Manager, Paint

Job Details

Job Location:

Register, GA 30452

Position Type:
Full Time

• Lead and manage all Paint Department operations, ensuring achievement of production, quality, cost, delivery, and safety objectives.
• Direct and supervise Paint Process Engineering, Production, and Technical Support activities to ensure stable and efficient manufacturing operations.
• Develop departmental strategies, annual objectives, and operational plans aligned with company business goals.
• Manage daily paint shop operations, including coating application, robotic painting systems, pretreatment, curing processes, paint circulation systems, and material management.
• Establish departmental KPIs and monitor operational performance through data analysis, implementing corrective actions and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Lead process optimization efforts to improve productivity, first-pass yield, OEE, labor efficiency, coating quality, and equipment utilization.
• Oversee painting process development, validation, line balancing, capacity planning, and new product launches.
• Ensure proper control of paint materials, including inventory management, viscosity control, mixing ratios, material consumption, VOC management, and waste reduction.
• Lead troubleshooting activities for paint defects, equipment failures, and production issues while implementing permanent corrective and preventive actions.
• Drive Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, PFMEA, SPC, Control Plan, and Root Cause Analysis methodologies throughout the department.
• Collaborate closely with Production, Quality, Maintenance, Manufacturing Engineering, Supply Chain, Program Management, and Customer Quality teams to achieve operational excellence.
• Manage capital investment projects, equipment upgrades, process improvements, and facility expansion projects for the Paint Department.
• Ensure compliance with all environmental regulations, OSHA requirements, hazardous chemical handling procedures, and company safety standards.
• Develop, implement, and maintain departmental SOPs, work instructions, process standards, and engineering documentation.
• Prepare and manage departmental budgets, including labor costs, paint material consumption, maintenance expenses, and capital expenditures.
• Monitor department financial performance and identify cost reduction opportunities while maintaining product quality and customer requirements.
• Lead customer audits, internal audits, and support customer issue resolution related to paint quality and manufacturing processes.
• Recruit, mentor, coach, develop, and evaluate engineers, supervisors, technicians, and production personnel while building leadership capability throughout the organization.
• Promote a culture of accountability, teamwork, continuous improvement, employee engagement, and operational discipline.
• Present departmental performance reports, KPIs, improvement initiatives, and strategic plans for executive leadership.
• Support overall manufacturing operations to ensure customer requirements, production schedules, launch timing, and on-time delivery commitments are consistently achieved.

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, Manufacturing, Chemical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or related technical field preferred.
• Minimum 8–10 years of manufacturing engineering experience in automotive or industrial manufacturing environments preferred.
• Minimum 5 years of direct experience in paint process engineering, coating systems, or automated paint shop operations strongly preferred.
• Extensive hands‑on experience with robotic painting systems, automated coating equipment, and paint process optimization.
• Strong technical knowledge of paint materials, coating technologies, surface preparation, curing systems, and paint defect analysis.
• Proven experience leading complex process improvement projects in high‑volume manufacturing environments.
• Strong understanding of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, PFMEA, Control Plans, SPC, and structured problem‑solving methodologies.
• Experience managing capital projects, equipment upgrades, new process launches, and manufacturing process validation activities.
• Excellent leadership, communication, interpersonal, and…