Area Production Director

American Welding and Gas • Columbia, SC

1d • Hybrid

About The Position

American Welding & Gas, Inc. (AWG) is growing—and we’re looking for an experienced Area Production Director ready to make a BIG impact across our East Region! If you’re a proven production leader who thrives on driving operational excellence, team performance, safety, and growth, this is an opportunity to step into a high-impact role with a growing organization. Position Summary: The Area Production Director is responsible for the overall operational leadership, safety, efficiency, and performance of multiple production and fill plant facilities within an assigned region. This role oversees regional production operations including industrial, medical, specialty, and beverage gas production activities to ensure operational excellence, regulatory compliance, product quality, asset reliability, and customer fulfillment. The ideal candidate is a hands-on operational leader with extensive experience in industrial gas production, manufacturing, plant operations, and regulatory compliance who can effectively lead teams, optimize processes, and drive continuous improvement initiatives across multiple facilities.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations Management, Business, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
• 10+ years of progressive leadership experience in industrial gas production, manufacturing, chemical processing, or related industrial operations environments.
• Strong knowledge of industrial gas production operations, cylinder filling processes, cryogenic systems, and plant safety practices.
• Working knowledge of OSHA, DOT, FDA medical gas requirements, EPA regulations, NFPA standards, and CGA guidelines.
• Demonstrated experience leading multiple production facilities and large operational teams.
• Strong leadership, communication, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
• Experience managing operational budgets, capital projects, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Ability to analyze operational data and drive performance improvements.
• Willingness to travel regularly within the assigned region.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic and day-to-day leadership for multiple production plants and fill facilities across the assigned region.
• Ensure safe, efficient, and compliant production operations for industrial, medical, specialty, and beverage gases.
• Drive operational consistency, plant productivity, asset utilization, and process standardization across all facilities.
• Develop and implement operational strategies to support company growth, customer demand, and service objectives.
• Monitor production capacity and coordinate operational planning to ensure uninterrupted product supply.
• Champion AWG’s safety-first culture and ensure compliance with OSHA, DOT, FDA, EPA, NFPA, CGA, and all applicable regulatory requirements.
• Lead safety initiatives, audits, incident investigations, root cause analysis, and corrective action programs.
• Ensure all production facilities maintain compliance with medical gas manufacturing standards, quality systems, and regulatory inspections.
• Promote proactive risk management and continuous safety improvement initiatives throughout the region.
• Ensure employee adherence to operational procedures, PPE requirements, and safe handling practices for compressed and cryogenic gases.
• Oversee production scheduling, cylinder filling operations, bulk gas supply coordination, and inventory management.
• Partner with supply chain and operations teams to ensure product availability and efficient distribution support.
• Ensure production quality standards are consistently achieved and maintained across all facilities.
• Support implementation and maintenance of quality assurance programs and production documentation requirements.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on productivity, waste reduction, throughput, and operational reliability.
• Oversee preventive maintenance programs and plant equipment reliability initiatives.
• Ensure production equipment, pumps, manifolds, vaporizers, compressors, filling systems, and cryogenic assets are properly maintained and operational.
• Partner with maintenance and engineering teams on facility upgrades, capital projects, and equipment improvements.
• Monitor plant downtime, maintenance trends, and operational performance metrics to improve asset reliability.
• Lead, coach, and develop plant managers, production supervisors, maintenance personnel, and production associates.
• Support recruiting, onboarding, training, performance management, and succession planning efforts.
• Foster a culture of accountability, teamwork, operational excellence, and continuous improvement.
• Provide leadership development and operational guidance to plant leadership teams.
• Manage regional production operating budgets, labor costs, maintenance expenses, and capital expenditures.
• Monitor KPIs related to safety, production efficiency, downtime, quality, inventory accuracy, and profitability.
• Identify operational efficiencies and cost-saving opportunities while maintaining safety and product quality standards.
• Support forecasting, budgeting, and long-range operational planning activities.
• Partner closely with operations, distribution, safety, sales, supply chain, engineering, HR, and finance teams to support business objectives.
• Support onboarding and operational integration of newly acquired production facilities.
• Serve as a senior escalation point for plant operational, production, and compliance issues.
• Support company-wide operational initiatives, standardization efforts, and strategic growth objectives.
• Other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• Competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package.
• 401(k) with company match.
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage from day one.
• Life and disability insurance.
• Generous paid time off and paid holidays.
• A supportive, team-oriented culture with opportunities for growth.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager