Plant Engineer / Engineering Manager - Confectionery Division

About the role

Q-Sourcing Limited, trading as Q-Sourcing Servtec, a manpower management solutions firm operating across East Africa, is recruiting on behalf of its client a Plant Engineer / Engineering Manager / Maintenance Manager for the confectionery division in Kenya. The role provides engineering leadership by managing maintenance, utilities, reliability, plant assets and continuous improvement so that manufacturing stays safe, efficient and cost-effective.

Key responsibilities

• Maintenance and reliability: run preventive, predictive and corrective maintenance programs, lead root cause analysis, track MTBF and MTTR, and use condition monitoring and reliability-centered maintenance.
• Utilities: manage boilers, air compressors, refrigeration, steam, power distribution, water treatment and wastewater treatment, optimise consumption and ensure compliance with safety, environmental and regulatory requirements.
• Spare parts and inventory: keep critical spares available, monitor consumption and inventory variances, and work with procurement on timely acquisition of engineering materials.
• Engineering projects and CAPEX: plan and deliver equipment installation, modification, commissioning and plant expansion within budget and timeline, developing technical specifications.
• Safety, food safety and compliance: promote a safety culture, comply with OSHA, GMP and environmental regulations, and carry out safety audits.
• Continuous improvement: lead initiatives to raise OEE, applying Lean Manufacturing, TPM and 5S.
• Team leadership: coach and develop the engineering and maintenance team, run performance appraisals, identify training needs and build an engineering skill matrix.
• Budget and documentation: prepare and control the engineering and maintenance budget, and maintain equipment histories, maintenance records and breakdown reports in SAP or approved systems.

Required profile

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Mechatronics or Industrial Engineering; registration with a professional engineering body is an added advantage.
• 7-10 years of engineering experience in an FMCG manufacturing environment.
• At least 5 years of experience in confectionery manufacturing.
• Experience managing high-speed production lines.

Required skills

• Hands-on experience with confectionery manufacturing equipment.
• Reliability-centered maintenance and condition monitoring.
• Lean Manufacturing, TPM and 5S.