Mechanical Maintenance Supervisor

Opportunity Profile

Location: South Carolina

Position Title: Mechanical Maintenance Supervisor

The Opportunity:
This is an outstanding opportunity for a proven maintenance leader to step into a highly visible leadership role supporting a critical paper machine operation. The Mechanical Maintenance Supervisor will lead a skilled team responsible for maintaining the reliability, performance, and availability of essential production assets that directly impact mill performance and profitability.

The role became available following the internal promotion of a respected maintenance leader, creating an opportunity for a new supervisor to build upon an established foundation while bringing fresh leadership and accountability to the team. Success in this position will require much more than technical expertise. The ideal individual will be a leader who can earn credibility with experienced craftspeople, establish clear expectations, foster teamwork, and create a culture centered on safety, reliability, and operational excellence.

This position offers significant influence across maintenance operations, outage execution, employee development, and continuous improvement efforts. The successful candidate will oversee daily maintenance activities, support major machine shutdowns, collaborate with operations and reliability teams, and play a key role in improving equipment performance and uptime. For a maintenance professional who enjoys leading people, solving complex mechanical challenges, and driving measurable operational results, this role presents an exceptional career opportunity.

The Company:
Our client is a large-scale manufacturing organization operating a highly automated industrial production facility where maintenance and reliability are critical to operational success. The facility is focused on maintaining high levels of production performance while continuously improving equipment reliability, safety, and operational effectiveness.

The organization values strong collaboration between maintenance, operations, planning, and reliability functions. Major maintenance projects and outages require coordinated efforts across multiple departments, creating an environment where teamwork, communication, and leadership are highly valued. The company continues to invest in maintaining and improving its assets while providing opportunities for career advancement and professional growth for high-performing employees.

The Boss:
The Mechanical Maintenance Supervisor reports directly to the Assistant Maintenance Superintendent and works closely with the broader maintenance leadership structure, including maintenance management, superintendents, planners, and reliability personnel.

The leadership team is focused on developing a culture of accountability, professionalism, and operational excellence. They are seeking a supervisor who can provide strong leadership to an experienced workforce, build trust within the organization, and help elevate team performance through consistent communication, coaching, and clear expectations. Success in this environment will come from balancing technical expertise with strong people leadership and a commitment to continuous improvement.

The Position:
The Mechanical Maintenance Supervisor is responsible for leading mechanical maintenance activities supporting a high-volume paper machine operation. This hands-on leadership role oversees daily maintenance execution, outage planning and support, reliability improvement initiatives, workforce development, and safe work practices.

The position leads a team of approximately 10-15 maintenance employees on a daily basis, including mechanics and machinists, while also coordinating larger groups of 20-30 personnel during major maintenance outages. The supervisor works extensively with operations, electrical maintenance, planners, contractors, and reliability personnel to ensure equipment reliability and production success.

Essential Functions (Other duties may be assigned):

• Supervise and lead a team of maintenance employees, including mechanics and machinists.
• Coordinate and direct daily mechanical maintenance activities supporting production assets.
• Plan, prioritize, and assign maintenance work to ensure safe and efficient execution.
• Support and coordinate major maintenance outages involving internal resources and contractors.
• Promote and enforce compliance with all safety, environmental, and company policies.
• Drive preventive, predictive, and corrective maintenance strategies.
• Collaborate closely with operations, planning, electrical maintenance, and reliability teams.
• Monitor equipment performance and implement reliability improvements.
• Coach, mentor, and develop maintenance personnel.
• Conduct performance management and workforce development activities.
• Assist with troubleshooting complex equipment failures and root cause investigations.
• Manage maintenance work orders, documentation, and CMMS activities.
• Participate in budgeting, planning, and cost control initiatives.
• Foster a culture of accountability, teamwork, and continuous improvement.

Qualifications:

• Strong leadership skills with the ability to lead experienced skilled trades personnel.
• Proven ability to establish accountability and build productive working relationships.
• Working knowledge of preventive and predictive maintenance principles.
• Experience supporting maintenance shutdowns, outages, or major maintenance projects.
• Strong understanding of industrial mechanical systems and equipment reliability.
• Ability to read and interpret technical documentation and equipment manuals.
• Effective communication, organizational, and problem-solving abilities.
• Demonstrated commitment to safety and operational excellence.

Education and Experience:

• High school diploma or GED required.
• Minimum of five years of industrial mechanical maintenance experience.
• Minimum of two years of supervisory, lead, foreman, or team leadership experience within an industrial environment.
• Experience supervising maintenance technicians, mechanics, or skilled trades personnel.
• Heavy industrial manufacturing experience preferred.
• Experience in paper, pulp, packaging, steel, chemical processing, power generation, or similar industrial operations preferred.
• Associate's or Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Industrial Maintenance, Mechanical Technology, or a related field preferred.
• Experience with CMMS platforms and reliability-centered maintenance programs preferred.
• Lean Manufacturing and Continuous Improvement experience preferred.

Competencies:

• Leadership and team development
• Safety leadership
• Accountability and performance management
• Mechanical troubleshooting and problem solving
• Equipment reliability and maintenance best practices
• Continuous improvement mindset
• Planning and organizational effectiveness
• Cross-functional collaboration
• Communication and interpersonal effectiveness
• Decision-making and execution

Work Environment:

This position operates within a manufacturing paper mill environment supporting critical production assets. Employees are regularly exposed to rotating equipment, elevated platforms, industrial process areas, heat, and noise. The role requires participation in planned maintenance outages and occasional support outside of normal work schedules as business needs dictate. The position carries direct responsibility for equipment that is essential to production performance and operational success.

Compensation:

Our client offers a competitive compensation package that includes performance-based incentive opportunities and a comprehensive benefits program featuring healthcare coverage, retirement savings programs, paid time off, disability protection, life insurance, employee assistance resources, and career development opportunities. The compensation structure is designed to attract experienced maintenance leaders capable of driving operational excellence and developing high-performing teams.