Manufacturing Manager

We are recruiting on behalf of a well-established furniture manufacturer seeking an experienced and driven Manufacturing Manager to lead its production facility. This is a key leadership position responsible for delivering operational excellence, driving continuous improvement, and developing high-performing teams within a fast-paced manufacturing environment.

The successful candidate will have a passion for lean manufacturing, a proven ability to improve productivity and quality, and a strong track record of leading people through change. This role is ideal for someone who thrives on creating efficient, safe, and high-performing manufacturing operations.

Roles & Responsibilities

• Lead all day-to-day manufacturing operations, ensuring production targets are achieved safely, efficiently, and to the highest quality standards.
• Develop and implement strategic initiatives to improve productivity, reduce waste, and optimise manufacturing processes.
• Drive a culture of continuous improvement using Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma methodologies.
• Manage, coach, and develop production managers, supervisors, and manufacturing teams, fostering a culture of accountability, engagement, and high performance.
• Analyse production data and KPIs to identify trends, bottlenecks, and improvement opportunities.
• Ensure effective production planning and resource utilisation to meet customer demand and delivery schedules.
• Work closely with engineering, quality, maintenance, procurement, and supply chain teams to improve operational performance.
• Champion health, safety, environmental, and quality standards, ensuring full compliance with company policies and statutory regulations.
• Lead root cause analysis and implement sustainable corrective actions for operational issues.
• Manage departmental budgets and identify opportunities to reduce operational costs without compromising quality or safety.
• Support new product introductions and manufacturing process development where required.

Essential Requirements

• Significant leadership experience within a manufacturing management role, ideally within the furniture, woodworking, cabinetry, joinery, or related manufacturing sector.
• Certified Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt (Black Belt preferred).
• Demonstrable success in delivering measurable process improvements, cost savings, waste reduction, and productivity gains.
• Strong experience implementing Lean Manufacturing tools such as 5S, Kaizen, Value Stream Mapping, Standard Work, SMED, and Visual Management.
• Excellent people management skills with a proven ability to lead, motivate, coach, and develop large manufacturing teams.
• Experience managing change and embedding a continuous improvement culture.
• Strong commercial awareness with the ability to balance operational performance against business objectives.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills with a data-driven approach to decision making.
• Experience managing KPIs including OEE, labour efficiency, quality, waste, delivery performance, and downtime.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills across all levels of the organisation.