Manufacturing Excellence Coach in Northampton

We are currently looking for an enthusiastic individual to join our Forterra team in the position of Manufacturing Excellence Coach. The Manufacturing Excellence Coach will drive continuous improvement across manufacturing operations by mentoring teams, implementing best practices, and promoting the adoption of lean manufacturing principles. This role is focused on enhancing operational efficiency, ensuring the highest standards of productivity, quality, and sustainability, and fostering a culture of innovation and collaboration. The Manufacturing Excellence Coach empowers teams to achieve their full potential while contributing to the overall success and growth of the organisation.

Your duties would include but are not limited to the following:

• Safety and Compliance: Ensure that all improvements and operational practices align with safety regulations and compliance standards. Promote a strong safety culture within teams and ensure that safety protocols are adhered to in all continuous improvement activities.
• Continuous Improvement Leadership: Facilitate the implementation of continuous improvement initiatives, driving process optimization, efficiency, and waste reduction across manufacturing teams. Lead problem-solving sessions and Kaizen events, guiding teams in applying lean principles (e.g., 5S, Six Sigma) to improve processes and resolve issues.
• Coaching and Development: Mentor and coach teams at all levels to adopt best practices, lean methodologies, and effective problem-solving techniques. Build capabilities within teams by providing training on manufacturing excellence tools, fostering a culture of self-sufficiency in continuous improvement.
• Process Optimization: Support the identification of key performance indicators (KPIs) for manufacturing operations and ensure their alignment with business objectives. Assist in standardising processes across production lines to improve consistency, reduce variability, and drive efficiency.
• Performance Monitoring and Reporting: Monitor and analyse operational performance to ensure continuous improvement goals are being met. Provide regular updates and insights on progress toward operational excellence goals, including recommendations for improvement to senior leadership.
• Collaboration and Cross-Functional Support: Work closely with cross-functional teams (e.g., Quality, Engineering, R&D, Supply Chain) to ensure alignment between manufacturing and other business functions. Share knowledge and best practices across teams and sites, promoting collaboration and ensuring alignment with the overall business strategy.
• Sustainability and Cost Efficiency: Support efforts to improve sustainability by identifying opportunities for resource optimisation, waste reduction, and energy conservation. Promote cost-saving initiatives without compromising quality, safety, or productivity, ensuring maximum efficiency across manufacturing processes.
• Change Management: Lead and support the implementation of change management initiatives related to new processes, systems, or technologies. Encourage the adoption of new tools and technologies to continuously enhance manufacturing capabilities.
• Knowledge Sharing and Best Practices: Actively contribute to the knowledge-sharing process by capturing lessons learned from improvement projects and disseminating them across teams. Identify and implement industry best practices to elevate the organisation's manufacturing processes and maintain competitive advantage.

About You: Strong strategic thinking skills, with the ability to align manufacturing operations and improvement initiatives with overall business objectives. Excellent problem-solving and analytical abilities, focused on identifying root causes and driving effective solutions to foster continuous improvement in manufacturing processes. A certificate in Six Sigma certification (Black Belt or Master Black Belt), certificate in other process improvement methodologies (e.g., Kaizen, TQM), degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Operations Management, or related field. Demonstrated success as a Manufacturing Excellence Coach, driving initiatives to improve operational efficiency and cultivate a culture of continuous improvement across manufacturing teams. In-depth knowledge and hands-on experience with Lean, Six Sigma, and other process optimisation methodologies, consistently delivering measurable improvements in performance, quality, and productivity. Strong leadership and coaching abilities, with proven capacity to mentor and guide teams through Lean transformations, adopting collaboration and achieving sustainable results.

What We Can Offer You: Competitive Salary and Benefits package, Life Assurance and Company Pension Scheme up to 10% employer contribution, Generous holiday allowance, Gym benefit and Cycle 2 Work Scheme, Access to Employee Assistance Programme for self and family members, Employee Referral Scheme, Service Awards, Sharesave Scheme eligibility, Holiday Exchange Scheme, Financial Wellbeing Program, Personal development and opportunities for progression, Company Annual Bonus Scheme.