Production Manager

Vantage Specialty Chemicals • Gurnee, IL

95d • $112,000 - $168,000

About The Position

Join Vantage Specialty Chemicals as the Gurnee Production Manager and lead our production team to ensure safe, compliant, reliable and efficient operations. Drive excellence in production, quality, process troubleshooting and operations excellence, and contribute to our success in the chemical manufacturing industry. This is an in-office position that works out of the Gurnee, IL manufacturing site. Reporting to the Site Leader, the Production Manager sits on the Site Leadership team. Direct Reports include one assistant production manager, five production supervisors, 65 production operators and a training coordinator. The Gurnee site is a 24/7 batch chemical manufacturing operation, operating 19 reactors, 21 mixing vessels and 90 storage tanks. Primary chemistries include ethoxylation and esterification producing surfactants, emulsifiers and surface release agents serving industrial, foods and personal care industries.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in chemical manufacturing or equivalent industries.
• Proven experience with batch reactors, mixers, agitators, pumps, compressors, heat exchangers, distillation columns, filters & centrifuges, storage tanks, conveyors, and dryers.
• In-depth knowledge of continuous or batch chemical manufacturing.
• Familiarity with ethoxylation or esterification manufacturing is a significant benefit.
• Strong ability to analyze data, identify trends, and make data-driven decisions.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to motivate and guide a diverse team.
• Exceptional problem-solving skills.
• High level of attention to detail.

Responsibilities

• Maintain a culture of collaboration and ‘care’ within the production team and across departments.
• Ensure a proactive and professional culture within the production team to drive positive morale, engagement and ownership.
• Ensure the production team executes the site production plan as set by site production planning team.
• Ensure procedures and recipes are executed flawlessly to ensure right first time production.
• Ensure production team competency and training program remains current and production operators remain current within the program.
• Ensure new SOP’s are developed in alignment with MOC process and production operators are training on new procedures and periodically refreshed on existing procedure.
• Ensure the production teams operates at a high degree of proficiency with respect to execution of critical life safety procedures.
• Ensure housekeeping is maintained to a high standard within the manufacturing areas.
• Drive a culture of pride in the manufacturing area ensuring housekeeping is maintained.
• Ensure all compliance related production tasks are executed as required by state and federal regulators.
• Drive a culture of learning and process optimization.

Benefits

• Medical, HSA, dental, vision
• FSA (limited purpose, dependent care, and commuter/parking)
• Life and AD&D insurance
• Accident, hospital indemnity and critical illness insurance
• Short- and long-term disability
• EAP, identity theft protection
• Paid time off
• Parental Leave
• 401(k) with company match

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Education Level: Bachelor's degree