Verbio
Verbio is seeking a highly motivated Operations Manager, for its production facility located in South Bend, IN.

About Verbio

Verbio acquired South Bend Ethanol, LLC, an operating ethanol plant located in South Bend, Indiana. As a global leader in the renewable energy industry, this will be Verbio’s second US production facility following the successful commissioning of its Nevada, IA plant. The site will be developed over the next three years incorporating Verbio’s advanced engineering and operating technology practices. Verbio intends to expand and develop the plant into a modern biorefinery at an estimated total investment of $230 million.

Integration of the ethanol production with the RNG production process, unique to the Verbio brand and developed successfully at the company`s facilities in Europe over the past decade, will result in higher efficiencies and improved sustainability. Following commissioning, the production capacity of the plant will be at 85 million gallons of corn ethanol and 2.8 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of RNG per year.

The Role:

The Operations Manager will be responsible for all aspects of plant operations. The position is focused on managing plant costs, reliability, quality, and maintenance. The role will ensure the safe, reliable, cost-effective operations of the facility in compliance with environmental and regulatory requirements and is accountable for the direction and development of Operations staff.

Responsibilities:

• Provide leadership, vision and long-term strategy and oversee the day-to-day operations of the facility to support the achievement of company objectives.
  
• Utilize and maintain systems that support sustainable operations and continuous improvement including incident reporting, document management, and management of change.
  
• Create a culture of a high-performing team through leadership in operational excellence practices including visual management, standard work, and leadership walks.
  
• Develop an injury and incident-free EHS culture and work collaboratively with all support functions to ensure safe operations.
  
• Establish, communicate, and sustain high standards for facility housekeeping.
  
• Select, train, and manage a workforce that is motivated, cross-trained, and technically competent. Promote a team atmosphere and strong culture of plant ownership. Build a great place to work where all employees are engaged.
  
• Manager the operational metrics and develop and execute plans to improve KPI’s.
  
• Lead and drive continuous improvement efforts and advance operational excellence.
  
• Ensure the accurate reporting of production and EHS data while ensuring inventory accuracy.
  
• Drive root-cause identification, analysis, and actions.
  
• Work collaboratively with all support functions to ensure safe, reliable, and cost-effective operations.
  
• Accountable for budgeting and cost control in relation to production activities.
  
• Execute appropriate decisions to non-routine plant operating conditions.
  
• Establish and implement performance management development plans.
  
• Support outage planning and restarting activities.
  
• Optimize plant operations through lean manufacturing principles and sustainability initiatives, ensuring efficient use of resources and minimal waste.
  
• Lead efforts to identify, develop, and implement performance improvement opportunities across all areas of operations.
  
• Focus on reducing downtime, improving yield, and enhancing overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) and manage OEE to ensure optimal performance of machinery and equipment.
  
• Maintain and develop Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and Standard Operating Condition (SOCs) to ensure consistent and reliable operations.
  
• Other duties as assigned.

Skills:

• Self-starter, organized, and service-minded.
  
• Demonstrated record of successfully leading people, setting, and communicating standards and expectations.
  
• Excellent judgement and critical thinking skills.
  
• Ability to understand and troubleshoot chemical process operations.
  
• Proficient with Microsoft Office including Excel.

Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering or related field, prefer Chemical or Mechanical
  
• Or the equivalent combination of education and experience

Additional Knowledge:

• Ten (10) years of operations experience in an industrial setting
  
• Knowledge of ethanol technology, preferred
  
• Experience at a plant level in an Agriculture, Processing, Ethanol, Chemical or Refining Industry
• DCS/PLC experience, preferred