Salary: From £45,000 (negotiable, depending on experience)
Location: Desborough, Northamptonshire
Job Type: Permanent, Full-time
Department: Extrusion Production
Reporting To: Production Manager
Shift Pattern: 8:00am–5:00pm, Monday to Friday.
Povoas Packaging
We are a privately owned, family-run polythene manufacturer and a recognised leader within the UK industry. With a strong reputation for quality and reliability, we are committed to operational excellence, continuous improvement and ongoing investment in the latest extrusion technology. Our production facility is equipped with high-performance machinery, including advanced multi-layer extrusion lines, enabling us to deliver consistently high-quality products to our customers.
Due to recent growth and investment, we are seeking an experienced Extrusion Manager to take ownership and responsibility of our state-of-the-art Blown Film Extrusion Department, driving performance and quality.
Key Responsibilities:
Leadership, Oversight and Management
- Provide overall leadership and management of the Extrusion Department team
- Liaise with HR and the Production Manager on employee matters, including: attendance, absences, performance, development and grievance issues
- Maintain appropriate staffing levels, including the effective management of overtime to maximise production efficiency
- Ensure all team members operate safely, efficiently and cost-effectively, identifying and implementing training and development requirements where necessary
- Lead, motivate and support staff, fostering strong working relationships and a positive team culture
- Conduct regular performance reviews and one-to-one meetings, setting objectives, monitoring progress and supporting employee development
- Promote high standards of attendance, conduct and accountability across the Department
- Drive continuous improvement initiatives to enhance operational performance, efficiency and employee engagement
- Work effectively and maintain working relationships alongside operators, Team Leaders, Conversion and Print Managers, Company Directors, Engineers (external and internal) and planning teams
Health and Safety, Quality and Compliance
- Ensure individual and team compliance with all Health & Safety, Quality and Environmental policies, procedures and legislative requirements
- Work closely with HR and relevant stakeholders to ensure all safety training, certifications, risk assessments and safe working procedures remain current and fully compliant
- Promote a strong safety culture by encouraging best practices, hazard identification and continuous improvement in workplace safety
- Ensure compliance with all relevant industry standards and certifications, including BRC, ISO and operational specific regulations
Machine Performance and Maintenance
- Monitor machine performance, production output and scrap levels, ensuring targets for quality and waste reduction are achieved
- Conduct root cause analysis of equipment, process and quality issues, implementing corrective and preventative actions to minimise recurrence
- Plan, coordinate and oversee production activities to ensure customer orders, delivery schedules and quality standards are consistently met
- Drive continuous improvement initiatives to enhance output and overall equipment effectiveness, while reducing waste, downtime and operating costs
- Troubleshoot and resolve technical, mechanical and process-related issues across all blown film extrusion lines, ensuring minimal disruption to production
- Collaborate with Maintenance and Engineering teams (internal and external) to optimise machine reliability
- Analyse production data and performance metrics to identify opportunities for improvements
- Ensure machinery is operated and maintained in accordance with manufacturer guidelines, company procedures and regulatory requirements
Improvement and Development
- Support capital investment projects, including the introduction of new equipment, technologies to enhance operational performance
- Contribute to new product development initiatives
- Identify improvement opportunities to increase productivity and efficiency
- Evaluate operational and workforce effectiveness, implementing improvements
- Promote a culture of continuous improvement, encouraging employee involvement
The Ideal Candidate:
- Experience within a blown film extrusion manufacturing environment, with a strong technical understanding of the extrusion process, machinery and operations
- Strong knowledge of industry standards including BRC, ISO, Health & Safety and quality management systems
- Strong leadership and decision-making skills
- People management skills with the ability to motivate and build lasting, professional relationships
- A commercially aware mindset, focused on maximising efficiency, reducing waste, controlling costs and maintaining high-quality standards
- Comfortable working on the factory floor and engaging directly with production teams to drive performance and resolve issues
- Excellent problem-solving skills, with experience in root cause analysis and implement corrective and preventative actions
- The ability to collaborate with Production, Engineering, Maintenance, Quality, HR and Company Directors to achieve objectives
- A continuous improvement mindset, with a commitment to driving operational excellence
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