Plant Manager

Plant Manager

Job Title: Plant Manager
Location: North Central West Virginia (near Morgantown, WV)
Reports To: Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

Company Overview

Our client is a U.S.-based manufacturer of high-performance biomass-based fuels engineered for sustainability and efficiency. Using a proprietary, net-zero process that upcycles wood waste into clean-burning fuel, the company supports customers across hospitality, manufacturing, and retail sectors in meeting their performance and sustainability goals.

The organization is rapidly scaling and commissioning its first U.S.-based production facility. This site is partially commissioned and entering a critical phase of start-up, system buildout, and transition into full commercial operations.

Position Summary

The Plant Manager will lead the build-out, commissioning, and ongoing operation of the company’s flagship manufacturing facility. This role is responsible for establishing the operational foundation of the plant — including systems, structure, people, and performance management — and transitioning the facility from partial commissioning to stable, full-scale production.

This is a hands-on leadership role requiring comfort operating in ambiguity, building processes where few exist, and driving operational discipline in a startup manufacturing environment. The Plant Manager will own day-to-day performance across safety, production, quality, cost, and people, while implementing the management systems, reporting infrastructure, and operating cadence needed to scale.

Key Responsibilities

Plant Start-Up, Commissioning & Systems Buildout

●       Lead the commissioning, start-up, and stabilization of a partially completed manufacturing facility.

●       Establish the plant’s operational foundation, including SOPs, work instructions, safety programs, quality systems, preventive maintenance programs, and production controls.

●       Build workflows, plant routines, shift structures, staffing models, and equipment readiness plans to support increasing production volumes.

●       Create structure and discipline where limited formal processes currently exist.

Daily Operations Leadership

●       Own all daily plant operations across safety, production, maintenance, quality, and logistics.

●       Translate business objectives into executable production plans, manpower plans, and capacity strategies.

●       Ensure equipment, materials, and labor are aligned to meet production schedules and customer commitments.

●       Serve as the primary liaison between executive leadership and the production floor.

Performance Management, Reporting & Visibility

●       Establish and own plant performance reporting, including but not limited to:

o   Production output and schedule attainment

o   Equipment capability, uptime, and utilization

o   Labor efficiency, manpower levels, and workforce planning

o   Quality metrics, scrap, and rework

o   Downtime, reliability, and maintenance effectiveness

●       Develop dashboards, KPIs, and operating rhythms that provide consistent operational visibility to leadership.

●       Lead daily, weekly, and monthly reviews focused on performance, problem-solving, and continuous improvement.

People Leadership & Culture

●       Recruit, onboard, and develop a high-performing production and maintenance team.

●       Coach supervisors and leads on frontline fundamentals such as safety leadership, standard work, accountability, and employee engagement.

●       Build a culture rooted in safety, professionalism, continuous improvement, and ownership.

Continuous Improvement & Compliance

●       Drive process improvement initiatives to increase throughput, utilization, reliability, and quality.

●       Ensure compliance with all local, state, and federal environmental, safety, and regulatory requirements.

●       Establish corrective action systems and root cause methodologies.

Success Metrics

●       Implementation of continues production routine and stabilization, meeting production goals and customers orders in a timely manner.

●       Implementation of core manufacturing systems (SOPs, safety programs, production controls, reporting cadence).

●       Consistent achievement of production, quality, utilization, and labor efficiency targets.

●       Clear operational visibility through structured reporting and performance routines.

●       Development of a capable leadership team and scalable workforce.

Required Qualifications

●       Strong background managing production floor operations

●       Proven leadership experience in manufacturing

●       Demonstrated strong understanding of challenges facing a start-ups facility in growth stages

●       Strong orientation towards meeting goals and deadlines

●       Knowledge in performance reporting, and manufacturing management systems.

●       Hands-on leadership style with the ability to build structure, drive accountability, and solve problems at the floor level.

●       Working knowledge of safety systems, environmental compliance, maintenance fundamentals, and quality management.

Preferred Qualifications

●       Experience in renewable energy, biomass, fuels, chemicals, or related industrial sectors.

●       Track record of scaling production operations or leading greenfield/start-up facilities.

Compensation & Benefits

Base Salary: $140,000/year (flexible based on experience)
Bonus: Performance-based after 12 months

Benefits include medical, dental, vision, 401(k), paid time off, parental leave, paid holidays, and optional voluntary benefits through Insperity.

Work Environment

This is a fully onsite leadership role located in North Central West Virginia. The Plant Manager will be deeply embedded in daily operations and play a central role in launching, stabilizing, and scaling the facility.

This Plant Manager role is a true plant build and scale opportunity — not a “maintain what already exists” job.

The facility is commissioned and entering a critical phase of growth where the company needs a leader who can build the structure, streamline production and create discipline and accountability.

The ideal candidate has plant start-up or scale-up experience, thrives in less-structured environments, and brings a strong blend of hands-on leadership, strong production background and operational rigor. This is a career-defining role for someone who wants to put their stamp on a facility and grow with a business.