Director Engineering - Protein Manufacturing

We are partnering with a leading protein manufacturer to identify an experienced Director of Engineering to provide strategic and technical leadership across the organization's manufacturing operations.

This is a high-impact leadership position responsible for driving engineering strategy, capital projects, reliability, automation, facility improvements, and continuous improvement across a complex protein manufacturing environment. The successful candidate will work closely with Operations, Maintenance, Safety, Quality, Finance, and senior leadership to improve plant performance, maximize asset utilization, and support future growth.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and execute the company's engineering strategy across manufacturing facilities, aligned with operational and business objectives.
• Lead the planning, development, and execution of CAPEX projects, from initial concept and business case through design, construction, commissioning, and handover.
• Provide engineering leadership for plant expansions, equipment installations, process improvements, automation, utilities, and infrastructure projects.
• Establish and drive engineering standards, best practices, and technical specifications across the organization.
• Partner with Maintenance and Operations leadership to improve equipment reliability, uptime, throughput, and overall equipment effectiveness (OEE).
• Identify opportunities to improve manufacturing processes through automation, controls, robotics, technology, and process engineering.
• Manage engineering budgets, project timelines, contractors, consultants, and external engineering partners.
• Ensure engineering projects are delivered safely, on time, within budget, and to the required technical and regulatory standards.
• Develop and maintain long-term capital investment plans based on operational needs, capacity requirements, and business growth.
• Provide technical leadership on major equipment failures, plant constraints, process challenges, and complex engineering issues.
• Support the development and implementation of energy, water, waste, and sustainability initiatives.
• Ensure compliance with applicable OSHA, USDA, FDA, environmental, food safety, electrical, and building regulations.
• Build, mentor, and develop a high-performing engineering team, establishing clear objectives, accountability, and professional development plans.
• Collaborate with senior leadership to evaluate new technologies and identify opportunities to improve cost, productivity, quality, safety, and capacity.

Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate will be an accomplished engineering leader with significant experience within food, protein, meat, poultry, RTE, or another high-volume manufacturing environment.

You will ideally bring:

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related technical discipline; advanced degree or PE certification is advantageous.
• 10+ years of progressive engineering experience, with significant leadership responsibility in a manufacturing environment.
• Proven experience leading engineering teams within a complex, high-volume production facility or multi-site manufacturing network.
• Strong track record delivering large-scale CAPEX and plant improvement projects.
• Experience with food/protein processing equipment, automation, controls, refrigeration, utilities, packaging, and/or industrial systems.
• Strong understanding of reliability, preventative/predictive maintenance, process optimization, and continuous improvement.
• Experience managing significant capital budgets and multiple concurrent projects.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen, including project ROI and capital justification.
• Excellent leadership, communication, project management, and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to operate strategically while remaining close enough to the operation to understand and solve complex technical challenges.

What the Role Offers

This is an excellent opportunity for an engineering leader to join a well-established and growing protein manufacturer and have significant influence over the organization's manufacturing footprint, capital strategy, technology roadmap, and operational performance.

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to lead major investment projects, develop engineering capability, introduce new technologies, and directly contribute to the company's long-term growth.