Warehouse Manager - Night Shift

About the role

Illuminate USA, located in the heart of Central Ohio, is transforming solar panel manufacturing from our cutting-edge facility in Pataskala. As a new standalone joint venture established by two global leaders in renewable energy, we’ve rapidly grown to over 1,600 associates and are now fully operational in our 1.1 million-square-foot factory. Our vision is to establish one of the largest solar panel manufacturing operations in the Western Hemisphere. This role oversees all raw material activities within a solar panel manufacturing environment, ensuring the timely availability, proper handling, inventory accuracy, and regulatory compliance of critical materials such as glass, silicon wafers/cells, aluminum frames, backsheets, encapsulants (EVA), junction boxes, and related components. The manager partners closely with Production, Supply Chain, Quality, Finance, and Engineering to support safe, efficient, and high-quality solar module manufacturing operations.

Responsibilities

• Lead daily raw materials operations including receiving, storage, staging, shuttling, and line-side delivery.
• Ensure uninterrupted material flow to meet solar panel production schedules.
• Develop, maintain, and enforce SOPs for material handling, storage, and internal logistics.
• Optimize warehouse layout, material flow paths, and space utilization for oversized and fragile materials such as glass and frames.
• Own raw material inventory accuracy through cycle counts, root cause analysis, and reconciliation.
• Ensure FIFO compliance and lot traceability.
• Monitor inventory levels to balance production demand, lead times, and working capital.
• Investigate and resolve shortages, damages, obsolescence, and material losses.
• Ensure compliance with ISO 9001, ISO 14001, OSHA, and customer-specific quality requirements.
• Support material traceability required for solar module certifications and customer audits.
• Partner with Quality on inspection, non-conformance handling, quarantine, and disposition of raw materials.
• Drive safe handling practices for heavy, sharp, or high-value materials.
• Lead, coach, and develop supervisors, leads, and material handlers.
• Establish performance expectations tied to safety, quality, delivery, and cost.
• Support hiring, onboarding, training, and succession planning.
• Foster a culture of accountability, teamwork, and continuous improvement.
• Identify opportunities to improve material flow, reduce waste, and minimize handling damage.
• Apply Lean manufacturing principles to warehouse and line-side material operations.
• Track and report KPIs, developing corrective actions for performance gaps.
• Partner with Procurement and Planning on supplier performance and material readiness.
• Support engineering change orders (ECOs), new product introductions, and ramp-ups.
• Coordinate with Logistics and 3PL providers for inbound and off-site material management.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• Raw material inventory accuracy
• On-time material delivery to production
• FIFO and traceability compliance
• Material damage and scrap rate
• Space utilization and labor productivity
• Safety incidents and audit findings

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Operations Management, Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience
• 7+ years of progressive experience in materials management, warehouse operations, or manufacturing operations within a high-volume manufacturing environment
• 3+ years of people leadership experience managing supervisors, leads, or frontline teams
• Demonstrated experience managing raw materials, inventory control, and internal logistics
• Strong working knowledge of FIFO, lot traceability, cycle counting, and inventory accuracy
• Experience supporting ISO 9001, OSHA, and internal audit processes
• Experience working with ERP/MRP systems and warehouse management systems
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and cross-functional collaboration skills

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in solar, semiconductor, electronics, automotive, glass, or other capital-intensive manufacturing environments
• Experience managing oversized, fragile, or high-value materials
• Lean, Six Sigma, or continuous improvement training or certification
• Experience supporting new product introductions, ramp-ups, or engineering change management
• Experience coordinating with third-party logistics providers

Work Environment & Physical Requirements

• Work is performed primarily in a manufacturing and warehouse environment
• Regularly required to walk the production floor and warehouse, including standing, bending, and reaching as needed to observe operations and support teams
• Occasional lifting, carrying, pushing, or pulling of materials or equipment weighing up to 50 pounds, with or without reasonable accommodation
• May require limited hands-on assistance during audits, investigations, training, or abnormal situations
• Ability to safely work around material handling equipment such as forklifts and pallet jacks
• Exposure to noise, moving equipment, and varying temperatures typical of a manufacturing facility
• Must be able to wear required personal protective equipment (PPE) as needed

Benefits

We offer competitive pay, comprehensive benefits, and continuous opportunities for career growth.