Plant Manufacturing Engineering Manager

The Employer
This global player in the automotive industry and a specialist in the engineering and production of automotive solutions, holds global leadership status in each of its core businesses: Automotive Seating, Emissions Control Technologies, Interior Systems and Automotive Exteriors. Its customer portfolio features practically every automaker around the world, including manufacturers in emerging economies, such as the Indian, Chinese and Korean markets.
Renowned for its highly efficient program management system, the company provides customers with a service through its network of 270 production sites in 33 countries. Driven by the same automotive passion, employees embrace the group's business culture, based on such shared values as commitment, transparency, continuous improvement, team player and entrepreneurship.
The world's sixth largest and Europe's third largest automotive supplier.

In South Africa, the company owns two manufacturing plants, one in Port Elizabeth and another in Cape Town. 
Total staff compliment is 930 in South Africa (with over 700 in Cape Town )and 84 000 worldwide.
The company offers a global best practice environment with advanced systems and procedures, both in manufacturing and in Human Resource practices. They offer international promotional opportunities for candidates who are internationally mobile and management programmes for high potential individuals.
The automotive business is an extremely fast moving and challenging environment. With their ‘just in time’ policies and pro-active approach, you will truly be working at the cutting edge of commerce. This is an environment where people with high energy levels and those enjoying to be challenged constantly, thrive and advance.

The Job
The Plant Manufacturing Engineering Manager is in charge of managing all ME (Manufacturing Engineering) resources within his/her organization. The main objectives of the role are to:

• Manage Manufacturing Engineering in programs


• Participate to ME resources allocation in programs


• Manage the Program Manufacturing leaders team


• Support to RFQ (Request for Quotation) in order to give manufacturing inputs


• Participate to the gate reviews and validate the industrial gate reviews


• Monitor and manage capacity and related investments


• Propose division industrial plans to optimize footprint and equipment utilization


• Build and manage investments, tooling and manufacturing engineering budgets


• Track machines and equipment workload according to customers demand


• Support operations in matching QCD objectives


• Manage productivity workshops and participate to continuous improvement processes in plants


• Consolidate ME key indicators of the plants and propose action plans


• Manage ME networks and team


• Staff, train, coach, asses and develop the program and plant ME teams (direct and dotted line)


• Consolidate and report key ME indicators in plants


• Propose associated action plans


• Participate to the Division industrial strategy


• Expertise development


• Prepare and propose process innovations. Drive process when allocated to the Division
  

The ideal candidate will have/be:

• Master's Degree in Engineering / applicable work experience


• Minimum 10 years of experience in Production, including one position in Manufacturing Engineering


• Experience in program launch


• Leadership skills


• Strong communication skills, ability to manage functional network and line management


• International mindset


• Minimum bi-lingual (English required)