Engineering Manager

$120,000 - $150,000 Engineering Manager

Location: Lakeland, FL

Department: Engineering & Maintenance

Reports To: VP of Operations

Employment Type: Full-Time

Position Summary

Commercial bakery manufacturing, producing a broad range of breads and baked products for national and regional customers. The company operates in a fast-paced food manufacturing environment where safety, quality, reliability, and customer satisfaction are critical to success.

Seeking an experienced and results-driven Engineering Manager to lead all engineering, facilities, capital project, and reliability initiatives within our Lakeland bakery manufacturing facility. This role is responsible for improving equipment reliability, production efficiency, automation, facility infrastructure, and maintenance strategies while ensuring compliance with food safety, quality, and regulatory requirements.

The ideal candidate is a hands-on leader with strong experience in food manufacturing, industrial engineering, maintenance systems, and capital project management. This individual will partner closely with Production, Quality, Food Safety, Warehouse, and Supply Chain teams to drive continuous improvement and operational excellence across the facility.

Key Responsibilities

Engineering Leadership

• Lead all plant engineering functions including equipment design, process improvement, automation, utilities, and facility maintenance.
• Develop and execute engineering strategies that support business growth, productivity, quality, safety, and profitability goals.
• Provide leadership, coaching, and development to engineering, maintenance, and technical personnel.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, accountability, and operational excellence.

Capital Projects a plus

• Plan, manage, and execute capital improvement projects from concept through implementation.
• Develop project scope, budgets, timelines, and resource requirements.
• Manage contractors, vendors, and equipment suppliers to ensure successful project completion.
• Evaluate and implement new technologies, equipment upgrades, and automation opportunities.
• Ensure projects are delivered safely, on time, and within budget.

Reliability & Maintenance

• Develop and maintain a comprehensive preventive and predictive maintenance program.
• Improve equipment reliability, uptime, and overall equipment effectiveness (OEE).
• Analyze downtime data and implement corrective actions to reduce production interruptions.
• Monitor maintenance KPIs and establish performance improvement plans.
• Optimize spare parts inventory and maintenance planning processes.

Operational Excellence

• Partner with Production leadership to improve throughput, efficiency, labor utilization, and yield.
• Lead Lean Manufacturing and Continuous Improvement initiatives.
• Identify opportunities to eliminate waste, reduce costs, and improve operational performance.
• Support root cause analysis investigations and corrective action implementation.

Food Safety & Compliance

• Ensure compliance with all food safety, GMP, HACCP, SQF, OSHA, environmental, and regulatory requirements.
• Support internal and external audits and corrective action activities.
• Promote a safe work environment and ensure adherence to all safety programs and policies.

Financial Management

• Develop and manage engineering and maintenance budgets.
• Identify cost-saving opportunities while maintaining reliability and performance standards.
• Evaluate return on investment for capital expenditures and improvement projects.

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or related technical field required.
• Master's Degree preferred.

Experience

• 7+ years of engineering leadership experience in a manufacturing environment.
• 3+ years managing engineering, maintenance, or technical teams.
• Food manufacturing, bakery, consumer packaged goods (CPG), or related industry experience strongly preferred.
• Proven experience managing capital projects and plant improvement initiatives.

Technical Skills

• Strong knowledge of:
• Industrial automation and controls
• PLC systems and troubleshooting
• Mechanical and electrical systems
• Utilities and facility infrastructure
• Preventive and predictive maintenance programs
• Reliability-centered maintenance (RCM)
• Lean Manufacturing principles
• Continuous Improvement methodologies
• CMMS systems
• Root Cause Analysis (RCA)

Leadership Competencies

• Strong organizational and project management skills.
• Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Strategic thinker with strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
• Ability to balance long-term initiatives with day-to-day operational needs.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to work within a manufacturing environment, including production floors, mechanical rooms, and warehouse areas.
• Ability to occasionally lift up to 25 pounds.
• Ability to stand, walk, climb stairs, and inspect equipment throughout the facility.