What are the responsibilities and job description for the Process Engineer (Manufacturing & Plant Operations) position at Vanguard Soap?
Position Summary
The Engineer is a critical operational role responsible for optimizing Vanguard Soap's manufacturing processes, equipment reliability, and plant performance. This role operates as both a hands-on technical expert and continuous improvement driver, with a strong presence on the production floor.
This individual will own and improve core manufacturing systems - including reaction vessels, spray drying towers, boilers, pumps, and wastewater systems - while ensuring safe, efficient, and scalable operations. The Engineer will play a central role in troubleshooting downtime, improving process capability, and building standardized, repeatable manufacturing processes. This role requires a proactive, assertive leader who can operate both strategically and tactically, working side-by-side with maintenance, production, and leadership team members.
The Vanguard manufacturing campus is a 14-acre site producing 40–50 million pounds annually with 100 employees, requiring disciplined engineering, strong operational partnership, and a continuous improvement mindset.
Key Responsibilities
Engineering Leadership & Plant Partnership
Process Documentation & Standardization
The Engineer is a critical operational role responsible for optimizing Vanguard Soap's manufacturing processes, equipment reliability, and plant performance. This role operates as both a hands-on technical expert and continuous improvement driver, with a strong presence on the production floor.
This individual will own and improve core manufacturing systems - including reaction vessels, spray drying towers, boilers, pumps, and wastewater systems - while ensuring safe, efficient, and scalable operations. The Engineer will play a central role in troubleshooting downtime, improving process capability, and building standardized, repeatable manufacturing processes. This role requires a proactive, assertive leader who can operate both strategically and tactically, working side-by-side with maintenance, production, and leadership team members.
The Vanguard manufacturing campus is a 14-acre site producing 40–50 million pounds annually with 100 employees, requiring disciplined engineering, strong operational partnership, and a continuous improvement mindset.
Key Responsibilities
Engineering Leadership & Plant Partnership
- Serve as a key partner to Operations, Maintenance, and Quality to drive plant performance
- Maintain a strong, visible presence on the production floor
- Lead and support maintenance technicians and operators in resolving equipment and process issues
- Act as a first responder to critical downtime events, driving rapid root cause identification and resolution
- Identify, prioritize, and lead continuous improvement initiatives across manufacturing processes
- Analyze production data to improve yield, throughput, and cost efficiency
- Implement Lean, Six Sigma, and other process improvement methodologies
- Standardize best practices across lines, shifts, and product types
- Improve reliability and performance of key plant systems:
- Reaction vessels
- Spray drying towers
- Boilers and utilities
- Pumps and fluid systems
- Wastewater treatment systems
Process Documentation & Standardization
- Develop, maintain, and validate Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), work instructions, process flow documentation
- Ensure processes are repeatable, scalable, and audit-ready
- Train plant personnel on updated procedures and best practices
- Lead structured root cause analysis for equipment failures, process deviations, quality issues
- Implement sustainable corrective and preventive actions (CAPA)
- Track and report on improvement effectiveness
- Support plant capital planning and execution
- Lead or contribute to equipment selection and design, installation and commissioning, process validation, and startup
- Ensure projects are delivered on time, on budget, and meet operational requirements
- Ensure all engineering activities align with safety standards and regulatory requirements
- Support safe operation of all manufacturing and utility systems
- Partner on environmental initiatives, including wastewater and emissions management
- Partner with: Quality on process capability and product consistency, Supply Chain on material flow and constraints, R&D on product trials and scale-up
- Serve as a technical bridge between plant operations and leadership
- Hands-on, plant-first engineering mindset
- Strong mechanical and process engineering acumen
- Proactive, assertive, high-accountability leadership style
- Ability to troubleshoot complex systems under pressure
- Data-driven decision-making with practical execution focus
- Strong cross-functional collaboration and influence
- Continuous improvement orientation (Lean / Six Sigma mindset)
- 3–7 years of engineering experience in manufacturing (CPG, chemical, or process manufacturing preferred)
- Experience working in a plant environment with direct production interaction
- Proven success improving equipment reliability and process performance
- Experience with process documentation, SOPs, and continuous improvement initiatives
- Strong problem-solving and root cause analysis skills
- Bachelor's degree required. Preferred majors: Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or Industrial Engineering