Operations Manager

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Grace, a Standard Industries company, is a leading global supplier of catalysts, engineered materials and fine chemicals. We provide innovative products, technologies and services which our customers use to manufacture everyday products like renewable fuels, pharmaceuticals, toothpaste, cosmetics, food packaging, beer, edible oils and more. Our thousands of employees help shape a better future at our global headquarters in Columbia, MD and locations worldwide.

Grace is seeking an Operations Manager to join our Plastics & Chemicals Catalyst business! This role reports directly to the Plant Manager located at our Pasadena, TX facility! The position has the principal purpose and responsibility for all production (batch-mixing, distillation, finished product packaging) activities for the site. The primary schedule for the role is days, with the availability for night and weekend on-calls.

The Operations Manager is responsible for safe and efficient operations within all three manufacturing units at the site. As a member of Site Leadership, the Operations Manager will be people-focused and safety-minded. The role is a cornerstone of Operational Excellence, bringing multiple functions together to solve problems safely and effectively. Reporting directly to the Operations Manager are the Operations Lead, Shift Supervisors, Production Engineers and Operations Specialists/OMCs.

The Pasadena, TX site has about 130 employees and is an important manufacturing and distribution site for polyolefin catalysts, which are used in the production of a wide variety of plastics that are part of our everyday lives. The site consists of three polyethylene/polypropylene catalyst manufacturing units and a pilot plant, which is used to develop new manufacturing processes. The site also operates a process technology laboratory, which provides plant support for product scale-up, process development and problem solving.

• Manage the engagement, performance and development of direct reports and indirect reports
• Maintain a positive working environment, resolve personnel conflicts and serve as a sounding board
• Model and project a mindset and behavior of safe work practices and use of critical life safety guidelines
• Lead cross-functional team to safely operate the plant and meet EHSS, production, quality, and cost goals in a 24/7 environment while complying with Federal, State, Local, Grace policies
• Ensure resources and plans are in place to cover unit startups and shutdowns, anticipate scenarios which increase EHSS or production risks (such as winter weather or equipment failure)
• Oversee investigations and root cause analyses and ensure proper actions are completed
• Participate in the asset management process and provide key inputs such as: capacity, resources, shutdown schedules and plant trials
• Continuously review performance with respect to key metrics such as production, yields, and fixed costs… report on variances to meet targets
• Support site and business leadership in development of overall strategies, annual operating plan and other business plans (i.e. succession plan, CAPEX plan)
• Champion the continuous improvement methodology… justify capital needs for improving OEE and productivity.

• Bachelor of Science degree (Science or Engineering discipline highly preferred)
• Minimum of 8+ years of experience working in a specialty chemicals environment with 3+ years’ leadership experience with direct supervisory responsibilities
• Demonstrated leadership experience with transformational change using influence to drive results
• Experience with developing and tracking KPIs, metrics, and other operations-related reporting used to make business decisions to…