Sr. Engineer - Paper

Novolex; Lake Forest (IL); On-site; USD 130,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) match

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Paid time off

Parental leave

Wellness program

Job summary

Novolex is seeking an Engineering Center of Excellence Lead to develop and lead a team of engineers across business units, establishing enterprise capabilities and standards.

The role focuses on evaluating new technologies, driving continuous improvement, and mentoring staff, with travel up to 50%.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in manufacturing, process, reliability engineering, or technical operations.
• 3+ years leading engineering or technical teams.
• Strong management and prioritization skills.
• Executive communication and stakeholder alignment.
• Proficiency with common office software.

Responsibilities

• Drive innovation, establish technical standards, and mentor Center of Excellence experts.
• Oversee standardized workflows and best practices to raise maturity.
• Lead evaluation, prototyping, and integration of new technologies.
• Drive continuous improvement and structured problem-solving.
• Mentor and develop a team of engineers.
• Share knowledge and hand off capabilities to BU teams.
• Ensure shared ownership of tools and processes with BU engineers.
• Monitor compliance and operational efficiency; identify optimization opportunities.
• Perform additional duties as assigned.

Skills

Manufacturing engineering

Process engineering

Leadership experience

Executive communication

Stakeholder alignment

Office software

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering

Job description

Why Choose Us?

Novolex is a leading manufacturer of food, beverage, and specialty packaging that supports multiple industries including foodservice, restaurant delivery and carryout, food processing, grocery and retail, and industrial sectors. Novolex manufacturing and sourcing expertise spans a diverse range of substrates including resin, paper, molded fiber, aluminum and more. We provide customers a broad array of stock and customized solutions with 120 product categories, 250 brands and over 39,000 SKUs.

Novolex is a leading manufacturer of food, beverage, and specialty packaging that supports multiple industries including foodservice, restaurant delivery and carryout, food processing, grocery and retail, and industrial sectors. Novolex manufacturing and sourcing expertise spans a diverse range of substrates including resin, paper, molded fiber, aluminum and more. We provide customers a broad array of stock and customized solutions with 120 product categories, 250 brands and over 39,000 SKUs.

Our Sustainability Commitment

The Novolex sustainability vision is built upon three pillars: our products, our operations and our people. Each is critically important to our growth and future as a business. These pillars form the foundation of our company-wide commitment to sustainability, helping us achieve our ambitious goals through our wide-ranging initiatives.

Job Description

The Engineering Center of Excellence Lead is responsible for developing and leading a team of Engineers focused on developing enterprise capabilities, consistent standards, and technical depth across multiple Business Units and Operating Units within Novolex .

Responsibilities

• Drive innovation, establish technical standards, and mentor Center of Excellence experts across the team
• Oversee definition, documentation, and socialization of standardized workflows and best practices to increase organizational maturity
• Lead evaluation, prototyping, and integration of new technologies into the business
• Drive continuous improvement and structured problem-solving
• Mentor, coach, and develop a team of specialized engineers
• Manage knowledge sharing and hand-off of capabilities to BU Engineering teams
• Ensure shared ownership of tools and processes between the Engineering Center of Excellence and BU Engineers
• Monitor compliance, operational efficiency, and identify opportunities for optimization
• Perform additional duties as assigned

Qualifications

Essential

• 5+ years of manufacturing engineering, process engineering, reliability engineering, or technical operations experience
• 3+ years of leadership experience leading engineering or technical organizations
• Strong management and prioritization skills
• Deep understanding of manufacturing processes
• Executive communication and stakeholder alignment capability
• Proficiency using common office technology and tools

Preferred

• Experience supporting packaging, plastics, extrusion, thermoforming, molded fiber, paper, and/or related manufacturing operations
• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related technical discipline highly preferred

Travel: Up to 50%

A reasonable estimate of the current range is $130-000 + $140,000 bonus + benefits. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target salaries for the position across all US locations. Within the range, individual pay is determined by job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. At Novolex, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at the top of the range for their role and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case.

The benefits for this role include 401(k) plan with company match, comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance, flexible spending and health savings accounts, paid vacation, and sick days, paid parental leave, paid holidays and wellness program.

Company Benefits

What You'll Get From Us

Benefits

With safety as our top priority and a commitment to employee well-being an important focus, we offer comprehensive and competitive benefits that include medical, dental and vision insurance as well as a variety of other well-being resources focused on mental, physical and financial health. Specific benefits and well-being programs may vary depending on where you work.

Community Engagement

At Novolex, giving back to the local communities that support us is important. Our Focused Giving Program prioritizes support for organizations whose missions promote sustainability initiatives or address food and hunger needs. We also encourage facility level support of activities in the communities where our employees live and work.

Training and Development

We offer constant opportunities for advancement. From skills development to advanced education programs, training and development programs and courses are available through MyLearning. Programs include company and industry training curricula, support for formal education through the Tuition Reimbursement Program (Non-Union), and a Learning Management System that supports and enhances employee skills at all levels of the organization.

Novolex is committed to providing equal employment opportunity in all employment practices, including but not limited to selection, hiring, promotion, transfer, and compensation to all qualified applicants and employees without regard to age, race, color, national origin, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, handicap or disability, genetics, citizenship status, service member or veteran status, or any other category protected by federal, state, or local law. Any individual who, because of his or her disability, needs an accommodation in connection with an aspect of the Company's application process should contact [e-mail] .

Formerly Pactiv Evergreen