Head - Plant Operations

Job Title: Head – Plant Operations / Greenfield Project
Job Location: Delhi
Work Model: Mandatory Work from Office
Industry: Automotive / Electric Vehicle / Commercial Vehicle Manufacturing

Total Experience: 20–25+ years

Relevant Experience: 15+ years in Plant Operations / Manufacturing, with strong exposure to plant leadership and greenfield projects.

Candidate Location: Delhi NCR preferred; candidates willing to relocate may be considered.

End-to-end Plant Operations & Manufacturing

Greenfield Plant Setup & Commissioning

Production Planning & Execution

Manufacturing Engineering

Plant Capacity Planning & Production Ramp-up

OEE / Productivity / Cost Optimization

Lean Manufacturing / TPM / Kaizen

Quality & Process Excellence

CapEx & Project Management

New Product Introduction / SOP

Vendor & Contractor Management

EHS & Statutory Compliance

Large Team Management

Cross-functional Stakeholder Management

Candidate Industry: Automotive / EV / Auto Components / Commercial Vehicles

B.E./B. Tech in Mechanical

Strong experience in manufacturing and plant operations.

MBA / PGDM in Operations / Manufacturing / Supply Chain Management.

Advanced qualification in Operations or Manufacturing Management.

The Head – Plant Operations will be responsible for end-to-end plant operations and greenfield manufacturing project execution, including plant setup, commissioning, production readiness, ramp-up, operational stabilization and achievement of manufacturing KPIs.

The role will lead cross-functional teams and work closely with Manufacturing, Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, Procurement, Finance, HR and R&D to establish and operate a high-performance manufacturing facility.

Lead end-to-end greenfield plant setup and commissioning from project planning through production readiness.

Drive plant layout, infrastructure, utilities, machinery, production lines and equipment readiness.

Manage installation, commissioning, trial production and operational handover.

Establish project milestones, timelines, budgets, governance and risk-mitigation mechanisms.

Coordinate with engineering teams, contractors, equipment suppliers and internal stakeholders.

Own end-to-end plant manufacturing and production operations.

Drive production, capacity utilization, OEE, productivity, throughput and delivery targets.

Ensure effective manpower planning, line balancing and takt-time adherence.

Establish standardized operating processes and shop-floor governance.

Lead production ramp-up from pilot/SOP stage to stable volume production.

Drive Lean Manufacturing, TPM, Kaizen, 5S and continuous improvement initiatives.

Improve OEE and reduce downtime, rejection, rework and manufacturing losses.

Establish plant-level operational dashboards and performance reviews.

Drive automation, digitization and MES-enabled shop-floor operations.

Ensure adherence to defined product and process quality standards.

Drive First-Time-Right, rejection reduction, defect prevention and root-cause analysis.

Establish robust process controls across manufacturing operations.

Partner with Quality teams for process validation and continuous improvement.

Support prototype, pilot and new-product manufacturing activities.

Drive manufacturing readiness for new products and variants.

Coordinate prototype, pilot and pre-SOP builds.

Ensure readiness of manpower, machinery, process, material, tooling and quality systems.

Lead production ramp-up while maintaining quality, cost and delivery targets.

Work closely with Procurement, SCM and suppliers to ensure uninterrupted material availability. Drive supplier readiness for new product launches and production ramp-up.

Resolve material, supplier and production bottlenecks.

Optimize material flow from incoming material through WIP to finished products.

Own manufacturing CapEx planning and execution.

Ensure projects are delivered within approved timelines and budgets.

Drive manufacturing cost reduction, productivity improvement and manpower optimization.

Monitor conversion cost and plant operational expenses.

Establish a strong Safety, Health and Environmental culture across the plant.

Ensure compliance with statutory, environmental and manufacturing requirements.

Conduct safety audits, risk assessments and corrective-action reviews.

Drive safe and sustainable manufacturing practices.

Build and lead a high-performing plant organization.

Develop plant leadership, engineering, production and shop-floor talent.

Drive manpower planning, capability building and technical training.

Establish a culture of accountability, safety, quality and operational excellence.

Work closely with senior leadership on plant strategy, capacity, investment and operational performance.

Partner with Engineering, R&D, Quality, SCM, Procurement, Finance and HR.

Present plant performance, risks, CapEx, productivity and operational improvement plans to senior management.

Greenfield plant setup and commissioning experience is mandatory.

Candidates with only steady-state plant operations experience and no plant setup/project execution exposure should not be considered.

Strong preference for candidates from Automotive / EV / Commercial Vehicle / Auto Component manufacturing.

Candidate should have demonstrated experience in production ramp-up and SOP stabilization.

Experience managing significant CapEx and manufacturing investments is preferred.

Strong exposure to Lean, TPM, OEE and manufacturing excellence is expected.

Role requires regular presence at the manufacturing plant.

Candidate should be comfortable working in a high-growth manufacturing environment.

Experience in setting up a new production line/facility and subsequently taking ownership of operations should be clearly demonstrated in the CV.