Lead Operator - Renewable Natural Gas

Waga Energy•Sacramento, CA

5d•$90,000 - $95,000•Remote

About The Position

Waga Energy is seeking a Lead Operator to oversee a group of landfill biogas to renewable natural gas plants (WAGABOXES®) located in Wheatland, CA, Vacaville, CA, Bakersfield, CA, and Eugene, OR. The ideal candidate will be centrally located in the Sacramento, CA area. This role involves working from home with extensive travel (approximately 50%) to the WAGABOX sites. Initial onboarding and training will require travel to Waga Energy's corporate office in Bala Cynwyd, PA, and a training site in New York. The Lead Operator supervises the safe, compliant, and efficient operations of assigned WAGABOX® units, providing hands-on support and acting as the primary liaison between the plants and the headquarters operations & maintenance team. Responsibilities include ensuring Plant Operators complete tasks safely and efficiently, serving as the main representative for assigned sites, escalating operational issues, coordinating maintenance, monitoring unit performance, identifying risks, reporting operational status, promoting a strong safety culture, and performing Plant Operator duties as needed. This includes overseeing daily operations, diagnosing and repairing equipment, performing preventive maintenance, managing site visitors, assisting with procurement, utilizing a CMMS, and participating in commissioning activities. The role also involves supervising Plant Operators by assisting with onboarding and training, coordinating workloads, managing schedules, optimizing processes, providing technical support, advocating for operators, and contributing to performance feedback.

Requirements

A minimum of 7 years of mechanical/electrical maintenance experience in a plant/industrial operations environment within the oil, gas, or chemical industry.
Related technical or vocational education/training. Additional years of experience will be considered in place of formal education/training.
Strong mechanical and electrical aptitude with the ability to troubleshoot and repair equipment.
Experience with industrial safety procedures and regulations including Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) and confined space entry.
Excellent written & verbal communication skills including the ability to effectively build and maintain internal and external relationships.
Experience with CMMS platforms and maintenance planning.
Ability to perform physical tasks associated with the role, including lifting, carrying, and working in varied environmental conditions.

Nice To Haves

Experience working in landfill gas, biogas, or natural gas processing is preferred.
Experience supervising field-based or remote site personnel is a plus.
Familiarity with gas treatment technologies, process systems, and/or compression systems.

Responsibilities

Ensuring Plant Operators complete all assigned operations & maintenance tasks in a safe, timely, effective manner in accordance with established policies and procedures while maintaining compliance with applicable regulatory requirements and maximizing production/up time.
Serving as the primary Waga Energy representative for assigned WAGABOX® sites both internally (within Waga Energy) and externally (i.e., landfill partners, contractors, vendors, suppliers, and other stakeholders).
Serving as the first point of escalation for operations & maintenance issues, troubleshooting support, and decision-making at the site level for assigned WAGABOX® sites.
Ensuring the proper coordination and execution of ongoing preventive maintenance and annual maintenance activities for assigned WAGABOX® units in accordance with established schedules, policies, and procedures including coordinating unit shutdowns and providing hands-on support as needed.
Monitoring the performance of assigned WAGABOX® units, identifying trends, and coordinating with the Operations & Maintenance Director to implement improvements to maximize production/up time and reliability.
Proactively identifying operations and maintenance related risks and coordinating with the Operations & Maintenance Director to implement mitigation strategies.
Communicating the operational status of assigned WAGABOX® units to the Operations & Maintenance Director via daily, weekly, and/or monthly reports.
Promoting, maintaining, and serving as a “champion” of a strong safety culture and a safety focused work environment to include implementing established site safety plans for all assigned sites and reporting any plan breach to the Operations & Maintenance Director.
Contributing to continuous improvement initiatives to enhance team performance, operational efficiency, and overall company success.
Performing the duties of a Plant Operator, as needed, to support site operations to include: Overseeing the daily operations of assigned WAGABOX® units (i.e., conducting daily maintenance rounds, completing daily checklists of monitoring items, etc.).
Diagnosing unit performance issues and performing corrective electrical, mechanical, and hydraulic maintenance tasks as well as other corrective maintenance tasks as needed.
Performing preventive maintenance activities based on established schedules (ex. oil, carbon, and sensor changes, etc.).
Serving as the on-site contact person for all site visitors (i.e., contractors, suppliers, vendors, etc.) and supporting visitors’ work activities as needed.
Assisting with the procurement of equipment, supplies, tools, etc. including coordinating with outside manufacturers, suppliers, vendors, etc.
Effectively utilizing a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) to track work activities.
Participating in unit pre-commissioning and commissioning activities.
Assisting with the onboarding and training of new Plant Operators for assigned WAGABOX® units.
Coordinating and monitoring Plant Operator workload and performance to include: Planning and assigning operations & maintenance activities based on operational priorities, individual expertise, and workload capacity.
Managing schedules to ensure continuous operator coverage across assigned sites (i.e., vacation coverage, etc.).
Optimizing operations and maintenance processes and procedures to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of Plant Operator work activities.
Providing Plant Operators with regular, ongoing technical & methodological support to ensure the achievement of established operational goals and objectives.
Advocating on behalf of Plant Operators to ensure they have the tools, resources, and support necessary to perform their duties safely and efficiently.
Collaborating with the Operations & Maintenance Director to support Plant Operator skill development and career growth.
Providing performance feedback to the Operations & Maintenance Director to support the annual performance evaluation and goal setting process.