Engineering Manager at Boardroom Appointments

THE ROLE

• You will be responsible for ensuring the continuous, reliable, and compliant operation of all engineering systems, utilities, and production equipment across the site.
• The role focuses on operational continuity, engineering excellence, equipment reliability, compliance, project delivery, and leadership of a high-performing engineering function.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Operational Continuity & Production Support

• Ensuring continuous availability and reliability of production equipment and utilities
• Supporting production efficiency, uptime, throughput, and OEE targets
• Providing engineering support during start-ups, line changes, and product introductions
• Managing critical breakdown escalation processes and engineering incident response

Utilities & Facilities Management

• Managing core site utilities, including:
• Steam boilers
• Compressed air systems
• HVAC systems
• Chilled water systems
• Purified/pharmaceutical water systems
• Wastewater treatment
• Electrical distribution systems
• Driving optimisation initiatives around energy efficiency, water consumption, and utility performance
• Ensuring operational procedures and control philosophies are documented and maintained

Maintenance Strategy & Reliability Engineering

• Developing and managing preventive, predictive, and corrective maintenance programmes
• Driving CMMS-based maintenance planning and backlog control
• Implementing condition-based and predictive maintenance practices including:
• Vibration analysis
• Thermography
• Oil analysis
• Leading shutdowns, maintenance turnarounds, and reliability improvement initiatives
• Driving root cause analysis and continuous improvement programmes

Capital Projects & Engineering Delivery

• Leading engineering input for capital projects, upgrades, and equipment installations
• Managing project scope, budgets, commissioning, and qualification activities
• Ensuring projects are delivered safely, on schedule, and within budget
• Managing contractor performance and engineering handovers

Compliance, Validation & Quality Systems

• Ensuring compliance with:
• cGMP
• SAHPRA
• ISO quality standards
• SHE requirements
• Supporting equipment qualification, calibration, and validation processes
• Collaborating with Quality Assurance on deviations, CAPAs, and change controls
• Maintaining audit readiness and supporting regulatory inspections

Financial & Resource Management

• Managing engineering Opex and Capex budgets
• Driving cost optimisation and lifecycle cost management
• Managing staffing, contractor resources, and engineering capacity planning
• Supporting procurement and critical spares management

Leadership & Team Development

• Leading and developing multidisciplinary engineering teams
• Driving performance management, coaching, and succession planning
• Developing technical training and competency programmes
• Building a culture of safety, accountability, and continuous improvement

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR
Key Requirements

• Degree / Diploma in Mechanical or Electrical Engineering
• GCC (Government Certificate of Competence) – Mandatory
• Minimum 10 years' progressive engineering experience
• Minimum 5 years' experience in a senior engineering or maintenance leadership role

Strong experience within:

• Pharmaceutical manufacturing
• FMCG
• Highly regulated manufacturing environments

Proven experience managing:

• Utilities and facilities
• Reliability engineering
• Large engineering teams
• Capital projects and budgets

Strong understanding of:

• cGMP
• SAHPRA
• ISO quality systems
• Engineering compliance and validation

Advantageous

• MBA or postgraduate qualification in Engineering Management or Business Management
• Professional registration with ECSA (Pr.Eng / Pr.Tech)