Plant Manager

JOB DESCRIPTION

Plant Manager Paint & Coatings Application

Company: Aerotechshield Coatings Pvt. Ltd.
Location: Chakan, Pune, Maharashtra
Department: Plant Operations
Position: Plant Manager
Reporting To: Director / Management
Employment Type: Full-Time

1. Position Overview

We are looking for an experienced and hands-on Plant Manager to lead the day-to-day operations of our industrial paint and coatings application facility.

The Plant Manager will be responsible for ensuring safe, efficient, timely and profitable execution of coating jobs, from material receipt and surface preparation through coating application, curing, inspection and dispatch.

The role requires strong practical knowledge of industrial coating processes, abrasive blasting, surface preparation, paint application, Polyurea/PU/Epoxy/High-Build coatings and quality control, along with the ability to manage manpower, production planning, maintenance and customer requirements.

The Plant Manager will be expected to take complete ownership of plant performance and ensure that production commitments are achieved without compromising quality, safety or commercial discipline.

2. Key Responsibilities

A. Plant Operations & Production

• Manage complete day-to-day operations of the coating application plant.
• Plan and control production activities based on customer orders, priorities and delivery commitments.
• Prepare daily and weekly production plans and allocate manpower/equipment accordingly.
• Ensure jobs move smoothly through:
  
• Material receipt
• Surface preparation
• Abrasive blasting
• Cleaning
• Masking
• Primer application
• Intermediate/top-coat application
• Polyurea/PU application where applicable
• Curing/baking
• Inspection
• Packing and dispatch
• Monitor production output, cycle time, rework and equipment utilization.
• Ensure urgent customer requirements are handled without disturbing overall production planning.
• Identify bottlenecks and implement corrective actions.

B. Coating Process Management

The candidate should have practical understanding of industrial coating processes including:

• Abrasive blasting Sa 2 / Sa 2.5
• Surface profile measurement
• Solvent/chemical cleaning
• Masking and protection of critical areas
• Epoxy and polyurethane coating systems
• High-build coatings
• PTFE / fluoropolymer coatings
• Polyurea / PU coatings
• Zinc-rich primers
• Heat-cured coatings
• Multi-coat coating systems
• DFT measurement and control
• Adhesion testing
• Holiday/pinhole inspection where applicable
• Curing and overcoating requirements

Ensure coating application is carried out strictly as per approved technical specifications, TDS, customer requirements and agreed inspection criteria.

3. Quality Control & Process Compliance

• Ensure incoming materials are checked and properly stored.
• Verify paint/material batch numbers, shelf life, mixing ratios and application requirements.
• Ensure correct surface preparation before coating.
• Monitor environmental conditions including:
  Surface temperature
• Ambient temperature
• Relative humidity
• Dew point
• Ensure correct DFT at each stage.
• Monitor coating defects such as:
  Pinholes
• Sagging
• Runs
• Orange peel
• Dry spray
• Blistering
• Poor adhesion
• Uneven DFT
• Overspray
• Contamination
• Disbondment
• Control and reduce rework and rejection.
• Maintain complete production and inspection records.
• Coordinate with QA/QC personnel for customer inspections and documentation.
• Support preparation of inspection reports, coating reports, test certificates and other quality documentation.

4. Manpower Management

• Plan manpower requirements according to production load.
• Allocate operators, painters, blasters, helpers and other plant personnel.
• Monitor attendance, productivity and discipline.
• Train operators in correct coating procedures and safe working practices.
• Evaluate operator performance and identify training requirements.
• Ensure adequate manpower availability for critical/urgent jobs.
• Maintain accountability for productivity and work quality.

5. Equipment & Maintenance

Responsible for effective utilization and basic maintenance coordination of plant equipment including:

• Abrasive blasting equipment
• Blast pots
• Air compressors
• Air dryers/filters
• Paint spray equipment
• Plural-component Polyurea equipment
• Paint booths
• Blasting booths
• Baking/curing ovens
• EOT cranes
• Material handling equipment
• Pumps and chemical process tanks
• Airless spray machines
• QC instruments

Responsibilities include:

• Preventive maintenance planning
• Breakdown coordination
• Identifying recurring equipment failures
• Maintaining maintenance records
• Ensuring critical spare availability
• Minimizing plant downtime

6. Safety & Environmental Compliance

• Ensure safe working practices throughout the plant.
• Enforce PPE requirements.
• Ensure safe handling and storage of paints, solvents, chemicals and abrasives.
• Control fire and chemical hazards.
• Ensure proper ventilation and extraction in coating areas.
• Ensure blasting and painting activities are carried out safely.
• Monitor housekeeping and 5S.
• Ensure ETP and waste-management procedures are followed.
• Report and investigate accidents, near misses and unsafe conditions.
• Conduct regular safety toolbox talks and awareness sessions.

7. Production Planning & Dispatch

• Coordinate with Sales/Management regarding committed delivery dates.
• Plan job sequencing based on:
  Customer priority
• Process time
• Equipment availability
• Material availability
• Inspection requirements
• Dispatch requirements
• Ensure finished jobs are ready for inspection and dispatch as committed.
• Coordinate loading, unloading, packing and transportation requirements.
• Ensure all required documents are available before dispatch.

8. Inventory & Material Control

• Monitor paint, thinner, abrasives, masking materials and consumables.
• Ensure minimum stock levels for critical materials.
• Control material wastage.
• Monitor paint consumption against estimated/standard consumption.
• Ensure proper storage conditions for coating materials.
• Coordinate with Purchase/Management for timely procurement.
• Investigate abnormal material consumption.

9. Cost & Productivity Control

The Plant Manager will be responsible for improving plant productivity and controlling operating costs.

Key areas include:

• Labour productivity
• Paint/material consumption
• Abrasive consumption
• Electricity consumption
• Rework cost
• Equipment downtime
• Overtime
• Wastage
• Job cycle time
• Plant capacity utilization

The candidate should actively identify opportunities to reduce cost without compromising quality or customer requirements.

10. Customer & Inspection Coordination

• Coordinate customer visits and inspections at the plant.
• Understand customer specifications before starting jobs.
• Ensure technical requirements are communicated clearly to production personnel.
• Support customer audits and quality inspections.
• Address production-related customer observations in coordination with QA/QC and Management.
• Ensure customer complaints are investigated and corrective actions are implemented.

11. Daily Reporting & MIS

The Plant Manager will maintain and submit regular plant performance reports covering:

• Jobs in process
• Jobs completed
• Jobs pending
• Production quantity
• Dispatch status
• Manpower
• Equipment downtime
• Material consumption
• Rework
• Rejection
• Quality issues
• Safety issues
• Maintenance status
• Customer inspection status
• Critical bottlenecks

A daily production report and weekly plant performance report shall be submitted to Management.

12. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Performance will be evaluated based on:

• On-time completion %
• On-time dispatch %
• Production productivity
• Plant capacity utilization
• Rework %
• Rejection %
• Paint/material consumption
• Abrasive consumption
• Labour productivity
• Equipment uptime
• Downtime
• Customer complaints
• Safety performance
• Housekeeping/5S
• Production cost per job
• Overall plant profitability

13. Authority & Accountability

The Plant Manager will have authority to:

• Allocate manpower and equipment.
• Prioritize production activities within approved customer commitments.
• Stop production where safety or quality requirements are not being met.
• Reject improper surface preparation or incorrect coating application.
• Hold a job for technical clarification where the approved specification is incomplete.
• Recommend maintenance, manpower and process improvements.
• Escalate material shortages, quality risks, delivery risks and commercial issues to Management.

The Plant Manager will be accountable for plant productivity, quality, delivery, safety and operating discipline.

14. Qualification & Experience

Education

• Diploma / B.E. / B.Tech. in Mechanical, Production, Chemical, Industrial Engineering or related field preferred.

Experience

• 3 to 7 years of experience in industrial coating, painting, surface treatment, fabrication, blasting/painting or similar manufacturing environments.
• Experience managing an industrial coating/painting plant will be strongly preferred.
• Experience with oil & gas, engineering, automotive, valve, forging, mining or similar industries is an advantage.

Technical Knowledge

Candidate should have practical knowledge of:

• Industrial painting/coating systems
• Abrasive blasting
• Surface preparation
• DFT measurement
• Paint mixing/application
• Epoxy/PU/Polyurea systems
• Paint curing
• Coating defects and troubleshooting
• Basic coating inspection requirements
• Industrial safety

Knowledge of AMPP/NACE/FROSIO/ICorr practices will be an advantage.

15. Candidate Profile

We are looking for someone who is:

• Hands-on and technically strong
• Comfortable working on the shop floor
• Strong in production planning
• Good at managing people
• Quality-conscious
• Safety-conscious
• Commercially aware
• Good at problem-solving
• Able to work under production pressure
• Disciplined with documentation and reporting
• Able to take ownership rather than wait for instructions
• Capable of coordinating with customers, suppliers and internal teams

The ideal candidate should be a "plant owner" in mindset someone who takes responsibility for the complete operation rather than managing only individual activities.

16. Working Environment

This is a hands-on plant leadership role. The candidate is expected to spend significant time on the shop floor and actively monitor production, quality, manpower, equipment and safety.

The role requires flexibility to handle urgent customer requirements, breakdowns, inspections and production priorities when necessary.

Reporting Structure

Plant Manager

Production / Coating Supervisors

Painters / Blasters / Operators / Helpers

The Plant Manager will work closely with:

Management | Sales | Purchase | QA/QC | Finance | Dispatch

Location

Aerotechshield Coatings Pvt. Ltd.
Plot No. PAP-B-167, MIDC Bhamboli, Chakan Phase 2,
Tal. Khed, Pune 410501, Maharashtra, India.

Position: Plant Manager
Department: Plant Operations
Experience: 3 - 7 Years
Industry: Industrial Paints & Coatings / Surface Treatment
Location: Chakan, Pune