Plant Manager - Heavy Process Manufacturing (3566689) South Yorkshire, England
Location: North Midlands – commutable from East Midlands / South Yorkshire / South Cheshire.
Compensation: £75,000 - £85,000 base salary, performance bonus, car allowance, executive benefits.
The Opportunity
This role is ideally suited to an experienced:
- Head of Engineering
- Process Plant Operations Manager
Individuals who combine:
- Strong technical understanding of heavy process manufacturing
- Experience within continuous process manufacturing or industrial manufacturing operations
- Leadership experience across production, engineering, maintenance, or operational teams
- Credibility within engineering‑led manufacturing environments
- Strong people leadership and coaching capability
- Ambition, drive, and readiness for the next major step in their career
The Environment
The business operates a large‑scale heavy industrial manufacturing operation involving:
- Continuous and batch process manufacturing
- Thermal and high‑temperature processing environments
- Automated production systems and industrial plant equipment
- Bulk materials handling and processing
- High‑volume manufacturing operations
- Energy‑intensive industrial processes
- Complex maintenance and engineering activities
- High standards of safety, environmental, and quality compliance
- Unionised operational teams
Candidate backgrounds that fit:
- Heavy process manufacturing
- Construction materials manufacturing
- Industrial minerals processing
- Cement, lime, aggregates, quarrying or related sectors
- Ceramics and building products manufacturing
- Metals, steel, glass, or industrial manufacturing
- Chemicals or industrial processing operations
- High‑volume continuous process manufacturing
- Other technically demanding industrial manufacturing environments
What You Will Be Responsible For
- Day‑to‑day plant leadership and operational performance
- Manufacturing output, production performance, and operational efficiency
- Health, safety, environmental, and quality standards
- Leadership and development of production and operational teams
- Driving operational consistency and accountability
- Continuous improvement, lean manufacturing, and manufacturing optimisation
- Supporting succession planning and leadership capability development
- Working closely with engineering, maintenance, technical, and commercial teams
- Supporting capital investment and operational improvement projects
What Success Looks Like
- Stronger operational leadership
- Greater team accountability and ownership
- Improved succession depth and leadership capability
- Continuous improvement and process optimisation
- Long‑term operational development and manufacturing excellence
Who We Are Looking For
- Experience within heavy industrial manufacturing or process manufacturing operations
- Strong technical process and manufacturing understanding
- Leadership experience across production, manufacturing, engineering, or operational teams
- Experience working within highly regulated industrial manufacturing environments
- Strong communication and workforce engagement capability
- The ambition and motivation to progress further operationally
- The credibility to lead within a traditional industrial manufacturing environment
Package
- £75,000 - £85,000 basic salary depending on experience
- Performance bonus
- Additional flexible benefits
Location
Candidates should either already be within reasonable commuting distance of the East Midlands / South Yorkshire / South Cheshire region or be willing to relocate.
