We are looking someone that has experience within food manufacturing, including extensive experience with anhydrous ammonia refrigeration, PSM/RMP compliance

Senior Refrigeration & Utilities Manager

Location: San Antonio, Texas
Employment Type: Full-Time
Industry: Food Manufacturing / Industrial Operations
Travel: Approximately 40%
Compensation: Competitive six-figure base salary + full benefits

The Opportunity

A well-established, growing food manufacturing organization is seeking an experienced Senior Refrigeration & Utilities Manager to provide leadership and technical oversight for industrial refrigeration and facility utility operations across multiple U.S. manufacturing locations.

This is a highly visible position for an experienced refrigeration professional who understands the demands of high-volume food production, particularly ammonia refrigeration, process safety, equipment reliability, preventive maintenance, and regulatory compliance.

The successful candidate will combine strong technical knowledge with the ability to lead refrigeration, utilities, and maintenance personnel across multiple facilities.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead industrial refrigeration and utility operations supporting food manufacturing facilities.
• Provide technical leadership for anhydrous ammonia refrigeration systems and associated equipment.
• Manage and maintain Process Safety Management (PSM) programs and ensure regulatory compliance.
• Oversee refrigeration system reliability, preventive maintenance, troubleshooting, and continuous improvement.
• Provide leadership and direction to refrigeration managers, supervisors, operators, technicians, and maintenance personnel.
• Support the safe operation and maintenance of:
• Industrial ammonia refrigeration systems
• Spiral freezers
• Boilers and hot-water systems
• Air compressors and compressed-air systems
• Pumps and utility systems
• Water treatment equipment
• Reverse-osmosis systems
• Water softeners
• DA tanks
• PLC-controlled equipment
• Identify equipment reliability issues and implement corrective and preventive solutions.
• Support facility audits, safety programs, documentation, training, and compliance initiatives.
• Establish and maintain operating procedures and refrigeration best practices across multiple locations.
• Work closely with engineering, maintenance, production, safety, and plant leadership.
• Travel regularly to support manufacturing operations at company facilities.

Required Experience

Candidates should have significant hands-on and leadership experience involving industrial refrigeration within food manufacturing environments.

Critical qualifications include:

Extensive industrial ammonia refrigeration experience.
Strong working knowledge of PSM – Process Safety Management.
Demonstrated understanding of refrigeration machinery, controls, maintenance, and troubleshooting.
Previous experience within food processing or food manufacturing.
Experience supporting large-scale industrial refrigeration and utility systems.
Ability to diagnose refrigeration and utility equipment problems and provide technical direction.
Experience leading or supporting refrigeration operators, technicians, maintenance personnel, and/or management teams.
Strong safety, compliance, documentation, and operational leadership skills.
Ability and willingness to travel approximately 40%.

Highly Desirable

RETA certification or comparable industrial refrigeration credentials are strongly preferred, including:

CARO – Certified Assistant Refrigeration Operator
CIRO – Certified Industrial Refrigeration Operator
CRES – Certified Refrigeration Energy Specialist
CRST – Certified Refrigeration Service Technician
RAI – RETA Authorized Instructor

Experience with spiral freezers, boilers, compressed air, water systems, pumps, PLCs, and other plant utilities is also highly valued.

Ideal Candidate

The strongest candidate will be a refrigeration professional who has progressed from hands-on industrial refrigeration into a leadership role and can comfortably move between the mechanical room, maintenance operation, PSM/compliance requirements, and senior plant management.

This individual should understand that refrigeration reliability is mission-critical in a food manufacturing environment and be capable of developing teams, improving equipment performance, maintaining regulatory compliance, and supporting multiple manufacturing locations.

Full-time permanent position | Full benefits

Confidential Search – Employer information will be provided to qualified candidates during the recruitment process.