Maintenance Manager

About the role

SunOpta delivers customized supply chain solutions and innovation for top brands, retailers, and foodservice providers across a broad portfolio of beverages, broths, and better-for-you snacks. With over 50 years of expertise, SunOpta fuels customers’ growth with high-quality, sustainability-forward solutions distributed through retail, club, foodservice, and e-commerce channels across North America.

Job Summary

The Maintenance Manager is responsible for leading all maintenance and utilities functions within a high-care, aseptic manufacturing environment. This role ensures safe, compliant, and reliable operation of production equipment, plant utilities, and facility systems while developing a highly skilled technical workforce, actively promoting and embedding a proactive safety-first culture. The Maintenance Manager drives equipment reliability, regulatory compliance, and continuous improvement through strong technical expertise, disciplined planning, and effective leadership. This role is responsible to provide both strategic and tactical support to plant operations with a goal to maximize efficiencies and lower total cost of ownership.

Essential Functions of the Job

• Lead all maintenance activities for aseptic processing, packaging, and supporting equipment to ensure high uptime, product safety, and regulatory compliance.
• Establish and execute preventive, predictive, and reliability-centered maintenance programs.
• Drive root cause analysis (RCA) for equipment failures and implement permanent corrective actions.
• Own asset reliability metrics including OEE, MTBF, MTTR, downtime, and maintenance cost performance.
• Partner with Operations and Quality to support aseptic integrity, CIP/SIP systems, and hygienic design standards.
• Provide technical ownership and oversight of plant utilities, including:
  • Ammonia refrigeration systems (operation, maintenance, PSM, and regulatory compliance)
  • Boilers and steam systems
  • Cooling towers and water treatment systems
  • Compressed air and nitrogen systems
  • Fire system and fire prevention program
  • Waste water and/or effluent systems
• Achieve and maintain all applicable licenses, permits, inspections, and certifications to be audit ready.
• Assess current technician skill levels and identify gaps relative to equipment complexity and utility systems.
• Coach, mentor, and develop maintenance technicians and supervisors to raise overall technical competency.
• Ensure accurate CMMS usage, work order execution, spare parts management, and asset documentation.
• Develop and manage maintenance budgets.
• Participate as a member of the site leadership team, building culture, supporting plant goals and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Demonstrate flexibility and ownership with being on call nights and weekends to support business needs and emergencies.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Oversee all maintenance team including supervisors, controls engineers/techs, planners, MRO buyer, parts coordinator and technicians.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Industrial Maintenance, or equivalent experience
• 5+ years of maintenance experience (Aseptic, Dairy, Ingredients)
• 3+ years of maintenance leadership experience in a manufacturing environment
• Applicable Ammonia Refrigeration Certification/license (or ability to obtain within defined timeframe).

Preferred Qualifications

• Boiler Operation and/or Stationary Engineer Certification
• Knowledge and skills in cooling tower chemistry, fire protection systems, and safety compliance
• Understanding of on-site Wastewater Treatment Plants
• Strong understanding of GMPs, food safety or pharmaceutical regulations, and PSM requirements
• Lean/Six Sigma, 5-S Fundamentals, and TPM understanding
• Outstanding verbal, written communication and presentation skills
• Highly organized with strong planning, prioritization, and execution skills
• Proven ability to lead through influence, collaboration, and accountability
• Bilingual in Spanish is beneficial
• Proficient with CMMS, reliability tools, and Microsoft Office or equivalent systems
• Experience with Oracle is beneficial
• Exceptional mechanical skills/aptitude

Featured Benefits

• Medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance
• Paid Family leave
• Paid maternity leave
• 401(k) with Match
• Tuition assistance
• Short-term and Long-term Disability insurance

Work Environment/Physical Demands

Approximately; 50% of work is performed in an office environment. 50% of work will involve being in the manufacturing environment.