We are seeking an experienced Plant Manager / Production Manager to lead the setup, commissioning, and ongoing operations of a chemical blending facility for the manufacture of detergents, surfactants, and dicing fluids. The role will be responsible for safe, efficient, quality-driven, and compliant plant operations, including production planning, batch manufacturing, raw material handling, packaging, maintenance coordination, manpower management, and continuous improvement.

The ideal candidate will bring strong hands-on experience in chemical blending, specialty chemicals, surfactants, detergents, lubricants, process chemicals, personal care chemicals, or related formulation-based manufacturing environments, along with proven leadership of plant teams and adherence to safety, quality, and statutory requirements.

Key Responsibilities

- Lead day-to-day production operations for chemical blending, mixing, filtration, filling, packaging, storage, and dispatch activities.
- Manage plant setup activities including layout readiness, equipment installation support, utilities coordination, trial batches, commissioning, and operational handover.
- Ensure all batches are manufactured strictly as per approved formulations, batch sheets, SOPs, work instructions, and quality specifications.
- Plan production schedules based on customer requirements, raw material availability, manpower, equipment capacity, and delivery commitments.
- Supervise handling, storage, charging, transfer, and use of chemicals including surfactants, solvents, additives, builders, preservatives, pH adjusters, fragrances, and specialty performance additives.
- Maintain strong control over batch yields, rework, wastage, spillage, process losses, and product consistency.
- Coordinate closely with Quality Control / Quality Assurance for raw material release, in-process checks, finished product testing, non-conformance handling, and corrective actions.
- Implement and enforce EHS practices related to chemical handling, PPE, MSDS/SDS compliance, spill response, fire safety, hazardous storage, effluent control, and emergency preparedness.
- Maintain compliance with applicable factory, labour, environmental, statutory, ISO, customer, and internal audit requirements.
- Lead, train, schedule, and develop supervisors, operators, technicians, helpers, and contract employees across shifts.
- Coordinate with maintenance and engineering teams to ensure preventive maintenance, breakdown response, calibration, utility reliability,



and equipment uptime.
- Monitor production performance using KPIs such as output, batch cycle time, right-first-time quality, OEE, downtime, yield, cost, rejection rate, and on-time delivery.
- Maintain accurate plant documentation, including batch records, production reports, stock records, shift logs, equipment cleaning records, EHS records, and audit trails.
- Drive continuous improvement initiatives in productivity, safety, housekeeping, process standardization, material usage, energy efficiency, and cost reduction.
- Support procurement, stores, warehouse, logistics, R&D;, technical service, and commercial teams to ensure smooth end-to-end operations.

Requirements

Required Qualifications and Experience

- Bachelors degree in Chemical Engineering, Industrial Chemistry, Chemistry, Polymer Science, Production Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
- Minimum 810 years of relevant experience in chemical manufacturing, preferably in chemical blending, detergents, surfactants, specialty chemicals, metalworking fluids, dicing fluids, lubricants, process chemicals, home care, personal care, coatings, adhesives, or similar formulation-based industries.
- At least 3–5 years of experience in a supervisory or managerial production role with responsibility for teams, shifts, production targets, safety, and quality outcomes.
- Experience in plant startup, commissioning, scale-up, process stabilization, or greenfield / brownfield expansion projects will be highly preferred.
- Strong working knowledge of batch processing, blending vessels, agitators, pumps, transfer lines, filtration systems, filling lines, storage tanks, weighing systems, utilities, and packaging operations.
- Familiarity with ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, 5S, lean manufacturing, and statutory compliance requirements applicable to chemical plants.

Technical Competencies
- Understanding of surfactant chemistry, detergent formulations, emulsions, pH control, viscosity control, foam behaviour, compatibility, and stability requirements.
- Knowledge of chemical blending methods, batch sequencing,



raw material compatibility, and contamination prevention.
- Ability to read and implement formulations, batch manufacturing records, process parameters, SOPs, SDS/MSDS documents, and quality specifications.
- Strong awareness of safe storage and handling of acids, alkalis, solvents, surfactants, preservatives, additives, and other industrial chemicals.
- Working knowledge of effluent, waste, spill, and emissions management practices relevant to chemical blending facilities.
- Ability to troubleshoot production issues such as off-spec batches, phase separation, foaming, viscosity deviation, contamination, colour / odour variation, filling losses, and equipment downtime.

Leadership and Behavioural Competencies
- Strong leadership, ownership, discipline, and hands-on plant-floor orientation.
- Ability to build and lead teams in a startup or scale-up manufacturing environment.
- High commitment to safety, quality, compliance, housekeeping, and operational reliability.
- Good communication skills for coordination with senior management, technical teams, vendors, auditors, customers, and shop-floor employees.
- Strong problem-solving ability with a practical, data-driven, and cost-conscious approach.
- Ability to create systems, enforce SOPs, train teams, and sustain operational discipline.

Key Performance Indicators
- Achievement of monthly and weekly production plans.
- Right-first-time batch quality and reduction in non-conformances.
- Improvement in yield, productivity, batch cycle time, and equipment uptime.
- Reduction in wastage, rework, spills, downtime, and customer complaints.
- Compliance with EHS, statutory, audit, and documentation requirements.
- Manpower productivity, training completion, retention, and discipline.
- On-time availability of finished goods for dispatch.

Reporting and Interfaces

Reports to: Business Head

Preferred Candidate Profile The preferred candidate will be a practical, technically strong, safety-conscious production leader who has grown through plant operations and understands both formulation accuracy and shop-floor execution. The person should be comfortable working in a hands-on setting, setting up systems from scratch, leading teams across shifts, and ensuring that the facility operates with high standards of quality, discipline, compliance, and cost control.

Benefits

As per candidate's experience and expertise & industry standards

📌 Plant Manager / Production Manager (Chennai)
🏢 MEL SYSTEMS AND SERVICES
📍 Chennai