About this role
Our company culture is built upon YKK’s philosophy called the CYCLE OF GOODNESS™. We believe that providing value and being fair to our customers and our employees is what makes us a successful company in return. Guided by our core values and fundamental behaviors, we strive to foster a caring company, committed employees and challenging work that benefits our employees, customers, and communities. We offer competitive compensation packages, training and advancement opportunities. YKK AP America provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package designed to provide the security they need to enjoy life at home and at work. By providing a high level of benefit coverage at a reasonable cost to the employee, we hope to foster a long and productive employment relationship.
Summary:
The Technical Manager – Melt Cast is responsible for leading and coordinating technical activities for Cast House 1 and Cast House 2, including equipment and process reliability, outage and shutdown planning, preventive maintenance coordination, contractor management, technical documentation, troubleshooting, and employee technical training.
This role serves as a key technical resource for Melt Cast operations and partners closely with Operations and Maintenance to ensure safe, reliable, and efficient equipment and process performance.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities include the following. Other duties may be assigned.
Technical Operations & Equipment Reliability
- Lead and coordinate technical activities for Cast House 1 and Cast House 2.
- Maintain current equipment records and ensure appropriate preventive maintenance is performed in coordination with Maintenance.
- Coordinate with Maintenance and Spare Parts Inventory in planning preventive maintenance activities and equipment needs.
- Schedule Maintenance work for planned shutdowns, outages, and preventive maintenance (PM) activities.
- Coordinate daily and weekly maintenance work-planning activities.
- Track equipment performance and identify opportunities to improve reliability and reduce downtime.
- Provide technical troubleshooting support for equipment and process issues.
- Read and interpret equipment manuals, P&IDs, and other technical documentation.
- Manage process-control changes and ensure equipment records and process documentation are updated appropriately.
- Provide on-call technical support for equipment issues as needed.
- Coordinate contractors supporting technical, maintenance, and outage activities.
Training & Technical Development
- Train Cast House employees on Cast House procedures.
- Provide technical training on equipment operation, troubleshooting practices, and applicable technical standards.
- Work off shift to provide technical training and operational support, as needed.
- Develop and coordinate technical training to strengthen employee knowledge, equipment capability, and process consistency.
- Identify technical skill gaps and establish training priorities in partnership with department leadership.
- Reinforce proper procedures and technical standards through coaching, observation, and hands-on instruction.
Planning, Reporting & Continuous Improvement
- Maintain and update daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly technical and maintenance reports as required.
- Track and report equipment performance, downtime, preventive maintenance activity, and other department metrics.
- Identify opportunities to improve equipment reliability, processes, maintenance practices, safety, quality, and productivity.
- Recommend technical and operational improvements based on equipment and process performance.
- Support continuous improvement and corrective-action initiatives related to Melt Cast equipment and processes.
- Ensure technical records and department documentation are accurate and current.
Safety, Quality & Compliance
- Comply with company policies and applicable quality, safety, environmental, regulatory, and industry standards.
- Promote safe work practices throughout Melt Cast operations.
- Ensure technical, maintenance, shutdown, and contractor activities comply with established safety requirements.
- Perform physical audits of equipment and operating areas as needed.
- Support investigation and resolution of equipment, process, quality, and safety issues.
- Maintain a strong focus on safe equipment operation and process reliability.
Leadership & Cross-Functional Support
- Serve as a primary technical resource for Melt Cast employees, supervisors, and department leadership.
- Provide technical guidance, coaching, and support to Cast House employees.
- Partner with Operations, Maintenance, Engineering, Safety, Quality, and other support functions.
- Communicate technical priorities, equipment needs, and operational concerns to appropriate stakeholders.
- Cover for the Melt Cast Manager as needed.
- Support department leadership during shutdowns, outages, equipment failures, and significant operational events.
- Promote accountability, teamwork, knowledge sharing, and continuous learning.
Qualifications & Experience - Preferred
- High school diploma or GED required.
- Technical education or related post-secondary training preferred.
- Minimum ten (10) years of Melt Cast experience, or an equivalent combination of relevant education and experience.
- Extensive knowledge of Melt Cast equipment, processes, operating conditions, and performance requirements.
- Strong Cast House troubleshooting and root-cause problem-solving capability.
- Experience coordinating preventive maintenance, shutdowns, outages, contractors, and technical work in a manufacturing environment.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word.
- Working knowledge of Google products, BPCS, ADC Live systems, or comparable manufacturing systems.
Key Competencies
- Strong technical leadership skills.
- Strong equipment and process troubleshooting skills.
- Strong planning and organizational skills.
- Strong equipment-reliability focus.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to effectively train employees across multiple shifts.
- Ability to translate technical requirements into practical operating procedures and training.
- Strong analytical and root-cause problem-solving skills.
- High level of safety awareness and accountability.
- Ability to prioritize multiple technical and maintenance activities in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
- Ability to build collaborative relationships across Operations, Maintenance, and other support functions.
Certificates and Licenses
- None required.
Physical Demands
- Ability to lift and/or move up to 50 pounds using proper lifting techniques.
- Frequent standing and walking throughout the manufacturing facility.
- Occasional sitting, climbing, balancing, stooping, kneeling, crouching, or crawling.
- Frequent use of hands and arms to handle, feel, and reach.
- Ability to inspect equipment in production, utility, and facility areas.
- Vision abilities include close, distance, peripheral vision and focus adjustment.
Work Environment
- Manufacturing environment with exposure to moving mechanical parts and operating production equipment.
- Exposure to elevated noise levels.
- Exposure to heat and humidity.
- Exposure to airborne particles and industrial chemicals.
- Occasional exposure to outdoor weather conditions.
- Occasional exposure to vibration.
- Required use of appropriate PPE when entering designated production areas.
- Required compliance with all company safety, environmental, and operating requirements.
Travel
- Approximately 5% travel as needed.
Recruiter Contact:
SAM MCCRORY
YKK AP America Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to an inclusive workforce. YKK AP America Inc. will not discriminate or retaliate against applicants who inquire about, disclose, or discuss their compensation or that of other applicants. YKK AP America Inc. participates in the E-Verify program as required by law. Learn more about the E-Verify program (Opens in a new window) .
YKK AP America Inc. is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to job applicants with physical or mental disabilities. Applicants with a disability who require a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process can follow the process outlined below when applying for a position: Provide your name and contact information to YKK AP America Inc.'s Accommodations team at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]). Your request will be responded to as soon as possible. Reasonable accommodations will be determined on a case-by-case basis in compliance with federal and state law.
Employment with YKK AP America Inc. is conditioned upon successfully completing a criminal background check and a negative drug test consistent with state and federal law.
For candidates applying for positions in the state of California
YKK AP America Inc. will consider qualified applicants with a criminal history pursuant to the California Fair Chance Act , San Diego County Fair Chance Ordinance , San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance , City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance , and any other state of federal law as required. You do not need to disclose your criminal history or participate in a criminal background check until a conditional job offer is made to you. After making a conditional offer and running a criminal background check, if YKK AP America Inc. is concerned about conviction that is directly related to the job, you will be given the chance to explain the circumstances surrounding the conviction, provide mitigating evidence, or challenge the accuracy of the background report.
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YKK AP America Inc. does not ask for personal or financial information during telephone, in-person, or video interviews, nor do we charge job seekers any fees as part of the recruitment process.
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