Job Description

Ready to join a growing company with a positive culture, a dedication to customer service, and great benefits? Join us in beautiful Franklin, KY! EJ is seeking a Maintenance & Engineering Manager at our Franklin Foundry.

This is a very exciting time at EJ as the Franklin Foundry is a recent acquisition. This site is a startup opportunity with new equipment being installed and is slated to go operational in 2027.

Generous Benefit Package that includes:

Paid Vacation and Holidays, Paid Maternity & Paternity Leave, 401K (with match), Medical, Dental, Vision, Flexible Spending Account, HSA with Employer Match, Disability Insurance, Employee Assistance Program, Employee Wellness Program, Life Insurance, Tuition Reimbursement and Bonus Program.

About EJ We are the leader in the design, manufacture, and distribution of access solutions for water, sewer, drainage, telecommunications, and utility networks. EJ is a family-owned company with global operations. The corporate headquarters is in East Jordan, Michigan, where the company was founded in 1883.

We are seeking high performing individuals who embrace our values, understand the importance of relationships, and strive for excellence. Our values, which have been passed down for generations, are the essence of our company’s identity and our guide for making decisions. Core values at EJ include safety and security, honesty and integrity, environmental responsibility, respect for others, quality and excellence, and social responsibility.

Location: Onsite, Franklin, KY

The Maintenance & Engineering Manager provides strategic and operational leadership for facility engineering projects and foundry maintenance operations, including electrical, mechanical, preventative, custodial, and vehicle maintenance. This role directs engineering planning and execution, ensures asset reliability, drives continuous improvement, and leads a multidisciplinary maintenance organization to support safe, efficient, and compliant plant operations.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned.

Leadership & Strategy

• Promotes the culture, the mission and vision, and the core values of the company. This includes adherence to and promotion of the company safety beliefs, employee engagement, competencies, code of conduct, and other policies and procedures.
• Champion a strong safety culture, ensuring employees understand expectations and engage in safe work practices.
• Develop short- and long-range plans to advance facility engineering and “World Class Maintenance” standards.
• Lead, coach, and evaluate supervisors and team members to build organizational capability.

Engineering & Project Management

• Direct engineering project planning, design, budgeting, scheduling, and execution.
• Conduct technical studies, calculations, and research to develop engineering solutions.
• Prepare project drawings, specifications, cost estimates, and justification documents.
• Oversee internal engineering work and provide technical support to project engineers, designers, and maintenance teams.
• Coordinate contractors, internal teams, and production to ensure safe, on-time, and compliant project completion.

Maintenance Operations Management

• Establish departmental goals, KPIs, and maintenance procedures to optimize equipment reliability.
• Manage preventive, predictive, and corrective maintenance programs across foundry operations.
• Oversee procurement of equipment, materials, and service contracts, ensuring cost-effective and timely execution.
• Assist in developing and managing the annual maintenance budget.

Environmental & Compliance Responsibilities

• Support execution of the Corporate Environmental Policy, ensuring continuous improvement and environmental stewardship.
• Maintain environmental records and assist with inspections.
• Oversee proper handling and disposal of foundry residual materials.

Communication & Reporting

• Maintain accurate project documentation, drawings, files, and status reports.
• Facilitate clear communication across departments to ensure alignment throughout project lifecycles.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Manage and oversee employees in accordance with company policies and applicable laws, including hiring, training, performance management, and corrective action.
• Foster a positive, high-performance work environment.

QUALIFICATIONS

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering or related field, plus 10+ years of relevant engineering and/or maintenance experience, or equivalent combination.
• Foundry or metal casting experience strongly preferred, with iron foundry experience highly desirable; other metal casting environments will be considered.
• Experience in heavy industry maintenance, such as steel production, mining, or oil and gas will be considered.
• Demonstrated leadership of large teams, including experience managing 50+ skilled trades, technicians, and/or engineers.
• Experience managing multi-shift (24/7) operations in a manufacturing or industrial environment.
• Strong background in project management and project engineering, including cross-functional coordination.
• Experience with capital project budgeting and management, including cost control and execution.
• Experience with AutoCAD, SolidWorks, ISO 9001 systems, and CMMS platforms preferred.

Skills & Competencies

• Ability to interpret technical documents, regulations, and industry standards.
• Advanced analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
• Strong leadership, communication, organizational, and collaboration skills.
• Ability to think strategically and translate long-term objectives into actionable plans.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to walk. The employee is occasionally required to stand; sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; climb or balance; stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl; talk or hear; and taste or smell. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly exposed to moving mechanical parts. The employee is frequently exposed to fumes or airborne particles. The employee is occasionally exposed to wet and/or humid conditions; high, precarious places; toxic or caustic chemicals; outside weather conditions; extreme cold; extreme heat; risk of electrical shock; explosives; and vibration. The noise level in the work environment is usually loud.

EJ is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status.

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