Engineering & Operations Manager

Lead engineering, manufacturing operations, project execution, and field installation for custom products used in the food retail and commercial refrigeration industry. This is a hands-on player-coach position responsible for taking projects from customer specifications and engineering through manufacturing, installation, and closeout.

Job Title
Engineering & Operations Manager
Job Post Summary
Lead engineering, manufacturing operations, project execution, and field installation for custom products used in the food retail and commercial refrigeration industry. This is a hands-on player-coach position responsible for taking projects from customer specifications and engineering through manufacturing, installation, and closeout. The manager will connect Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Sales, and Field Operations while improving quality, throughput, cost, delivery performance, and customer satisfaction.

• Lead engineering for custom-fit refrigeration door and related product systems
• Convert customer and site requirements into manufacturable designs and BOMs
• Work with global engineering teams on product improvements and new product development
• Standardize drawings, configurations, specifications, and engineering documentation
• Ensure products meet applicable refrigeration, safety, and energy-efficiency requirements
• Improve product designs for manufacturability and installation

• Manage daily manufacturing operations including fabrication, assembly, and quality assurance
• Lead production planning, scheduling, and capacity management
• Improve production throughput, labor efficiency, and overall operational performance
• Implement Lean Manufacturing and continuous improvement practices
• Monitor KPIs including on-time delivery, scrap, rework, labor efficiency, quality, and productivity
• Coordinate with Supply Chain on materials, inventory, suppliers, and vendor performance
• Drive cost reduction across materials, labor, manufacturing, and logistics

• Manage projects from order intake through manufacturing, installation, and closeout
• Coordinate project scope, schedules, requirements, and execution with customers and Sales
• Manage field installation teams and subcontractors
• Ensure projects are delivered on time and according to quality requirements
• Troubleshoot field installation and product issues
• Maintain customer satisfaction during project execution

• Serve as the connection between Engineering, Sales, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Field Services
• Build standardized and scalable operating processes
• Develop and mentor engineering and operations personnel
• Support ERP improvements involving production tracking, inventory, job costing, and operational reporting
• Improve communication between engineering, manufacturing, and field teams

• Identify opportunities for process and product improvement
• Lead cost reduction and efficiency initiatives
• Support new product introduction and product testing
• Develop capacity and operational plans
• Improve manufacturing and installation processes as the company expands

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or closely related engineering discipline
• 7-12+ years of relevant experience
• Engineering and operations leadership experience in manufacturing
• Experience with custom manufacturing or engineered-to-order products
• Experience managing both engineering and manufacturing/shop‑floor operations
• Strong understanding of CAD, engineering drawings, BOMs, and manufacturing processes
• Experience with production planning, scheduling, quality, and operational KPIs
• Experience managing projects through manufacturing and field installation
• Strong cross‑functional leadership experience
• Hands-on/player-coach management approach

• Refrigeration or HVAC industry experience
• Glass manufacturing or fabrication experience
• Metal fabrication experience
• Commercial refrigeration experience
• Retrofit or field-installed product experience
• Lean Manufacturing / Six Sigma experience
• ERP experience such as Sage, Net Suite, SAP, Epicor, Oracle, or similar
• New Product Introduction experience
• Experience with subcontractor/field installation management

• No specific professional certification is explicitly mandatory.
• Lean/Six Sigma certification would be a strong plus.