Factory Manager

We are looking for an experienced and hands-on Factory Manager to lead the end-to-end operations of a large-scale Industrial / Central Kitchen facility.

The ideal candidate will have strong experience in high-volume food production, industrial kitchen operations, machinery handling, manpower management, production planning, quality control, food safety, cost management, and facility operations.

Candidates with experience in large institutional catering companies, central kitchens, QSR production facilities, or similar large-scale food service operations will be preferred.

Key Responsibilities

• Take complete ownership of the day-to-day operations of the Industrial / Central Kitchen facility.
• Plan, manage, and monitor large-scale food production in line with business requirements, production schedules, and dispatch timelines.
• Manage a large workforce comprising chefs, production staff, kitchen operators, helpers, housekeeping, utility, and support teams.
• Ensure optimum utilization of industrial kitchen machinery, production equipment, utilities, and infrastructure.
• Handle and supervise equipment such as combi ovens, steam kettles, tilting bratt pans, industrial fryers, mixers, grinders, food processors, blast chillers, cold rooms, vacuum packing/sealing machines, dishwashing systems, and other automated/semi-automated equipment.
• Ensure machinery is operated safely and efficiently and coordinate with Engineering/Maintenance teams for preventive maintenance, servicing, breakdowns, and equipment uptime.
• Develop daily, weekly, and monthly production plans and capacity utilization schedules.
• Monitor production output, productivity, yield, wastage, manpower efficiency, and overall operational performance.
• Implement and maintain SOPs, production processes, workflow standards, quality parameters, and operational controls.
• Ensure strict compliance with FSSAI, HACCP, GMP, food safety, hygiene, sanitation, occupational safety, and statutory requirements.
• Monitor raw material consumption, inventory levels, storage conditions, production yield, wastage, and material variance.
• Coordinate with Procurement and Stores teams to ensure timely availability of raw materials and packaging materials.
• Ensure proper functioning of cold storage, refrigeration, utilities, drainage, water systems, waste management, and other facility infrastructure.
• Drive initiatives for cost optimization, productivity improvement, process automation, mechanization, and reduction of operational wastage.
• Establish and monitor production KPIs and prepare regular MIS and operational reports for senior management.
• Conduct regular audits of production areas, equipment, hygiene, safety, quality, and operational processes.
• Coordinate with Quality, HR, Procurement, Finance, Engineering, Stores, and Operations teams for smooth functioning of the facility.
• Handle operational escalations and ensure timely resolution of production, manpower, machinery, quality, and service-related issues.
• Support new product trials, process development, recipe standardization, capacity expansion, and scale-up activities.
• Ensure adherence to labour productivity, shift planning, attendance, discipline, and manpower deployment requirements.
• Build a culture of safety, accountability, productivity, quality, and continuous improvement within the facility.

Candidate Requirements

• 10–15+ years of experience in large-scale industrial kitchens, central kitchens, institutional catering, food production, QSR manufacturing/production, or large food-service operations.
• Experience managing a large-scale food production facility with significant manpower and production volumes.
• Strong hands-on understanding of industrial kitchen machinery and large-scale food production equipment.
• Proven experience in production planning, capacity management, manpower planning, inventory control, yield management, and wastage reduction.
• Strong understanding of food safety, HACCP, GMP, FSSAI, hygiene, sanitation, and quality management systems.
• Experience in managing multiple shifts and large production teams.
• Strong understanding of preventive maintenance and machinery uptime, with the ability to coordinate effectively with Engineering/Maintenance teams.
• Strong analytical, operational, leadership, and problem-solving skills.
• Proficiency in MS Excel and preparation of operational MIS/KPI reports.
• Ability to manage high-pressure, time-sensitive production environments.