Engineering Superintendent - Talent Pool

Company:
RCL Foods

Functions:
Engineering

Job Type Classification:
Permanent

Location - Town / City:
All Towns

Job Description:
RCL FOODS is a deeply rooted South African food manufacturer that produces some of the country’s most-loved brands: Yum Yum peanut butter, Nola mayonnaise, Ouma rusks, and Sellati sugar, just to name a few. At the heart of our culture and strategy is our Purpose – WE GROW WHAT MATTERS – which encapsulates our belief in collectively doing that little more to create a positive impact that matters. Our Talent Team is currently building a Talent Pool of candidates who would be interested in joining RCL FOODS in the future! We are currently seeking to build up a talent pipeline of Engineering Superintendent in Gauteng. The Purpose of the role: Managing and overseeing all engineering operations, maintenance, and continuous improvement initiatives within the manufacturing or production facility. This role ensures that all equipment, processes, and systems are operating efficiently and safely while meeting production targets. The Engineering Superintendent plays a critical leadership role, coordinating between engineering teams, production, and other departments to ensure smooth operations and compliance with industry standards and regulations.

Minimum Requirements:
Education and Qualification Bachelor’s degree in Engineering (Mechanical, Electrical, Industrial, etc.) Advanced qualifications or certifications in FMCG operations or maintenance management are a plus Experience and Training Minimum of 7-10 years of experience in engineering roles within the FMCG sector, with at least 3-5 years in a supervisory or leadership position. Knowledge and Skill Skills/Characteristics Attention to detail Logical Solutions driven Technical minded People management Initiative Efficiency Strong understanding of FMCG production environments, including packaging, processing, and food safety requirements (HACCP, GMP). Proficiency in engineering systems, automation, and PLCs. Experience with maintenance software and Lean/Six Sigma/WCM methodologies is advantageous. Demonstrated experience in managing engineering projects, including budget, time, and resource management. Problem-Solving Excellent analytical skills with a focus on troubleshooting, root cause analysis, and developing long-term solutions. Customer Relationships Internal External Leadership / Supervision Leads a team of artisans and assistants - between 20 – 24 staff. Competencies Proven ability to lead and motivate technical teams in a fast-paced production environment. Communication Strong verbal and written communication skills for effective collaboration with cross-functional teams and stakeholders. Effective Teamwork & Self-Management Take ownership and accountability for tasks and activities and demonstrates effective self-management in terms of planning and prioritising, and self- development. Follow through to ensure that quality and productivity standards of work are consistently and accurately maintained. Inform relevant parties in the event of tasks or deadlines not met, the potential risks thereof and provide appropriate resolution. Support and drive the business core values. Manage colleagues and client’s expectations and communicate appropriately. Demonstrate willingness to help others and “go the extra mile” to meet team targets and objectives. Champions training and development of self and others through utilising available training opportunities or contributing to the development of new training solutions relating to product costing in collaboration with national training specialists. Participate and drive in regular performance appraisals and ensure that own targets and goals are clear and achievable. Maintain a basic appreciation and awareness of employee relations climate and ensure corrective action is taken where required in line with relevant legislation and company policy. Compliance and Reporting: Ensure engineering operations comply with industry-specific regulations (e.g., food safety standards) and local legal requirements. Prepare and present reports on equipment performance, maintenance activities, and project progress to senior management.

Duties & Responsibilities:
Team Leadership: Lead and manage a team of engineers, maintenance personnel, and technical staff. Train, mentor, and develop the technical skills of the team. Assign tasks and ensure that the engineering team delivers on their objectives in line with production needs. Management of the Engineering team with regards to HR and IR issues. Management of the day to day activities and out puts of all team members across 3 shifts. Train and mentor his/her team to improve performance and reduce down time. Utilize skills matrix to assess capability gaps within the maintenance team and to develop a training plan in conjunction with HR development specialist to address skills gaps. Be available on call out and work on weekends or when necessary to ensure optimal performance of team and effective maintenance of equipment. Organises daily meetings with engineering staff and prepares inspection reports. Manages the maintenance staff in terms to facilitate attainment of KPI’s, and monitor performance of individuals in attaining KPI’s and institutes corrective action if necessary. Drives company culture and morale within the team. Partners with HR to recruit the staff who are technically capable and fit in with company culture to ensure that engineering team have the correct resources to maintain the facility. Supports and advises engineering staff and operators on the execution of their tasks. Plan and manage leave roster and register. Performs work inspections and checks for completeness of tasks and compliance with legislative, SHEQ and in-house maintenance procedures. Maintain discipline and standards in area of responsibility. Process Optimization: Identify opportunities for improving plant operations, equipment efficiency, and energy usage to drive cost savings and enhance production capabilities. Lead engineering initiatives focused on continuous improvement, Lean Manufacturing, and Six Sigma methodologies. Collaborate with production teams to optimize production line performance. Project Management: Manage capital projects, including the installation of new machinery, equipment upgrades, and plant expansions. Develop project schedules, allocate resources, and monitor progress to ensure that projects are completed on time and within budget. Work closely with contractors, vendors, and external stakeholders to ensure project goals are met. Budgets and Cost Control Develop and manage the engineering and maintenance department’s budget. Monitor and control costs related to equipment repairs, energy consumption, spare parts, and capital projects. Recommend cost-saving measures without compromising on safety or performance. Management of the maintenance spend against budget through daily review of budget vs. actual financial reports. Provide input to the Plant Engineer to co-create and commit to an appropriate an engineering budget during the annual budgeting process. Authorise stores requisitions and provide initial sign off of invoices prior to submission to plant engineer. Work with the Plant engineer and planner to ensure accurate reporting. Co-ordinate and sign off on the electricians’ submission of all required documentation to the engineering planner for inclusion in engineering information systems. (On-key). Ensures that engineering staff, keep time cards and other routine records. Organises meetings with engineering staff, prepares inspection reports and action the non-conformances. Ensure that all maintenance Certificate of Compliance issued and action according to the scheduled plan and that action and task lists are recorded by the planner. Planned Maintenance Utilise skill matrix to assess the applicability of assignments based on individual skill sets. Planning and management of all planned maintenance, preventative schedules, work requests, in conjunction with the inputs received from the asset care planner. Determines material, equipment, and supplies to be used and ensure that these are ordered and available at the work site, in conjunction with the input of the asset care planner. Plan and manage weekend mechanical maintenance tasks and projects, based on the priority listing from the asset care plan. Uses planned maintenance schedules to co-ordinates daily activities of artisans, machine operators and assistants. Ensures the neatness of the workshop. Develops a daily work schedule for all activities to be performed to ensure the smooth operation of the maintenance team, minimise downtime and overtime taking food safety imperatives into consideration. Supervises and assigns maintenance work to contractors on a daily basis, ensuring clear allocation of responsibility and accountability. Control daily job cards, by issuing to employees, receive back completed ones and verify work is done satisfactorily. Project Management Gives input to the Plant and Project Engineer on the feasibility of projects by analysing technology, resources needs and market demands to ensure that project is feasible. Works with the Project Engineer to ensure that the requirements of internal customers are met and to prepare accurate project specification for implementation of projects. Ensure necessary manpower is available to smoothly implement projects on time and within the agreed budget. Repairs and Renovations Coordinates renovations of existing equipment and the construction of new facilities Coordinates and inspects major contract work in area of responsibility. Stock Control Controls the distribution of equipment and supplies amongst artisans. Ensure that non stock items are sourced and ordered according to BOP’s and RPM. Assist on Bi-annual basis to verify the correctness of engineering stock levels and advise on correction where needed. Management of Safety Health Environment and Quality (SHEQ) Ensure engineering solutions align with quality control standards in the FMCG sector. Support production by ensuring that all equipment and processes are optimized to meet product quality specifications. Ensure all engineering activities comply with local, national, and industry-specific safety and environmental regulations. Implement and enforce safety standards to create a safe working environment for all personnel. Conduct safety audits, risk assessments, and investigations into accidents or incidents to prevent future occurrences. Guides team to ensure that all legislative standards are achieved and in time and action is taken where required to ensure that there are no areas of noncompliance). Responsible for health and safety with regards to all equipment to ensure a safe environment to operate and work on for all staff. Follows up on requirements for compliance ensuring that it is continuously maintained and adhered to. Measure and manage sustainability practices within area of responsibility. Maintain and implement Food safety standards.