Special Projects Project Leader

ANDRITZ AG•Canton Township, MI

About The Position

The Special Projects Project Leader serves as the primary project contact for customers and coordinates Sales, Engineering, Purchasing, Manufacturing, Logistics, Field Service, Accounting, suppliers, subcontractors, and affiliates. The role establishes and maintains the approved project scope, schedule, budget, cost forecast, risk and opportunity register, change-management process, and project documentation. It proactively identifies and escalates risks affecting customer commitments, project margin, cash flow, quality, safety, and contractual performance, and drives corrective actions through resolution. The Project Leader supports projects from RFQ review and Sales handover through planning, procurement, installation, customer buy-off, and closeout. Responsibilities include managing project timing and expenditure, monitoring forecasts, addressing scope changes, coordinating site and field-service activities, maintaining records, and ensuring required documentation and training are handed over. The role reports to the Head of Project Management and works closely with internal teams, customers, suppliers, and affiliates. Domestic and international travel and work at customer installation sites are required as project needs dictate.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in Project Management, Engineering, or a related discipline.
At least 5 years of related experience.
Experience with corporate business operations software.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office, including Excel, Outlook, Microsoft Project, and PowerPoint.
Ability to manage conflicting priorities and challenging situations across customers, suppliers, affiliates, and internal teams; facilitate discussions; resolve conflicts professionally; lead negotiations; and deliver highly technical presentations while protecting project objectives and customer relationships.
Strong analytical aptitude.
Strong time-management and organizational skills.
Ability to multitask and work in a dynamic business environment, with adaptability to change.
Self-motivated and results-oriented, with the ability to use judgment and make decisions independently.
Availability to travel domestically and internationally and work at customer installation sites as project needs require.
Visa holders and individuals for whom English is a second language must take the TOEFL exam and score above the passing grade.

Nice To Haves

SAP knowledge.
Experience managing large capital equipment projects in the metal forming industry, preferably involving press systems.
PMP, PgMP, CAPM, or comparable project management certifications.
German language skills.

Responsibilities

Participate in project RFQ reviews and provide input to project estimating as required.
Attend project kickoff meetings and ensure all relevant information is handed over from Sales to project management.
Distribute customer specifications, standards, buy-off protocols, and supporting documentation to team members.
Create and maintain the project timing plan in Microsoft Project.
Establish the project budget plan and manage expenditure within agreed item values.
Report budget and timing, actuals, and forecasts to completion; identify risks promptly and escalate potential margin erosion, unapproved scope, schedule exposure, overdue customer decisions, and contractual risks.
Define mitigation actions, owners, and target dates, and escalate material risks through the applicable management process.
Coordinate with Sales, Engineering, Legal, and Finance to identify scope changes, develop technical and commercial bases for change requests, negotiate with customers, obtain internal approvals, and incorporate authorized changes into purchase orders and the project baseline.
Ensure change requests are documented, commercially evaluated, approved, and incorporated into the customer purchase order before execution whenever practicable.
Write specifications for third-party services or scope of supply with input from Engineering.
Review supplier quotations against specifications and recommend supplier selections.
Arrange and manage project review meetings, buy-off meetings, site visits, and other meetings with project teams, customers, suppliers, and affiliates.
Take meeting minutes, maintain open-issue lists, and follow up on actions through resolution.
Act as the single point of communication between the customer and the project team.
Distribute relevant and current information to interested parties and maintain issue control.
Provide manpower plans and regular updates to the SIC field service coordinator, coordinating additional manpower with affiliates and subcontractors as needed.
Coordinate site setup, delivery, and installation start with the customer, Schuler site manager, and Logistics department.
Ensure project activities comply with applicable EHS and company requirements, coordinating with Site Management and the customer to resolve safety, quality, site-access, installation-readiness, nonconformity, and customer complaint issues.
Attend sites regularly to monitor progress, support the Schuler site manager, and follow up on open issues.
Create requisitions for materials and services needed during site or installation phases.
Follow up on material arrivals and manage requests to send parts to customer sites.
Review and approve vendor invoices and back-charges to affiliates.
Manage the buy-off process and obtain customer sign-off.
Follow up with Accounting on invoices to be issued to customers and affiliates.
Create and maintain a punch list and close open items in a timely manner.
Ensure training, documentation, spare-parts lists, warranty details, and other materials are complete and handed over to SIC Service.
Maintain a complete, current project record in designated company systems, including contract documents, approved scope, project baseline, purchase orders, change orders, meeting records, customer approvals, forecasts, acceptance records, and closeout documentation.
Conduct a TGR/TGW review at project conclusion and capture lessons learned.
Perform other duties as required or assigned that are reasonably within the scope of the job classification.