Salary: $100,000 - $190,000 per year
Location: Columbiana, OH
Posted: November 04 2026
Minimum Degree:
Relocation Assistance: Not Available
Our client is a privately held, profitable manufacturer of injection-molded plastic packaging products.
The company operates two manufacturing facilities located near one another in Northeast Ohio. The operation consists of approximately 15 injection molding machines and 70 employees.
One facility operates approximately 24 hours per day, five days per week, while the other operates on a 24/7 schedule.
The company is seeking an experienced, hands-on Plant Manager to oversee both facilities, strengthen daily manufacturing operations and improve overall plant performance.
PLEASE DO NOT SUBMIT CANDIDATES WHO DO NOT HAVE DIRECT INJECTION MOLDING MANUFACTURING EXPERIENCE.
This is not a general manufacturing management position. Candidates must have a strong understanding of injection molding equipment, processing, maintenance and production operations.
Required qualifications:
Injection Molding Experience: Direct experience working in an injection molding manufacturing environment. Candidates must understand injection molding machinery, processing, tooling, cycle times, scrap, downtime and production challenges.
Plant / Operations Leadership: Experience managing daily manufacturing operations in an injection molding facility, with direct accountability for production performance and employees.
Hands-On Technical Knowledge: Must be comfortable on the production floor working with process technicians, maintenance personnel and production supervisors to identify and resolve equipment and processing problems.
Maintenance and Equipment Reliability: Experience improving equipment uptime, implementing preventative maintenance practices and addressing recurring machinery issues.
People Management: Demonstrated experience leading production supervisors, maintenance teams and hourly manufacturing employees, with responsibility for performance, accountability and operational discipline.
Operational Improvement: Proven experience improving manufacturing efficiency, reducing scrap, increasing throughput and controlling manufacturing costs.
Candidates whose experience is limited to extrusion, blow molding, thermoforming, rotational molding or other plastics processes without injection molding experience will not be considered.
The Plant Manager will oversee manufacturing operations across two nearby facilities, including approximately 12 to 15 injection molding machines and 70 employees.
The primary responsibilities include:
▪️ Direct daily production, maintenance, staffing, scheduling and overall manufacturing operations.
▪️ Improve injection molding machine uptime and reduce unplanned downtime.
▪️ Strengthen preventative maintenance programs and equipment reliability.
▪️ Identify and resolve recurring processing, tooling and equipment problems.
▪️ Improve production throughput, cycle times, scrap rates and manufacturing efficiency.
▪️ Establish clear performance expectations and accountability among supervisors and hourly employees.
▪️ Improve plant housekeeping, organization, safety and operational discipline.
▪️ Work closely with process technicians and maintenance personnel to troubleshoot production issues.
▪️ Evaluate existing machinery, tooling and equipment to identify necessary repairs, upgrades and capital investments.
▪️ Improve production planning, labor utilization and overall operating costs.
▪️ Develop and monitor operational performance metrics, including downtime, scrap, quality, productivity and on-time delivery.
▪️ Provide hands-on leadership across both manufacturing facilities.
This is an established, profitable business, but the company recognizes that improvements are needed in several areas.
1. Equipment Reliability and Maintenance
The operation has equipment that requires stronger maintenance practices. The incoming Plant Manager must improve preventative maintenance, address recurring equipment failures and reduce production interruptions.
2. Production Efficiency
Improve machine utilization, throughput, cycle times and scrap rates. The company needs someone who understands injection molding well enough to identify where production performance is falling short.
3. Employee Accountability
Establish greater consistency, structure and accountability among production supervisors, maintenance personnel and hourly employees.
4. Plant Organization and Housekeeping
Improve cleanliness, organization and overall manufacturing discipline across both facilities.
5. Long-Term Operational Improvements
Evaluate capital equipment needs, identify opportunities for productivity improvements and establish sustainable manufacturing practices.
The strongest candidates will have