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Production Manager
In support of a firmly established family-owned hydraulic cylinder manufacturing company in Hereford, we are seeking a NEW Production Manager to work in partnership with the Operations Director, who will be responsible for leading all day-to-day manufacturing operations at our clients’ site in Hereford.
The role ensures that products are manufactured safely, efficiently, and to the highest quality standards, while maintaining a motivated and skilled team. This position bridges planning, production, engineering, and supply chain to ensure flow, reliability, and on-time delivery in alignment with the company’s objectives.
Specifically, your responsibilities will be:
Leadership & People
- Lead, motivate, and develop the production team to achieve operational targets and maintain a safe working environment.
- Foster a culture of accountability, teamwork, and continuous improvement.
- Work closely with HR to manage attendance, performance, and training requirements.
Production Control
- Deliver the production plan on time, in full, and to the correct quality standards.
- Monitor production flow and capacity, identifying and resolving constraints proactively.
- Ensure efficient utilisation of labour and machinery to meet delivery and cost targets.
- Work with the resources team to balance capacity and demand, ensuring bottlenecks are managed effectively.
Quality & Process Improvement
- Drive a “right-first time” culture across all operations.
- Collaborate with the Quality and Engineering teams to reduce scrap, rework, and internal rejects.
- Ensure compliance with company and customer quality standards.
- Investigate process deviations and implement sustainable corrective actions.
Continuous Improvement & Data Management
- Support and lead continuous improvement activities (5S, waste reduction, standardisation, and OEE improvements).
- Review and report on production KPIs, ensuring data accuracy and integrity.
- Identify improvement opportunities to increase output, efficiency, and reliability.
- Collaborate with the Continuous Improvement team to embed lean principles throughout the factory
We expect your skill set to encompass a mix of knowledge, skills and behaviours that role model our clients’ Vison and Values. Specifically, this role will need the following knowledge and skills:
- Proven experience in a production or manufacturing management role, ideally within precision engineering or component manufacturing.
- Strong understanding of lean principles, workflow optimisation, and resource planning.
- Ability to lead, motivate, and develop a production team, fostering accountability and engagement.
- Sound technical knowledge of hydraulic cylinder manufacturing processes, materials, and machining operations.
- Demonstrates the company’s values of honesty, fairness, strength, inquisitiveness, loyalty, and resilience.
Desired qualifications:
- ILM L5 or similar
- Engineering apprenticeship and/or HNC in Mechanical Engineering.
- IOSH qualification in Managing Safely.
- Formal Six Sigma qualifications (Green/Black belt).
This role is in support of an established, privately owned and modern manufacturing facility seeing continued growth and expansion.
Your CV will be forwarded to Jonathan Lee Recruitment, a leading engineering and manufacturing recruitment consultancy established in 1978. The services advertised by Jonathan Lee Recruitment are those of an Employment Agency.
In order for your CV to be processed effectively, please ensure your name, email address, phone number and location (post code OR town OR county, as a minimum) are included.
7120143 – Matthew Heath