Demo

OpEx Lead

Kruger Inc.
Elizabethtown, KY Full Time
POSTED ON 1/3/2026
AVAILABLE BEFORE 3/4/2026

Position Summary
The OpEx Lead is responsible to ensure the Continual Improvement of all aspects of the Line(s) under their responsibility.They are responsible for developing, managing, and improving the skills of the machine crew through the implementation of Standard Operating Procedures, crew training, and skills development activities, prioritizing the delivery of maintenance services, and driving a Continuous Improvement approach to optimize the performance and productivity of the Converting Line to which they are assigned.

As an OpEx Lead – Operational Excellence, you will play a pivotal role in optimizing and streamlining manufacturing processes in our corrugated packaging facility.You will employ Lean principles and best practices to enhance safety, quality, efficiency, and training.Your contributions will directly impact our ability to meet customer demands, reduce waste, and improve overall operational effectiveness.

Responsibilities
Lead and foster a strong safety culture that values risk identification and proactively develop procedures to reduce risk by developing crew capabilities and accountability in safety excellence.

Monitor, analyze, and improve all aspects of the assigned Converting Line including but not limited to:

  • Operating Effectiveness, Efficiency, and Quality;
  • Employee job performance;
  • Operational Routines;
  • Champion machine center housekeeping effectiveness;
  • Identify and align Preventive Maintenance priorities within the site Reliability Vision;
  • Lead the operational crew and promote employee engagement by empowering employees to solve problems and improve processes.Ensure common alignment among the crew, and define clear roles and responsibilities to continually improve the process.
  • Provide leadership and hold the crew accountable to achieve key operational objectives in safety, environmental compliance, reliability, production, and cost savings.
  • Improve productivity through Root Cause analysis of the top operational losses for the Converting line and define and implement action plans to address productivity constraints and drivers of downtime. Escalate issues that require external resources or expertise.
  • Develop, implement, and sustain Standard Operating Procedures for consistency of operation on the Converting Line.
  • Implement Centre lining tools for operators to monitor process control parameters on the machine to ensure that they are in line with Customer Quality and OEM specifications.
  • Investigate all Quality non-conformances and complete any corrective action that may result from the Root Cause Analysis.
  • Assist the site Supervisors in completion of corrective Action Items coming from Safety Incident reports.
  • Develop the employees on their assigned Converting Line by managing the execution of Training for all new and current employees to ensure skills required for efficient operation are in place and sustained.
  • Review and prioritize all maintenance requests submitted for their Converting Line, participate in the Weekly Maintenance Planning process, and prioritize Work Orders to ensure that uptime is optimized.
  • Lead the regularly scheduled Preventive Maintenance Shutdowns to ensure effective utilization of resources and the completion of defined Reliability Routines and corrective items to improve performance.
  • Utilize data-driven approaches to assess and monitor the performance of manufacturing processes, making data-based decisions to drive improvements.
  • Ensure that company rules and regulations are respected by the crew members.
  • Lead Daily Productions meeting with the crews to communicate the status of improvements, solicit feedback on issues, and set clear targets and expectations.
  • Maintain records of process improvements, performance metrics, and compliance with Lean standards, and provide regular reports to management.
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including production, quality, and maintenance, to ensure seamless alignment of Lean initiatives with overall business objectives.

Skills And Abilities

  • Strong leadership skills, ability to mobilize employees and lead effective meetings.
  • Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
  • 5 year experience as an Engineer in a high-volume manufacturing environment or equivalent experience as a Converting Line Operator.
  • General knowledge of Microsoft Office.
  • Excellent planning and organizational skills.
  • Effective verbal and written communication skills.

Qualifications
ACADEMIC

  • Bachelor's in engineering preferred.

Experience

  • 5 years of corrugated converting experience preferred.
  • Strong operational knowledge of Machinery utilized in the corrugated industry.
  • Proficiency in training and development of operator skills in a production environment.
  • Excellent command of computer systems, tools and software.
  • Experience in Root Cause Problem solving approach.
  • Good verbal and written communications skills.

Salary.com Estimation for OpEx Lead in Elizabethtown, KY
$114,113 to $140,865
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