Maintenance Manager (Heavy Industrial Manufacturing) Johannesburg
Humankind Group · Johannesburg, Gauteng
Overview
Humankind Group is looking for a hands on Maintenance Manager to lead plant reliability at a demanding heavy industrial manufacturing operation in Gauteng. If you have a mechanical or electrical background and at least 5 years managing maintenance teams in environments like cement, ceramics, steel or mining, this role puts you at the centre of production uptime and engineering standards. It is a permanent, on site opportunity for a technically strong leader who enjoys solving breakdowns and driving continuous improvement.
About the role
This is a senior maintenance leadership role with a focus on keeping a heavy industrial plant running safely, efficiently and with minimal unplanned downtime. You will be responsible for the full maintenance function across mechanical and electrical systems, from planning and budgets to leading artisans, technicians and contractors on site.
What you will be doing:
- Overseeing mechanical and electrical maintenance across the plant and developing preventative, predictive and corrective maintenance programmes.
- Investigating recurring equipment failures, conducting root cause analysis on major breakdowns and implementing long term fixes.
- Coordinating planned shutdowns, inspections, repairs and equipment overhauls to keep production on track.
- Providing technical guidance on complex faults, fault finding and troubleshooting across industrial machinery.
- Leading and developing the maintenance team, allocating workloads and building a culture of safety and accountability.
- Managing maintenance budgets, spare parts, critical inventory and external service providers.
- Monitoring KPIs such as equipment availability, breakdown frequency, downtime and maintenance costs.
- Working closely with production and operations teams to align maintenance activities with manufacturing targets and drive continuous improvement.
Application note: Please submit your CV directly to Andrea@HumankindGroup.co.za. Remember to use the reference HC006327-Andre-1 in your application.
Requirements
- At least 5 years relevant experience in maintenance management or a similar senior maintenance role within an industrial or manufacturing environment.
- A relevant degree, diploma or technical qualification in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering or a related engineering discipline.
- Strong mechanical or electrical technical knowledge supported by practical experience.
- Demonstrated experience managing and leading technical maintenance teams.
- Proven experience with industrial machinery, plant equipment and production systems.
- Sound knowledge of preventative, predictive and corrective maintenance practices.
- Experience with breakdown management, fault finding, root cause analysis and maintenance planning.
- Strong organisational, problem solving, communication and leadership skills.
- Ability to work effectively in a demanding, production focused environment.
- Advantageous: Government Certificate of Competency (GCC), a relevant trade test such as Millwright, Fitter or Electrician, and experience in heavy industrial or process driven manufacturing.
Responsibilities
- Oversee all mechanical and electrical maintenance activities across the plant.
- Develop, implement and monitor preventative, predictive and corrective maintenance programmes.
- Ensure plant machinery, production equipment and supporting systems operate at optimal performance levels.
- Minimise unplanned downtime through effective maintenance planning, scheduling and execution.
- Identify recurring equipment failures and implement corrective actions to improve reliability.
- Conduct root cause analysis on major breakdowns and develop long term solutions.
- Coordinate planned maintenance shutdowns, inspections, repairs and equipment overhauls.
- Provide technical guidance on complex mechanical and electrical faults.
- Ensure effective troubleshooting and fault finding across industrial machinery and production equipment.
- Identify opportunities to improve equipment performance, efficiency and operational reliability.
- Oversee the installation, repair, servicing and commissioning of machinery and equipment where required.
- Ensure maintenance activities comply with relevant engineering standards, technical specifications and safety requirements.
- Lead, supervise and develop maintenance personnel including artisans, technicians, supervisors and contractors.
- Allocate workloads, coordinate maintenance activities and monitor team performance.
- Establish clear performance expectations and promote accountability within the maintenance department.
- Identify skills gaps and facilitate technical training and development.
- Foster a culture of safety, teamwork, continuous improvement and operational excellence.
- Develop and manage maintenance budgets, ensuring the effective use of resources.
- Manage spare parts, tools, equipment and critical maintenance inventory.
- Coordinate external contractors and service providers where necessary.
- Monitor maintenance expenditure and identify cost saving opportunities without compromising safety or reliability.
- Maintain accurate maintenance records, reports and equipment histories.
- Ensure compliance with occupational health and safety requirements and applicable engineering regulations.
- Promote safe working practices, risk assessments and adherence to maintenance procedures.
- Monitor maintenance KPIs including equipment availability, breakdown frequency, downtime and maintenance costs.
- Work closely with production and operations teams to align maintenance activities with manufacturing targets.
- Drive continuous improvement initiatives to increase productivity, reliability and plant efficiency.
Job details
- Organisation
- Humankind Group
- Location
- Johannesburg, Gauteng
- Job type
- Full time
- Experience level
- Senior (5+ years)
- Education
- Diploma
- Category
- Manufacturing & Production
- Application Email
- andrea@humankindgroup.co.za
- Application Method
- Apply via email
Success Guide
Before you send your CV to Andrea at Humankind Group, take a moment to tailor it for a heavy industrial plant environment. This role is not for a desk bound manager, so highlight hands on mechanical or electrical work you have personally done, not just the teams you supervised. If you have experience in cement, ceramics, steel, glass or mining, make that visible near the top of your CV because the advert specifically calls out those industries. Also mention any GCC, Millwright, Fitter or Electrician trade test you hold, as these give you an edge. In an interview, expect questions about how you handle a major breakdown under pressure and how you prioritise competing maintenance tasks when production is breathing down your neck. Have one or two real stories ready about reducing downtime or cutting maintenance costs safely. Remember to quote reference HC006327-Andre-1 in your email subject line.
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