Electrical Engineer, Plant Optimization
Position Summary:
This is an early-career engineering role - hiring for various locations including PA, VA, UT.
This position reports directly to the regional Area Operations Manager and will provide engineering support to all plant functions to include operations, maintenance, and other corrugated plant functional areas. This position is a developmental position that provides support to optimize plant equipment, improve reliability, enhance and sustain product quality while maximizing throughput and product revenue. This position will result in an overall understanding of plant operations and management skills needed for career development and promotional opportunities to various positions within the PCA corrugated plant operations group or other PCA supporting groups.
Dimensions:
Currently there are nine Area Operations Managers with responsibilities for improving operations and maximizing capabilities within their region. Existing plants have minimal staffing, lack in technical bench strength, and have limited resources to coordinate and manage multiple improvement initiatives. This initiative is a pilot initiative to embed engineers in the larger plants within the region and utilize those engineers at other plants within that region as needed. Several of the initiatives are already identified targeting improvements in reliability and operational efficiency. This optimization process or “push” will result in additional workload requiring more resources to achieve multiple objectives within the time frame necessary while maintaining and sustaining current operational gains. These additional resources also provide benefits for personnel development and succession planning related to workforce demographics and attrition rates. Once the regional program is established additional resources can be added.
Principle Accountabilities:
- Organize and implement moderate to large process improvements, problem elimination and capital/expense projects focusing on asset health and overall improved reliability.
- Coordinate implementation plans for Manufacturing Excellence Audits
- Provide production-oriented support to Plant Operations Management.
- Provide maintenance-oriented support to Plant Maintenance Management.
- Provide technical leadership for project teams, hourly employees, technicians, process technology and others to contribute to plant optimization.
- Implement reliability improvement and plant optimization systems.
- Troubleshooting problems and perform root cause analysis.
- Modify and optimize the maintenance (PM) work process.
- Support the lubrication and inspection programs for maintenance and operations basic care.
- Coordinate the pressure vessel and equipment integrity programs.
- Recommend innovative solutions to improve equipment, facility, and plant operations.
- Track maintenance and process downtime data to provide solutions for repetitive equipment failures/breakdowns and operational inefficiencies.
- Know and follow policies and procedures of the company, share information that would benefit other members of the team and find ways to improve the delivery of service to our customers.
- Strive to continually strengthen PCA’s business philosophy of meeting needs and exceeding expectation for customers specifically supporting PCA’s Commitment to Service which involves doing what’s right for our customers, focusing on strategies that add value and support growth, and keeping the promises that we make.
Decision Making:
The Plant Optimization Engineer is required to exercise discretion and creativity in determining best way to implement strategic projects that optimize processes. The Plant Optimization Engineer is expected to drive performance of the team assigned to his/her project to meet project goals. The Plant Optimization Engineer is expected to take general directions, and from those directions make decisions as to his/her approach to completing assigned projects. The Plant Optimization Engineer is expected to determine how to operate and conduct assigned tasks within the established standards, procedures and cost constraints.
Interactions:
The Plant Optimization Engineer interacts with manufacturing and support personnel of the mills as well as the corporate technology group to complete assigned work.
Position Requirements:
- Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related discipline.
- Some engineering experience providing technical support in a manufacturing plant or industrial environment.
- Experience in providing technical support on manufacturing equipment and processes.
- Project management experience.
- Good planning and prioritizing skills.
- Exceptional communication skills.
- Ability to take direction and “drive” initiatives with minimal need for oversight.
- Previous work experience as a member of a team, or a strong understanding of the importance of open communication and information sharing between team members.
- Ability to travel up to 50% within assigned region