Production Manager

About Our Client

The company operates in the food manufacturing sector with a facility located in Atlantis Industrial, Western Cape. The operations involve food processing where process safety, food quality standards, and yield control are central to production.

The Role: Production Manager

The purpose of the role is to oversee daily production operations, lead plant teams, and optimize output. Reporting to the Operations Manager, the position focuses on executing shift plans on time, maximizing yield, maintaining process safety and food quality standards, and using production management software to achieve operational excellence.

Key Responsibilities

• Apply a minimum of 5 years of production management experience within FMCG or manufacturing to lead daily plant operations.

• Confirm start-up readiness across staff, equipment, and lines to launch shift plans on time, managing line balancing, product changeovers, and bottlenecks.

• Track yield performance by batch and shift to maximize raw material recovery, investigating variances and correcting floor waste, rework, and giveaway.

• Validate line capacity, labor availability, and production sequences against raw material inputs prior to execution.

• Enforce standard operating procedures, issue shift instructions, and collaborate with Quality Assurance on floor checks and non-conformance management.

• Act as the business owner for production management software (Marel/Innova), ensuring data integrity across inputs, outputs, configuration, and inventory.

• Maintain product traceability from raw materials to finished goods while verifying batch details, labeling, tare settings, and Bill of Materials specifications.

• Lead, coach, and manage supervisors and shift teams regarding attendance, conduct, performance, safety, hygiene, and floor discipline.

About You

• Minimum 5 years of experience in a production management role within FMCG or manufacturing.

• Strong understanding of production planning, scheduling, Bill of Materials (BOMs), inventory control, HACCP, GMP, food safety, and traceability standards.

• Hands-on experience with production management systems, alongside high proficiency in Microsoft Office 365 (Excel, Word, Outlook, Teams, OneDrive).

• Proven leadership ability, analytical problem-solving skills, sound decision-making under pressure, and knowledge of labor relations.

• Flexibility to work outside core Monday to Friday hours (08h00 to 17h30) to meet operational requirements, including weekends and public holidays.

• Prior experience in the protein sector (such as fish, meat, or dairy) where yield control is critical is advantageous.

• Experience with Marel/Innova production management software is preferred.

• Relevant tertiary qualification in Production, Supply Chain, or Operations Management is advantageous.