Deputy General Manager

Job Description

Position: DGM Cell Process Engineering
Business Unit: Lithium-Ion Cell Manufacturing
Location: Rola, Valsad, Gujarat
Reporting To: GM / Head – Cell Manufacturing
Experience: 15–22 years
Employment Type: Full-time

Role Purpose

We are looking for an experienced DGM – Cell Process Engineering to lead process development, industrialization, commissioning, stabilization, and continuous improvement for lithium-ion cell manufacturing at our facility in Rola, Valsad, Gujarat.

The role will be responsible for establishing robust and scalable manufacturing processes across electrode manufacturing, cell assembly, formation, aging, grading, and end-of-line testing.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead process engineering activities for lithium-ion cell manufacturing from pilot stage through mass production.
• Develop and standardize processes for slurry preparation, coating, drying, calendering, slitting, stacking or winding, welding, electrolyte filling, sealing, formation, aging, grading, and testing.
• Lead process readiness for new production lines, including equipment trials, commissioning, validation, and production ramp-up.
• Define process parameters, process windows, equipment requirements, cycle times, capacity, and manpower requirements.
• Drive improvement in cell yield, OEE, throughput, cycle time, scrap, rework, energy consumption, and process capability.
• Develop and implement PFMEA, control plans, SOPs, work instructions, process specifications, and reaction plans.
• Establish critical-to-quality parameters and implement SPC, MSA, capability studies, and process-control systems.
• Lead root-cause analysis for defects such as coating variation, electrode misalignment, welding defects, leakage, contamination, low capacity, high resistance, and formation abnormalities.
• Work closely with equipment, production, quality, maintenance, R&D, EHS, supply chain, and technology teams.
• Support FAT, SAT, equipment qualification, process validation, line balancing, and handover to production.
• Drive implementation of MES, SCADA, PLC, machine vision, traceability, and real-time process-monitoring systems.
• Develop dashboards for yield, OEE, downtime, defects, process capability, and production performance.
• Lead, mentor, and develop process managers, engineers, and technical specialists.
• Ensure compliance with safety, quality, cleanroom, dry-room, humidity-control, and contamination-control requirements.
• Coordinate with internal and external stakeholders during plant commissioning and manufacturing ramp-up.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Chemical, Mechanical, Electrical, Electronics, Industrial, Materials, Production, or a related engineering discipline.
• Master’s degree in Process Engineering, Manufacturing, Materials Science, Electrochemistry, or a related field will be preferred.
• Certification in Lean Six Sigma, TPM, project management, or continuous improvement will be an advantage.

Experience

• 15–22 years of total experience in manufacturing, process engineering, industrialization, or operations.
• Minimum 8–10 years of experience in lithium-ion cell manufacturing or a closely related advanced-manufacturing environment.
• Strong experience in electrode manufacturing, cell assembly, formation, aging, grading, or end-of-line testing.
• Experience in greenfield plant setup, equipment commissioning, technology transfer, process validation, and production ramp-up.
• Experience managing multidisciplinary technical teams and equipment or technology suppliers.
• Experience in automotive battery, energy-storage, electrochemical, gigafactory, or high-volume manufacturing environments will be preferred.

Technical Skills

• Strong knowledge of lithium-ion cell manufacturing processes.
• Knowledge of electrode mixing, coating, drying, calendering, slitting, stacking, winding, welding, electrolyte filling, sealing, formation, aging, and grading.
• Knowledge of process validation, DOE, SPC, MSA, PFMEA, control plans, 8D, DMAIC, and structured problem-solving.
• Experience in OEE, yield improvement, line balancing, takt time, capacity planning, and bottleneck analysis.
• Knowledge of MES, SCADA, PLC, automation, machine vision, traceability, and production-data systems.
• Working knowledge of Excel, Power BI, Minitab, or similar data-analysis tools.
• Understanding of dry-room, cleanroom, EHS, chemical handling, and contamination-control requirements.

Key Performance Indicators

• Cell manufacturing yield.
• Electrode, assembly, and formation yield.
• Overall equipment effectiveness.
• Line throughput and cycle time.
• Scrap, rejection, and rework percentage.
• Process capability Cp/CpkC_p/C_{pk}Cp/Cpk.
• Equipment downtime and line availability.
• Production ramp-up against project milestones.
• Energy consumption per cell or per Ah.
• Completion of process-validation activities.
• Reduction in recurring process defects.
• Compliance with safety and quality standards.

Preferred Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate should have hands-on experience in lithium-ion cell manufacturing, rather than only battery-pack or module assembly. Experience in establishing or stabilizing a new cell manufacturing line, working with equipment suppliers, and managing cross-functional teams will be highly desirable.

Work Location: Rola, Valsad, Gujarat.