Plant Manager

AEROFOAM USA LLC•Abbeville, SC

29d•Onsite

About The Position

Aerofoam USA, LLC is seeking a hands-on Plant Manager to lead its NBR rubber manufacturing operations in Abbeville, South Carolina. Reporting to the President and General Manager, the role is responsible for plant performance across production, staffing, safety, quality, maintenance, delivery, and cost. The Plant Manager will be a visible presence on the floor, work closely with supervisors and employees, and partner with leadership and support functions to strengthen operations. The position focuses on translating business strategy into daily execution, developing leaders, and building a culture of safety, accountability, quality, and continuous improvement. The Plant Manager will oversee manufacturing processes such as material preparation, mixing, kneading, milling, extrusion, and curing or foaming, as applicable. The role will establish production plans, staffing priorities, standard work, visual management, and shift handoffs; improve equipment reliability and quality; lead Lean and problem-solving efforts; and use operating data to address constraints and improve performance. Success will be measured through sustained improvements in safety, production, delivery, quality, equipment uptime, labor productivity, cost, employee development, and continuous-improvement results. This role offers the opportunity to shape the operating culture and systems of a growing manufacturing facility, develop supervisors and future plant leaders, establish scalable processes and performance routines, and influence capital, capacity, staffing, and operational priorities as the business grows. The position is full-time, based in Abbeville, South Carolina, with a day shift and negligible travel. The manager must be available to support all shifts, planned outages, and urgent plant needs.

Requirements

Bachelor of Science degree in engineering or a related field is required.
Preferably 5 or more years of experience with demonstrated success leading manufacturing operations and responsibility for production performance, safety, quality, maintenance, cost, and employee development.
Experience building effective teams, developing supervisors, and creating a culture of accountability and continuous improvement.
Technical knowledge of rubber, polymer, foam, plastics, or similar process manufacturing.
Track record of improving productivity, reducing scrap and downtime, strengthening quality, and meeting production commitments.
Experience leading Lean methods, root-cause analysis, standard work, visual management, and structured problem-solving.
Ability to interpret process data, production schedules, quality specifications, maintenance information, and operating costs.
Strong communication, coaching, planning, decision-making, and cross-functional collaboration skills in a cross-cultural, global team environment.
Practical, floor-oriented leadership style combined with strategic thinking and the ability to manage competing priorities.
Availability to support all shifts, planned outages, and urgent plant needs.
Relevant technical or business education, or an equivalent combination of education and practical experience.

Nice To Haves

Plant Manager experience preferred.
Direct NBR experience preferred.
Experience with mixing, kneading, milling, extrusion, curing, foaming, or related manufacturing processes preferred.
Experience with manufacturing ERP systems and proficiency with production reporting and performance metrics preferred.

Responsibilities

Lead daily manufacturing operations across production, staffing, safety, quality, maintenance, delivery, and cost performance.
Set priorities for supervisors and operating teams, establish accountability, and ensure consistent execution across all shifts.
Develop supervisors and high-potential employees through coaching, feedback, training, cross-training, and performance expectations.
Build a collaborative, high-performance culture grounded in trust, communication, ownership, and follow-through.
Partner with Quality, Maintenance, Engineering, Supply Chain, and leadership to resolve constraints and improve plant-wide performance.
Translate business objectives into operating plans, measurable goals, and timely action.
Lead manufacturing operations to meet customer, safety, quality, production, delivery, and cost objectives.
Maintain an active floor presence and engage employees in identifying problems and improving processes.
Oversee material preparation, mixing, kneading, milling, extrusion, and curing or foaming processes, as applicable.
Establish production plans, staffing priorities, standard work, visual management, and effective shift handoffs.
Strengthen safety performance through hazard identification, employee engagement, training, and corrective action.
Partner with Quality to prevent defects, improve process capability, identify root causes, and reduce scrap and rework.
Oversee maintenance, equipment reliability, preventive and corrective maintenance, downtime reduction, and overall equipment effectiveness.
Use production, quality, maintenance, and cost data to identify constraints, allocate resources, and track corrective actions.
Lead Lean initiatives, structured problem-solving, waste reduction, and operating cost improvement.
Improve workforce flexibility through cross-training, skills development, and succession planning.
Communicate plant results, risks, resource needs, and improvement plans to leadership, including owners, milestones, and deadlines.
Support all shifts, planned outages, and urgent plant needs.
Contribute to scalable processes, performance routines, improvement standards, and plant growth.