Production and CBS Manager

Continental is a leading tire manufacturer and industry specialist that develops and produces sustainable, safe and convenient solutions for automotive manufacturers as well as industrial and end customers worldwide.

Founded in 1871, the company generated sales of €39.7 billion in 2024 and currently employs around 95,000 people in 54 countries and markets.

ContiTech is one of the world’s leading industry specialists. The Continental group sector offers its customers connected, environment-friendly, safe and convenient industry and service solutions using a range of materials for off-highway applications, on rails and roads, in the air, under and above the ground, in industrial environments, for the food sector and the furniture industry. With about 39,000 employees in more than 40 countries and sales of some 6.4 billion euros (2024), the global industrial partner is active with core branches in Asia, Europe and North and South America.

Objective: The role of the position is plan, coordinate and control all production activities in order to meet budget and production targets (e.g. maximize quality and capacity utilization, reduce cost and lead time) and establish Lean philosophy and methodology as well as to meet budget and Lean targets (e.g. eliminate waste, maximize delivery performance, reduce cost and inventories etc.). Furthermore, the Production manager initiates and implements action plans for continuous improvement of all plant processes including plant back-office processes.

Stakeholders/Interfaces: Internal: Plant management, heads of production of other plants (global), all central plant functions, sector and business area functions, Lean specialists, regional and sector Lean coaches

External: Customers, suppliers, auditors, unions, work councils

Key areas of responsibilities:

Production Management & Strategy [20%] - Manage and coordinate the production function of the plant - Contribute to strategic and operative planning of the plant (e.g. with respect to investments, capacity and headcount planning) - Ensure the achievement of production targets according to internal and external customer expectations - Initiate and control investments for production equipment (e.g. production machines, assembly equipment) - Initiate and implement continuous improvement activities by applying CBS methods and training measures

Production Planning, Control & Execution [15%] - Ensure planning of all production processes, equipment and employee resources taking into account customer demand and available capacity - Ensure the fulfillment on the daily and monthly production plan and corrective actions with relevant departments - Contribute to regular production planning and control processes (especially in close cooperation with supply chain function of plant) - Ensure operation of all production and rework processes and equipment according to standards and planning in close cooperation with maintenance - Ensure operation of in-process quality control and final inspection according to standards and planning, improve and follow up regularly on quality and losses with relevant departments - Ensure operation of internal material handling and transportation (internal logistic) for semi-finished goods (raw materials and finished goods are excluded) according to standards and planning - Ensure production data acquisition (e.g. order, machine, process or quality data) according to standards Internal

Lean (business systems) Coordination [20%] - Manage and coordinate all company adapted Lean activities for the plant - Translate plant Lean strategy into action plans and ensure implementation (shared with Plant Manager) - Contribute to strategic and operative planning of the plant (e.g. with respect to investments, capacity and headcount planning) - Ensure the achievement of Lean targets according to internal and external customer expectations, live and promote the Lean principles and methods - Interface to sector or BA functions in order to gather local Lean requirements and demands and other feedback

Lean Project Management and Leadership [15%] - Identify Lean opportunities and improvement potential, derive Lean roadmap together with plant management - Initiate Lean projects, Rapid Improvement Events (RIE) and Just Do It’s (JDI), structured problem solving, Gemba leadership and other Lean methods to leverage identified potentials - Support and ensure the implementation of lean projects and activities according to plant reflecting current business situation

Training and Coaching [10%] - Operate shop floor training management (i.e. education and training of variable staff for production, logistics and maintenance processes) - Ensure the availability of qualified employees for the production and Lean function in cooperation with plant HR - Execute workshops and coaching of plant employees and management in order to introduce and develop Lean philosophy, principles and methods throughout the plant’s/operations unit’s processes (e.g. lean thinking, continuous improvement culture, lean leadership, etc.)

Monitoring and Reporting [10%] - Support production performance (KPI) monitoring and reporting (e.g. regarding cost, lead time, quality, scrap, waste, energy, OEE, etc.) in cooperation with manufacturing engineering and plant controlling - Ensure Lean KPI monitoring and reporting (e.g. Lean projects, workshops, improvement measures and success, etc.) in cooperation with plant management and controlling - Maintain Lean project database (project approvals, project charter, achieved results and overall accuracy of information) - Initiate and control measures to improve production process performance

Standardization [10%] - Ensure local implementation of central production standards and group Lean standards - Provide feedback and input for further development of standards regarding production processes (e.g. production flow plan, production control plan, work instructions, standardized work chart etc)

Bachelor of Engineering from reputed University and 6+ years of manufacturing experience. Knowledge of Lean Management and experience is essential. Candidates from Rubber/Rubber & Metal Industries are preferred but not constraint for candidate from other industries. Should have leadership qualities and have experience of leading team members.

Any lean management certification like Kanban, 5S, Kaizen, Value Stream mapping etc. will be added advantage.  

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