Director, Operations

Prime Responsibilities

• Oversee all phases of the investment casting lifecycle (wax, shell, foundry, finishing) to ensure on-time delivery and adherence to production schedules, with a focus on increasing plant throughput in all areas.
• Champion a "Safety First" culture, ensuring strict adherence to OSHA regulations, environmental standards, and handling protocols for molten metals and chemicals.
• Oversee the maintenance strategy for critical capital equipment (wax presses, shell equipment, cast furnaces, autoclaves, robotic cells) to minimize downtime.
• Cook up and align purchasing of raw material stocks and directly manage Work-In-Process (WIP) levels on the production floor to ensure best-in-class WIP turns.
• Lead Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma initiatives to streamline workflow and reduce cost-per-unit.

Additional Responsibilities

• Ensure production operations and facilities are in compliance with applicable local, state, and federal regulations, company policies, and the Hitchiner Code of Conduct.

Minimum Acceptable Qualifications

• Experience: Minimum of 10 years in manufacturing leadership, with specific experience in investment casting, foundry operations, or metallurgy.
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Engineering (Metallurgical, Mechanical, Industrial, or similar focus), Operations Management, or Business.
• Technical Skills: Deep understanding of bottleneck identification and management, aerospace and automotive manufacturing environments, and leadership development.
• Methodologies: Lean Six Sigma Black Belt or Green Belt certification strongly preferred.
• Regulatory Knowledge: Experience managing compliance for aerospace and automotive manufacturing (ISO 9001, AS9100, NADCAP, IATF).

Keys to Success

• Throughput Discipline: A rigorous commitment to ensuring production flow throughout the manufacturing floor with a daily focus on bottleneck identification and management.
• Shop Floor Presence: A leader who is visible on the floor and connects office strategy with production reality.
• Data Driven Process Review: Utilize real-time feedback from engineers, operators, and process control to predict and prevent defects and bottlenecks before they occur.
• Agility: The ability to balance high-volume production needs with the technical complexities of custom or complex requirements.

Benefits

• Onsite state of the art Gym/Fitness Center, open 24/7 for all employees.
• Medical and Dental Insurance.
• Health Savings Account (HSA).
• Health and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA).
• Basic and Accidental Life Insurance (company paid).
• Short-term and Long-term Disability Insurance (company paid).
• 401K (pre-tax and ROTH) with Excellent Company Match and Immediate Vesting.
• Company Profit Sharing Plan.
• 3 weeks’ Vacation to start; 4 weeks’ Vacation at 5 Years; 5 weeks’ Vacation at 10 years seniority.
• The “Center for Excellence” onsite training center for new hires and existing employees to improve new learning and continuous growth.
• Training and Educational Assistance Programs.