Facilities & Maintenance Manager
About The Position
Farmer’s Fridge is seeking a Facilities & Maintenance Manager to oversee the maintenance, reliability, and continuous improvement of their 100,000-square-foot food manufacturing facility in Chicago. This role is crucial for ensuring the safe, efficient, and reliable operation of the building, equipment, and critical systems, which directly impacts the delivery of fresh, high-quality food to customers. The manager will lead the preventative maintenance strategy, supervise maintenance technicians and vendors, manage facility budgets, and collaborate with various departments including Operations, Quality, Food Safety, and IT. This is a key leadership position for an individual who thrives on solving operational challenges, developing scalable processes, and driving results through both strategic planning and hands-on execution.
Requirements
- 5+ years of facilities or maintenance leadership experience within a food manufacturing or similarly regulated production environment.
- Proven experience managing maintenance operations in refrigerated or temperature-controlled facilities.
- Expert-level knowledge of preventative maintenance programs, CMMS systems, and equipment reliability best practices.
- Strong technical knowledge of industrial manufacturing equipment, refrigeration systems, conveyors, utilities, and facility infrastructure.
- Ability to balance competing priorities while keeping safety, food quality, and operational uptime at the center of every decision.
- Collaborative leader who builds strong relationships across Operations, Quality, Food Safety, IT, and external vendors.
- Proven experience managing budgets, analyzing performance metrics, and identifying opportunities to improve efficiency and reduce costs.
Nice To Haves
- A bachelor's degree in Engineering, Facilities Management, or a related field is preferred.
Responsibilities
- Own the preventative maintenance strategy for the production facility, ensuring equipment and building systems operate safely, reliably, and efficiently.
- Lead, coach, and develop the maintenance team while managing external contractors and vendors to deliver high-quality work on time and within budget.
- Build and continuously improve preventative maintenance programs, inspection routines, and documentation to minimize downtime and extend equipment life.
- Oversee maintenance and repair of facility infrastructure and manufacturing equipment, including refrigeration systems, conveyors, processing equipment, automated assembly equipment, and building utilities.
- Partner closely with Quality Assurance and Food Safety to ensure all maintenance activities meet regulatory and food safety requirements.
- Manage the facility maintenance budget, balancing cost efficiency with operational reliability and long-term capital planning.
- Develop meaningful performance metrics and use data to identify opportunities for continuous improvement.
- Administer the facility's on-call program and provide leadership during after-hours maintenance issues and operational emergencies.
- Collaborate cross-functionally with Operations, IT, Engineering, and plant leadership to support business continuity and facility improvement initiatives.
Benefits
- Medical, dental, and vision insurance (multiple plans available)
- 401(k) with immediate employer match vesting
- Paid time off (including vacation, sick leave, and holidays)
- Paid sabbatical after 5 years of service
- Employee discounts
- Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
- Daily Farmer's Fridge meal and office snacks
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Manager
