Equipment Maintenance Manager, Meriden Facility

Travel

Up to 20% for site visits and vendor meetings

Pop Up Bagels is not just a bagel company—we’re a cultural movement. Our stores are small, our vibes are loud, and our energy is contagious. From signature neon and iconic bullhorns to our “Not Famous but Known” mirror, we’ve reimagined not just how a bagel is created, but how it’s enjoyed:
Grip, Rip and Dip! With a cult‑like following, massive social presence, and unparalleled collaborations with top companies, partners and Brand Ambassadors Pop Up Bagels is defining a new food lifestyle brand. We keep things simple, but we do them really, really well. And our customers agree.

The Equipment Maintenance Manager is responsible for the reliability, uptime, and mechanical integrity of all production equipment and the facility at our Meriden, CT bagel and cream cheese manufacturing facility and providing remote support to production facilities across the country. This hands‑on leader oversees a team of maintenance technicians and is the primary driver of both proactive preventive maintenance and reactive troubleshooting efforts, ensuring that equipment issues are identified, addressed, and resolved with minimal disruption to production 24/7.

Oversee the installation and startup of additional capital equipment. This will include planning, outside contractor sourcing, and supervision, along with internal training of members of various departments.

The ideal candidate is a technically strong maintenance professional with food manufacturing experience who is as comfortable building and managing a preventive maintenance program as they are diagnosing a downed piece of equipment on the production floor. They are organized and motivated by keeping the facility running at peak performance.

• Continuously improve a comprehensive preventive maintenance (PM) program for all production equipment, including bagel‑making lines, cream cheese processing equipment, mixers, refrigeration and chiller systems, conveyors, and high‑speed packaging machinery.
• Establish and maintain maintenance schedules and timelines for all equipment, coordinating planned downtime windows with production leadership to minimize operational impact.
• Conduct and oversee regular equipment inspections, lubrication, calibration, and component replacements to extend asset life and prevent unplanned failures.
• Maintain accurate maintenance logs, equipment records, and PM completion documentation.
• Track, analyze, and report on key maintenance metrics including equipment uptime, mean time between failures (MTBF), mean time to repair (MTTR), and PM completion rates.

• Serve as the lead technical resource for diagnosing and repairing equipment breakdowns across all production areas, responding promptly to minimize downtime.
• Direct and support maintenance technicians in troubleshooting mechanical, electrical, pneumatic, and PLC‑related issues across a variety of equipment types.
• Perform root cause analysis (RCA) on recurring equipment failures and implement corrective actions to prevent recurrence.
• Build and maintain strong working relationships with original equipment manufacturer (OEM) representatives and authorized service partners for all major equipment in the facility.
• Identify, qualify, and manage outside maintenance vendors and contractors for repairs or projects that cannot be handled by the internal team, ensuring quality workmanship, competitive pricing, and compliance with facility safety and food safety standards.
• Manage the facility's spare parts inventory, including stocking critical components, tracking usage, and reordering to prevent parts shortages that could extend downtime.
• Obtain and evaluate quotes from vendors and contractors; elevate significant expenditures for appropriate approval.
• Directly supervise, schedule, and develop two maintenance technicians, providing day‑to‑day direction, technical coaching, and formal performance feedback.
• Foster a team culture grounded in respect, safety, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Ensure all maintenance team members are properly trained on…