Project Manager Furnace, Batch House & Glass Melting Operations
Location: Ahmedabad
Qualification: BE Ceramics
Experience: 12-15 years
Industry Preference: Solar Glass, Float Glass, Container Glass, Specialty Glass
Role Objective
Lead complete furnace engineering, construction, commissioning, operation, maintenance, repair, life management, and team development activities for Solar Glass Manufacturing Plants. Candidate should be capable of independently handling furnace activities from Greenfield project stage through furnace campaign life and major rebuilds.
Key Responsibilities
1. Furnace Engineering & Design
- Understanding of End-Fired and Cross-Fired Furnaces
- Solar Glass Furnace Selection & Evaluation
- Furnace Capacity Planning (300 TPD to 1000+ TPD)
- Furnace Heat Balance & Energy Optimization
- Furnace Layout Review
- Furnace Design Coordination with OEMs and Consultants
- Furnace Expansion and Capacity Upgrade Studies
2. Furnace Construction & Rebuild
- Greenfield Furnace Construction
- Furnace Dry-out & Heat-up Planning
- Refractory Installation Supervision
- Steel Structure & Furnace Equipment Coordination
- Furnace Commissioning & Startup
- Furnace Reconstruction & Rebuild Projects
- Contractor and Chinese Team Management
- Glass Melting Process Control
- Pull Rate Management
- Furnace Pressure Control
- Temperature Profile Management
- Fuel Consumption Optimization
- Furnace Efficiency Improvement
- Yield Improvement
- Defect Reduction
- Production Planning
5. Furnace Fuel & Combustion System
Experience in:
- Natural Gas (NG)
- LNG-Based Furnace Systems
- LPG Backup Systems
- Fuel Switching
- Burner Systems
- Gas Trains
- Combustion Air Systems
- Regenerative Systems
- Furnace Safety Systems
Must handle:
- NG Failure Situations
- Burner Failure
- Power Failure Situations
- Emergency Furnace Stabilization
- Furnace Restart Procedures
- Campaign Life Monitoring
- Remaining Life Assessment
- Furnace Health Audits
- Thermal Imaging Analysis
- Refractory Wear Monitoring
- Furnace Repair Planning
- Rebuild Budgeting
8. Batch Plant & Raw Materials
Must possess strong knowledge of:
- Silica Sand
- Soda Ash
- Dolomite
- Limestone
- Feldspar
- Salt Cake
- Sodium Sulphate
- Cullet
- Additives and Fining Agents
Should understand:
- Raw Material Specifications
- Batch Formulation
- Batch Plant Operation
- Material Handling Systems
- Batch House Equipment
- Impact of Raw Material Variations on Furnace Performance
- Furnace Operations Team Hiring
- Melting Department Setup
- Training Programs
- SOP Development
- Performance Management
- Shift Team Development
- Chinese and Indian Team Coordination
12. Emergency & Risk Management
Must have experience handling:
- Furnace Power Failure
- Total Plant Blackout
- NG Supply Failure
- Burner Trip Conditions
- Cooling Water Failure
- Compressed Air Failure
- Furnace Leakages
- Crown Hot Spots
- Glass Breakout Risks
- Emergency Shutdown Procedures
Technical Skills Required
- Glass Melting Technology
- Solar Glass Manufacturing
- Float Glass Technology
- Refractory Engineering
- Combustion Engineering
- Heat Transfer Fundamentals
- Furnace Energy Optimization
- Batch Plant Operations
- Furnace Construction Management
- AutoCAD Drawing Review
- MS Project / Primavera
Candidate should be capable of independently leading the complete furnace lifecycle including design review, construction, refractory installation, commissioning, glass melting operations, hot and cold repairs, combustion systems, batch plant operations, furnace life management, emergency handling, team development, and long-term furnace performance optimization for a Greenfield Solar Glass Manufacturing Project.