Maintenance Manager

Our client is a food manufacturing company driven by the zeal to produce quality bread and flour for the Kenyan market. The company has grown from strength to strength, currently producing over 250,000 loaves of bread and 450 metric tonnes of wheat and maize flour a day, making it one of the largest producers of bread and flour under one roof in the country.

The Maintenance Manager will be responsible for overseeing all the machine maintenance activities, providing technical related solutions and guiding the technical team to achieve the required goals of the department. He/She will continually ascertain optimum plant performance at all time and achieve the company’s strategic goals. This role will increase efficiency and ensure that production timelines are adhered to, accurately minimizing downtime and ensuring that machine consumables are readily available when repairs are required to enable the machine operations to run smoothly. The position holder will be expected to be committed to continuous improvement.

Key Duties/ Responsibilities

● Oversee the maintenance of all machinery and equipment, ensuring cost-effectiveness, a high standard of upkeep and compliance with all safety, quality and budgetary requirements. 

● Establishes, agrees and delivers against Maintenance functional KPIs, guaranteeing excellence in equipment availability and condition.

● Apply business context to determine and implement appropriate maintenance tactics: predictive, preventive, inspective, corrective, break-down maintenance to ascertain capacity and efficiency requirements.

● Develops and manages planned preventative maintenance process to support delivery of excellent equipment availability. Establishes metrics to track planned preventative maintenance effectiveness and uses data to ensure high decision quality.

● Manage the timely and cost-effective procurement of spare parts, maintenance services and supplies to support equipment availability. Procures, designs, and improves equipment and facilities in accordance with production, packaging, and safety standards.

● Maintain effective liaison with outside suppliers, vendors, equipment manufacturers and contractors.

● Maintain a safe and clean work environment in areas of responsibility.

● Ensures plant compliance with all governmental regulations and agencies such as OSHA, KEBS and other codes.

● Support implementation of continuous Improvement programs, new methods, procedures and systems to improve safety, operational efficiency, quality and food safety. Manages maintenance activities to comply with all applicable safety, food safety and environmental laws and regulations, as well as Company safety policies, food safety and quality procedures and standards.

● Responsible for identifying opportunities to enhance technology and innovation that will improve departmental effectiveness, ensuring awareness and timely acquisition of appropriate technical skills by the team. 

● Lead and develop technical personnel ensuring the team has the skills to support current and future maintenance needs across Electrical, Mechanical, Welding and Plumbing disciplines. Manage, organise and coordinate the activities of the technical staff including work scheduling/planning, training and development, performance management etc. 

● Conducts continuous inspections of plant and equipment to ensure optimal operating conditions.

● Establishes principles for change and maintains change momentum through employee communication, engagement and development. Also learns from, measures and sustains change results.

● Establishes effective collaboration and teamwork between the technical team and cross-functional teams including Procurement, Production, Quality and R&D teams.

● Support R&D or special projects and installations as assigned by management - effectively scheduling and managing project work to establish priorities and ensure that targeted completion dates are met.

Key Deliverables:

● Optimal maintenance plans that are aligned to the manufacturers specifications and that are executed as planned. 

● Achievement of plant availability targets at all times 

● A competent maintenance team, that is motivated and performs to the required standards 

● Maintenance activities executed within budget.

Academic and Professional Qualifications and experience required

● Electrical/Electronic Engineering Degree or equivalent/ related technical field.

● years’ similar experience in a busy food manufacturing facility. Bakery experience required.

● Proven managerial experience.

● Adequate knowledge of business and management principles (budgeting, strategic planning, resource allocation etc.

● Expert maintenance knowledge with experience in reporting key metrics

● Strong experience is automated manufacturing plants with experience of maintaining within PLC driven environments.

Key Skills and Competences

● Strong leadership, people management and motivational skills. 

● Excellent communication, presentation and reporting skills.

● Exceptional organisational skills.

● Strong interpersonal skills to work with peers, outside contractors and vendors.

● Strong innovative thinking, analytical, problem-solving and decision-making skills.

● Proven project management skills.

● Responsive and flexible with a strong commitment to good service delivery.

● People development and coaching

● A hands-on approach (get under the hood) approach. 

● A right first time attitude.