PRODUCTION MANAGER
FABRICATION & WELDING – MANUFACTURING
Salary: Competitive, dependent on experience
Location: Dukinfield, Greater Manchester
Job Type: Full-time, Permanent
ABOUT WORLD HEAT CYLINDERS
World Heat Cylinders is a fast-growing UK manufacturer of stainless steel hot water cylinders and engineered hot water storage solutions.
Operating from two sites in Dukinfield, we manufacture unvented cylinders, calorifiers, buffer vessels, volumisers, thermal stores and high-volume pre-plumbed assemblies for leading heat-pump manufacturers and other heating-sector customers.
Our operations include stainless steel fabrication and welding, plumbing, wiring, insulation, testing, finishing, packaging and logistics. As an ISO 9001 certified manufacturer supplying major OEM customers, safety, quality, traceability and reliable delivery are central to everything we do.
ABOUT THE ROLE
Due to continued growth and significant new OEM production programmes, we are looking for an experienced Production Manager to take full operational responsibility for Site 2.
This is a senior, hands-on leadership role with accountability for safety, people, production, quality, materials, maintenance, site standards and delivery performance.
You will lead Site 2 through a substantial increase in the production of high-volume pre-plumbed heat-pump products. This will involve capacity and workforce planning, recruitment, supervisor development, shift planning, training, line balancing and implementing effective production controls.
You will work closely with Site 1 and the Planning, Purchasing, Engineering, Quality, Maintenance, Stores, Logistics and HR teams to increase output without compromising existing customer commitments, safety, quality, testing or traceability.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Site Leadership
- Take full day-to-day operational responsibility for Site 2.
- Provide visible, hands-on leadership across production, assembly, testing and stores.
- Lead and develop supervisors, team leaders, operatives and support personnel.
- Establish clear standards, responsibilities and accountability throughout the site.
- Hold structured production meetings covering safety, people, quality, output, materials, downtime and delivery risks.
- Resolve operational problems promptly and escalate significant risks with clear facts and proposed actions.
- Maintain a positive but disciplined culture based on safety, quality, teamwork and continuous improvement.
Production Planning and Delivery
- Convert customer forecasts and orders into realistic production plans.
- Plan labour, shifts, equipment, materials and testing capacity to meet growing production volumes.
- Set and monitor daily, weekly and monthly output targets.
- Balance work across fabrication, assembly, plumbing, wiring, testing, finishing and packing.
- Control work in progress and take corrective action when production falls behind plan.
- Work with Planning and Purchasing to identify capacity or material constraints before they affect production.
- Coordinate Site 2 requirements with Site 1 and Logistics to protect customer delivery commitments.
Workforce Management
- Determine the workforce and skills needed to achieve planned volumes.
- Work with HR on recruitment, induction and training.
- Maintain skills matrices and ensure employees are trained and signed off before working independently on critical processes.
- Reduce dependency on individual employees through effective cross-training.
- Plan shifts, overtime and labour allocation efficiently.
- Set clear performance expectations and address attendance, conduct, capability or performance concerns consistently.
- Coach supervisors to take genuine responsibility for their people, output, quality and standards.
Manufacturing, Quality and Traceability
- Ensure products are manufactured using the correct drawings, bills of materials, work instructions and customer specifications.
- Maintain clear production routes and quality controls for each product family.
- Control product variants, engineering changes, rework and any approved deviations.
- Prevent unauthorised substitutions or modifications from entering production.
- Ensure all required pressure, leak, electrical, functional and visual tests are completed and recorded.
- Maintain accurate serial-number, component and product traceability.
- Prevent products from being packed or released until all production and testing requirements are complete.
- Monitor defects, rework, scrap, test failures and customer complaints.
- Work with Quality and Engineering to investigate root causes and prevent recurrence.
- Support new products from pilot manufacture through to stable volume production.
- Maintain compliance with ISO 9001 procedures and customer-specific requirements.
Health and Safety
- Act as the senior operational leader for health and safety within Site 2.
- Ensure suitable risk assessments, safe systems of work and training are in place.
- Maintain effective controls for welding, fabrication, machinery, manual handling, pressure testing, electrical work, chemicals, lifting equipment and workplace transport.
- Complete regular inspections and ensure corrective actions are closed promptly.
- Investigate accidents, near misses and unsafe conditions.
- Stop unsafe work immediately and ensure production pressure never overrides safety.
- Maintain high standards of housekeeping, storage and workplace organisation.
Materials, Maintenance and Equipment
- Work with Purchasing, Planning and Stores to ensure materials are available before production begins.
- Maintain effective goods receipt, storage, stock control, picking and line-feeding processes.
- Protect high-value and customer-specific components from damage, loss or incorrect use.
- Plan suitable storage for raw materials, work in progress and finished products.
- Ensure equipment, tooling, jigs and test equipment remain safe, maintained and available.
- Work with Maintenance to reduce breakdowns and unplanned downtime.
- Identify future requirements for equipment, tooling, workstations, storage or automation.
- Prepare clear business cases for capital expenditure and production improvements.
- Ensure measuring and testing equipment is correctly calibrated.
Continuous Improvement and Cost Control
- Establish production standards and expected labour hours for key products.
- Measure performance and investigate significant differences from plan.
- Improve line balance, workplace layout, material flow and production sequencing.
- Reduce waiting time, wasted movement, rework, scrap and unnecessary handling.
- Lead practical continuous-improvement projects with measurable results.
- Monitor labour, overtime, consumables, scrap and other controllable costs.
- Manage the Site 2 operational budget and forecast future resource requirements.
- Ensure cost reductions never compromise safety, quality or customer requirements.
KEY PERFORMANCE MEASURES
You will be accountable for:
- Health and safety performance.
- Output against plan and on-time delivery.
- Labour efficiency and production cost.
- Quality, first-time pass rate, defects, rework and scrap.
- Testing performance and product traceability.
- Equipment availability and downtime.
- Material shortages, stock accuracy and work-in-progress levels.
- Customer complaints and warranty issues.
- Employee attendance, retention, training and development.
- Housekeeping and completion of improvement actions.
SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
Essential
- Proven experience as a Production, Manufacturing, Operations or Site Manager within a demanding manufacturing environment.
- Experience managing a complete site or substantial multi-department production operation.
- Strong experience in fabrication, welding, metal manufacturing, mechanical or electromechanical assembly, or another engineered-product environment.
- Experience leading supervisors, team leaders and a substantial production workforce.
- A successful record of increasing production capacity and output.
- Strong production-planning skills covering labour, materials, equipment and shifts.
- Experience working with drawings, bills of materials, manufacturing instructions and engineering changes.
- Strong knowledge of manufacturing quality, inspection, testing and traceability.
- Experience managing health and safety in an industrial environment.
- Confidence to stop production when safety, quality or specification requirements are not being met.
- Strong knowledge of production KPIs, ERP or MRP systems and continuous improvement.
- Strong people-management, communication and problem-solving skills.
- Competence using Microsoft Excel, Outlook and production-reporting systems.
Desirable
- Experience manufacturing stainless steel cylinders, pressure vessels, tanks or welded fabrications.
- Experience with plumbing, heating, HVAC, hydraulic or heat-pump products.
- Experience producing pre-plumbed assemblies containing mechanical, electrical and hydraulic components.
- Experience supplying high-volume products to major OEM customers.
- Knowledge of pressure, leak, electrical and functional testing.
- Experience with new product introduction and volume-manufacturing transfers.
- Knowledge of ISO 9001 quality-management systems.
- Engineering, manufacturing, Lean, Six Sigma, IOSH or NEBOSH qualifications.
WHAT WE OFFER
- Competitive salary, dependent on experience.
- Full responsibility for a growing manufacturing site.
- The opportunity to build the team, systems and culture needed for significant future growth.
- Direct involvement in major new OEM manufacturing programmes.
- Training, professional development and career progression.
- Employee Assistance Programme.
- Support from the company’s senior management and wider operational teams.
APPLY TODAY
This role would suit an experienced Production, Manufacturing, Operations or Site Manager who has successfully led complex manufacturing operations through significant growth.
We need someone who will be visible on the factory floor, develop supervisors, challenge poor standards and take full responsibility for safety, people, quality, output and delivery.
The successful candidate must be capable of building a disciplined manufacturing operation that consistently delivers demanding production volumes without compromising safety, quality or customer requirements.
Pay: £50,000.00-£55,000.00 per year
Work Location: In person
