site asset reliability. Reporting directly to the Senior Director, Manufacturing, this position leads a multidisciplinary engineering and maintenance team to design, execute, and optimize technical infrastructure, automation systems, and physical plant assets. The role ensures high equipment availability, control system stability, and successful capital project delivery while upholding safety, quality, and regulatory compliance standards. This position manages a group supporting a 24/7 operational environment. They are responsible for establishing & championing best practices in maintenance management for both corrective and preventative maintenance in support of achieving the organization's objectives in quality, delivery, and cost.

Job Responsibilities :

Plant Engineering & Controls Leadership:

• Lead site engineering operations across automation, control systems, and process instrumentation to ensure system integration, operational continuity, and technology modernization.
• Provide strategic oversight for the design, maintenance, and upgrade of plant PLCs, HMIs, data acquisition networks, and control logic across continuous and batch processing systems.
• Partner with manufacturing and process engineering teams to establish control philosophies, operating instructions, and automated solutions that improve process capabilities and throughput.
• Ensure process control architectures maintain high operational stability, network security, and instrumentation accuracy.
• Accountable for the functionality and reliability of the facilities server

Capital Project Implementation:

• Direct all phases of site capital projects, facility investments, and equipment installations following standard investment guidelines.
• Oversee project engineering workflows including scoping, cost estimation, risk assessments, bid evaluation, Management of Change (MOC) processes, and commissioning.
• Ensure accurate design and lifecycle maintenance of plant technical documentation, including P&IDs, process flow diagrams, electrical schematics, and as-built drawings.
• Provide engineering oversight for site utility systems (boilers, air compressors, chillers, power distribution, and HVAC).
• Provide monthly updates of the status of all capital projects.

Maintenance & Asset Reliability Leadership:

• Responsible for the overall direction and effective coordination of the Maintenance Department activities. This position ensures that work is properly planned and safely executed in a timely manner for plant reliability
• Utilize a Computerized Maintenance Management System to review KPI's, Develop WO plans, manage backlog, and ensure PM/CM optimization
• Establish, monitor, analyze, and own KPI's. Use the data to identify, prioritize, and focus improvement efforts
• Identify reliability risks and vulnerabilities, and mitigate with capital plans, redundancies, or with emergency plans
• Ensure Work orders are scheduled and completed per the weekly/ bi-weekly maintenance schedule
• Oversee training and development of all departmental staff to ensure technicians are meeting minimum qualifications and are progressing on-sch