Production Operator IV

About GAF
- Newton, Kansas

Newton is a vibrant Kansas community founded in 1871 on a spirit of work, from its earliest days as a railroad, agriculture and cattle drive hub. With a population of about 20,000, Newton and neighboring North Newton features an active arts community, three National Historic Districts, a variety of museums, trails, restaurants, shops and attractions, Bethel College, award winning school districts, a championship golf course, first-class convention center and many other amenities.

This collaborative region is close to dynamic Wichita and may be the next best place for you to call home, in GAF’s newest "Field of Dreams!"

If you haven’t been part of a greenfield startup, now is your chance. GAF is the North American leader in residential roofing materials. We are honored to be constructing our newest shingle manufacturing facility in Newton KS and hiring is underway as we build our initial plant leadership team. Due to our investment in training and the development of employees, you will have the opportunity to travel to our other locations, engage with peers, support the hiring of plant staff and participate in the design and construction of the facility.

Expect your first years to be rewarding and challenging with an amazing team fully supporting you. You will wear many hats during the construction and commissioning phases of the project, and ease into your steady role over time.

The Operator IV serves as a Master Technician, responsible for optimizing plant-wide production systems, defining best practices, and ensuring operational excellence. This role involves diagnosing and resolving complex, systemic process issues, owning high-impact continuous improvement projects, and directly training and certifying all levels of Production Operators.

• Lead and audit complex setups and changeovers across multiple production lines, including line clearances and equipment adjustments, ensuring proper documentation.
• Define and implement optimal machine parameters across all production lines to maximize flow, efficiency, and quality standards plant-wide.
• Serve as the plant-level technical expert for diagnosing and resolving complex, systemic process issues and major equipment failures using advanced root-cause analysis tools.
• Develop, implement, and audit preventive maintenance (PM) programs and work orders in collaboration with maintenance and engineering teams.
• Design and manage high-level defect containment strategies and corrective actions, ensuring site-wide compliance with quality assurance protocols.
• Audit and maintain production data integrity at a macro level, including accurate tracking of scrap, downtime codes, and throughput metrics, and report findings to management.
• Lead the planning and execution of trials for new products and processes, and be responsible for the creation and publication of all associated Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• Lead and implement major continuous improvement initiatives, including Kaizen events and 5S audits, driving cultural change and measurable improvements.
• Own and direct plant safety activities such as near-miss reporting, Job Safety Analyses (JSAs), and safety audits, ensuring all personnel adhere to policies.
• Act as the primary trainer and certifier for Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 operators, including developing advanced training materials.
• Ensure effective shift handoffs with clear documentation and communication, mentoring shift leads on best practices.
• Regularly act as shift lead, backfill, or Area Supervisor, coordinating team activities and ensuring smooth operations across a defined zone.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams (Engineering, R&D, Management) to define and drive reliability improvements and achieve long-term production goals.
• Partner with other key stakeholders to ensure successful implementation of Process/project engineering, Maintenance and other process improvement projects, and becomes the practical expert to train and lead the change with the frontline team.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

At GAF, we cover more than just buildings. We cover each other. Under this roof, you will have the tools and resources you need to grow and develop in your career. You will experience our incredible culture and will be empowered to support your teammates, your customers, and especially your community. Under this roof, we define the future while leading the present through our deep well of experience and our responsibility to the future to drive improvements and innovation in our products.

We are GAF. And under this roof, we protect what matters most.

Newton is a vibrant Kansas community founded in 1871 on a spirit of work, from its earliest days as a railroad, agriculture and cattle drive hub. With a population of about 20,000, Newton and neighboring North Newton features an active arts community, three National Historic Districts, a variety of museums, trails,…