Director of Engineering
About The Position
The Director of Engineering will play a key leadership role in driving the success of Grillo’s strategic plan. They will be responsible for leading capital projects, driving continuous improvement initiatives, and supporting the strategic growth of manufacturing operations across multiple facilities. This role will manage the full lifecycle of engineering projects, from concept development through commissioning and startup, while ensuring projects are completed safely, on time, and within budget. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in food manufacturing environments, strong project management skills, and a passion for improving operational efficiency, reliability, and product quality. This position requires approximately 25-50% travel to support facility expansions, equipment installations, vendor management, and project execution.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Chemical, Industrial, Electrical Engineer, or related engineering discipline
- 7+ years of engineering and project management experience in food, beverage, or consumer packaged goods manufacturing.
- Demonstrated experience managing capital projects exceeding $500,000
- Experience with production equipment installation, startup, and commissioning
- Strong knowledge of manufacturing systems, utilities, process equipment, and packaging operations.
- Proficiency with project scheduling, budgeting, and contractor management.
- Proficient in the use of common software packages including Microsoft Office, Microsoft Project, and AutoCAD for the preparation of presentations, layouts, and working documents.
- Ability to travel up to 50%
Nice To Haves
- Strong computer, analytical, organizational, written, and verbal communication skills are highly preferred
- Knowledge of USDA/FDA sanitary design principles, BRC/ AIB standards, OSHA, GMP's and related regulations desirable.
Responsibilities
- Develop, manage, and execute capital projects ranging from equipment upgrades to complete production line installations
- Lead all phases of projects including scope development, budgeting, engineering design, procurement, construction, commissioning, and startup
- Manage multiple concurrent projects while maintaining schedules, budgets, and project objectives
- Coordinate internal resources and external contractors, consultants, and equipment suppliers
- Ensure compliance with all food safety, quality, environmental, and regulatory requirements
- Identify and implement process improvements to increase productivity, reduce waste, improve equipment reliability, and lower operating costs
- Partner with operations, maintenance, quality, and supply chain teams to optimize manufacturing processes
- Lead installation and startup of new processing, packaging, and material handling systems
- Develop equipment specifications and evaluate technology solutions to support business growth
- Oversee factory acceptance testing, site acceptance testing, and commissioning activities
- Develop and manage the annual capital expenditure (CapEx) Budget
- Prepare capital requests, cost justifications, and return-on-investment analyses
- Track project expenditures and ensure effective utilization of capital resources
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Director
