Plant and Dryer Manager at Bayer

Role purpose

This key role will lead/direct and coordinate all aspects of foundation seed plant/processing and dryer operations. This includes, but is not limited to, coordination and planning with the field operational team, the receival of raw wet seed, sorting, drying, processing, fumigation and storage of foundation seed in order to meet internal, external and legal quality and volume demands as laid out by the business and industry.

Key emphasis will be placed on achieving daily, weekly and yearly production goals as required by the business while producing high quality products within a safe work environment.
Key responsibilities and tasks

• In collaboration with the Foundation Plant and Field Operations Lead and the larger operations team, plan and control all plant and drying operations throughout the year.
• Manage production personnel, equipment and all other resources, to obtain maximum efficiencies thereof.
• Plan and execute efficient resource allocation to support that a shift working system is established and managed during times of peak production for the plant and dryer production activities.
• Close coordination with the field operations team to ensure the smooth transition and efficient flow of raw product to ensure optimal resource and equipment utilization is achieved.
• Develop and manage an annual processing plan to ensure timely supply of seed is achieved to meet both internal and external customer demands.
• Continuously review and manage production plans and schedules and allocate resources, human and equipment, accordingly, to ensure production targets are met.
• Identify and report KPI’s on the applicable TIER meetings and ensure the measurement and analysis thereof for all responsible areas to ensure daily, weekly, monthly and annual goals are met.
• Pro-actively identify positive and negative trends of KPI`s and react on them accordingly to ensure optimal resource utilization.
• In collaboration with the Warehouse Manager, plan and control inventory at all levels of product stages up to the dispatching of foundation seed to growers.
• Effectively plan for and manage all consumables for all the areas of responsibility and in collaboration with the production administrator, ensure timely procurement thereof.
• Responsible to ensure that all produced seed is correctly labeled to not only ensure that full product traceability is achieved, but also meets the necessary internal Bayer, external and regulatory standards, inclusive but not limited to SANSOR Certification requirements.
• Ensure a robust maintenance system for all responsible areas of operations, inclusive of the equipment and facilities, is well developed, established and executed to ensure preventative and annual maintenance is done in an effective and timely manner to ensure compliance and prevent unforeseen breakdowns.
• Responsible for the planning, execution and control of all responsible operational budgets for all areas of responsibility to ensure a cost-effective production environment.
• Responsible and accountable for the full cycle of on-site chemical handling. This includes the management thereof from procurement, safe handling, safe storage and safe disposal thereof in the correct way.
• Responsible and accountable for the management of all matters related good stewardship practices inclusive of the handling of regulated material.
• In collaboration with the necessary stakeholders, ensure that seed samples are taken at the correct stages and in the correct manner as a responsible certified seed sampler.
• In collaboration with Process Engineer and Engineering Team, execute and support Capex projects in all areas of responsibility.
• Actively participate in Regional and Global Optimization working groups and networks where best practices are shared across regional and global production networks.
• Provide leadership regarding the Bayer Quality Management processes and ensure proper communication with all relevant stakeholders regarding potential improvement opportunities and matters of concern throughout, but not limited to, areas of responsibility.
• Responsible and accountable for all applicable QMS and OnePSS standards and procedures in all responsible areas.
• Actively engage and encourage a continuous improvement culture through the OnePSS platform and CAPA management.
• Maintain compliance with all regulatory requirements, ethical standards and human rights throughout all areas of responsibility.
• Provide technical knowledge for processes and equipment to obtain optimal performance of equipment.
• Recommend and implement measures to improve productivity, performance, product quality, methods, working conditions and efficiencies.
• Encourage team participation and involvement in all ongoing projects
• Encourage team members to develop technical skills on applicable equipment to support the continuous skills and capability development program.
• This may require equipment specialists to do training or have team members cross collaborate across various manufacturing sites.
• Ensure sufficient and high skilled seasonal or part time labor is recruited through a third-party labor broker.
• Identify training and development needs of responsible teams and
• pursue the effective execution thereof in collaboration
• Develop a high-performance culture within the broader team by engaging, coaching and developing team members, and by driving accountability and ownership at all levels.
• Keep leadership at all levels informed of all matters affecting morale and safety of employees.
• Actively engage and drive employee engagement within direct team and within the larger organization through continuous employee engagement efforts.
• Address employee concerns and maintains good communication with plant personnel.
• Attract and retain top talent, leverage and value individual differences and manage work teams effectively.

HSE responsibilities

• Take full HSE responsibility and accountability for the areas of responsibility.
• Ensure all staff adhere to HSE policies, procedures and rules, have been trained on and are fully demonstrated and adhered to in the work environment.
• Participate in all required HSE trainings and educations.
• Be continuously aware of safety and health conditions within the work area and assist in the identification and reporting of incidents and hazards.
• Provide safety information to employees as needed and requested inclusive of monthly Safety Meetings and HSE Management Reviews.
• Ensure all employees and contractors are issued, and wearing the correct personal protective equipment required for their tasks.
• Take part in the investigation of incidents or accidents and provide recommendations to prevent recurrences.
• LOTO – Do physical spot checks to ensure that the procedure is followed.
• Carry out machine inspections to ensure no machines are safe to operate; for example, that all moving parts are covered with proper guards.
• Evaluate forklift drivers and cherry picker drivers annually.
• Ensure monthly and annually HSE checklists that assigned to you, are done.
• Lead and actively participate in the reviewing of JSA’s and Risk
• Assessments within areas of responsibility.
• Participate in Tier meetings, monthly HSE Meetings and Management
• Review meetings.
• Ensure safe and orderly working environments are maintained throughout areas of responsibilities.
• Take part and ensure sufficient resources are available for Industrial Hygiene surveys.
• Act as the emergency coordinator during emergency situations, including practice drills and inform the emergency teams as needed.
• Be fully aware of emergency phone numbers and emergency teams.

Experience, Skills and Qualifications

• SANSOR certified seed sampler.
• Extensive ISO9001 experience.
• Exposure to ISO45001 will be very beneficial.
• Strong Leadership and Management skills (Cross Functional & Cultural).
• Good Interpersonal, Communication, Organizational and Training skills.
• Strong teamwork (Flexibility to work across areas and positively influencing others).
• Results orientated with ability to work on own initiative and under pressured timelines.
• Establish clear direction and decisions making in a timely manner.
• Innovation and digitalization oriented.
• Ability to manage ambiguity.
• Fluent in English. Any other language proficiency will be very beneficial.
• Excellent MS Office software (Excel, E-mail, Word, Project etc.