Client: Large Branded Beverage Manufacturer
Industry: Bottling and Beverage Manufacturing
Search Focus: Engineering Leadership and Sustainability Initiatives
Location: Northeastern United States
The Challenge: Filling Newly-Created Director of Engineering Role
Our client, a multi-plant beverage producer, created an engineering leadership role to focus on sustainability and utility-related project management. The company understood their utility costs, but lacked effective reporting programs. With better programs in place, the organization would have a genuine understanding of utility costs per plant, and be able to evaluate the systems and processes in the network that were most efficient and why.
Streamlining reporting would help identify savings opportunities, and in return reduce each plant’s carbon footprint. The company also had a 600,000-gallon water tank project in the works that would service the processing and sprinkler systems, which needed to be completed without shutting down the plant. The organization also needed skills with wastewater treatment plant design and installation projects.
The company needed a leader with experience in:
- Experience or working knowledge of environmental sustainability concepts such as greenhouse gas emissions, green building principles/technologies, energy audits, etc.
- Multi-plant engineering leadership
- Stormwater runoff mitigation and regulation
- Large scale ammonia refrigeration systems, large scale steam boilers, and air compressors
- High-flow chilled water distribution
- Liquid nitrogen truck unloading, storage, vaporization, and distribution.
- Water treatment to include filtration, water softening, degasification, carbon treatment, deaeration, heat transfer, and reverse osmosis.
- Bulk chemical truck unloading, storage, and distribution to include caustic, sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid.
- Wastewater pH correction, pre-treatment, and source reduction.
- Multi-tasking effectively; resourceful with a “get-it-done, can-do” attitude.
- Impacting and effecting positive change with a flexible, open-minded, positive approach.
The Search
We launched a national search focused on CPG engineering leaders with both project management and strategic leadership experience. Knowing the importance of cultural alignment, we prioritized candidates with a history of working in a rapidly scaling brand where the environment can deliver chaos mixed with cadence.
Our shortlist included candidates with process and project engineering experience at:
- Large bottling and beverage processors
- Bulk chemical processing manufacturers
- Design-build firms that service the consumer-packaged goods industry
- Pharmaceutical manufacturers
Each candidate was fully vetted not just for technical competence, but for leadership style, agility, and ability to build and lead lean teams.
The Outcome: New Director of Engineering with 30 Years of Experience
Our client hired a person with over 30 years of experience in chemical engineering. This individual worked on everything from capital projects to process design and plant operations in various manufacturing settings. The new hire knows all about OSHA, PSM and FDA regulations and has a knack for leading teams to come up with innovative solutions and achieve company goals.
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