Unit Production Specialist

Ashland; Hopewell (VA); Hybrid; USD 85,000 - 115,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Team recognition rewards

Comprehensive Benefit package starting

401(k) plan with company match

Referral bonus plan

Flexible office location - Remote/Hybr

Job summary

Ashland is seeking a Unit Production Specialist at our Hopewell, VA site to lead and improve daily operations in a challenging chemical manufacturing environment.

You will coach shift teams, drive safety and quality, coordinate with engineers and maintenance, and manage contractor work while ensuring reliable production and adherence to policy.

The role requires strong leadership, hands-on problem solving, and the ability to build an accountable, collaborative culture.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or GED required.
• 8+ years in refining, chemical, or pharmaceutical manufacturing.
• Proven leadership results; ability to connect with people.
• High initiative and strong problem-solving capabilities.
• Demonstrated responsible and ethical behavior at all times.

Responsibilities

• Lead culture change and develop leadership within the unit.
• Coach/mentor shift operators for consistency and best practices.
• Provide input into meetings and ensure safety, quality, and timeliness.
• Coordinate with engineers, maintenance, and contractors on tasks.
• Act as a key communicator with Operations and supervising teams.
• Manage work orders, scope validation, and energy control procedures.

Skills

Leadership

People skills

Problem solving

Ethics

Business acumen

Education

High school diploma or GED

Job description

Ashland Specialty Ingredients, GP

Are you the kind of person that is always thinking, sketching, seeking, and adjusting? Who needs to understand how things work and then figure out how they can work better? Are you a passionate, tenacious, solver who loves to work with others who share your drive? Are you positive, constructive, and ingenious?

Are you always solving?

Then we'd like to meet you and bet you'd like to meet us.

Ashland has an exciting opportunity for a Unit Production Specialist to join our Specialty Additives business at our Hopewell, VA location. This is a very visible, significant role within the Company and the SA function. This position will report to Unit Operations Leader.

The responsibilities of the position include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Leader - Culture change/developer
• Model and exemplify excellence leadership behaviors
• Develop shift team members to "Get our Good Day"
• Key input into Tier 1, 2, and 3 meetings
• Provide informal coaching/mentoring, create a high accountability culture
• Exhibit adhereance to stewardship and quality rules
• Provide feedback regarding policies/rules that don't appropriately fit operational capabilities
• Facilitate effective union/company relationship
• Technical Assessor/Risk Evaluator
• Primary operational contact point for Shift Supervisors, Engineers, and Maintenance/Work Ex
• Provide key troubleshooting on process and / or equipment
• Coach / mentor operators for cross shift consistency and best practices
• Coordinator
• Plan/Develop/Direct operational tasks for major process moves (ie SD, major product changes)
• Manage/facilitate contractors while performing work in the unit
• Act as the job contact for certain jobs
• Operations/Maintenance Integrator
• Gatekeeper of initial work order entries - vet for validity, redundancy, minimum expectations, and process moves needed to execute - provide suggested scopes as needed
• Develop energy control and decon procedures - partner with Training to manage the system
• Utilize systems (ie drawings) to convey scopes and plans
• Operations Scheduler - Developer
• Develop systems to consistently manage operations schedule, trainings, and ways of working
• Operations Representative
• Operations rep for PHA, Project Reviews, MOC's, Task Force Teams, Outages
• Key communicator with the Operations Team on status of projects
• Provide occasional temporary supervisory backfill
• Administrator
• Govern and develop adminstrative workflows within the unit and provide feedback/suggestions to needed participants on improvement

In order to be qualified for this role, you must possess the following:

• A minimum of a high school or GED degree
• 8 years+ working in a refining, chemical, or pharmaceutical manufacturing environment
• Proven leadership results, ability to connect with people
• High initiative and problems solving capabilities
• Demonstrated responsible and ethical behavior at all times
• The ability to help the company drive greater value through understanding the business, making complex decisions and creating the new and different

The following skill sets are preferred by the business unit :

• 15 years+ working in a refining, chemical, or pharmaceutical manufacturing environment
• Lean manufacturing knowledge and application
• Previous supervisory experience

Perks of working at Ashland:

• Team recognition rewards, sponsored lunches and monetary incentives based on performance
• Comprehensive Benefit package, Medical, Dental and Vision starting on Day 1 for you AND your family
• 401(k) plan with company match
• Referral bonus plan - get a job with us and get paid to refer your friends
• Supporting work/life balance, we offer Flexible office location - Remote/Hybrid

In more than 100 countries, the people of Ashland LLC. (NYSE: ASH) provide the specialty chemicals, technologies and insights to help customers create new and improved products for today and sustainable solutions for tomorrow. Our chemistry is at work every day in a wide variety of markets and applications, including architectural coatings, automotive, construction, energy, personal care and pharmaceutical. Visit www.ashland.com to see the innovations we offer.

At Ashland our vision is to be a leading, global specialty chemicals company whose inspired and engaged employees add value to all we touch. In fact our people, employees, customers and vendors define who we are. They are the driving force