Manufacturing Project Manager

Mural Group
Ashland, KY
On-siteCareer-pivot friendly

Who this role is best for

Strong fit for candidates with hands-on manufacturing or trades experience who manage multiple projects and communicate with customers, working in an industrial environment in Ashland, KY.

Best fit for

  • Candidates with hands-on manufacturing or trades experience and strong organizational skills
    — “Our client's best Project Managers came up from the manufacturing and trades side”
  • Individuals who can manage 20+ concurrent projects and keep them on track
    — “Ability to manage 20 or more concurrent projects without losing track of any of them”
  • Candidates who are comfortable with technical documentation and customer communication
    — “Write technical reports for customers and internal record keeping”

Things to consider

  • The role requires consistent on-site presence in an industrial shop floor environment
    — “comfortable on an active industrial shop floor (steel-toed boots and hard hat are part of the routine)”
  • The position involves a moderate level of domestic and international travel
    — “Domestic and international travel: 10 to 15 percent”

How to stand out

  • Highlight experience managing multiple projects simultaneously and on-site shop floor work
    — “managing 40 to 60 active repair and refurbishment jobs at once”
  • Showcase skills in translating customer needs into production work orders
    — “Develop project scopes of work and translate customer needs into production work orders”
  • Emphasize ability to interpret engineering drawings and coordinate machining activities
    — “Interpret engineering drawings and coordinate machining and fabrication activities accordingly”
  • Demonstrate experience in customer communication and proactive updates
    — “Serve as the primary customer contact from job intake through completion -- providing consistent, proactive updates”
Pace · Fast PacedCollaboration · HighAutonomy · MediumDecision Impact · Team

Derived from job-description analysis by Serendipath's career intelligence engine.

What success looks like

  • managing 40-60 active projects
  • proactive customer updates
  • risk assessments
  • technical report writing
Typical background
manufacturingtradesindustrial shop experience

Skills & requirements

Required

Project ManagementManufacturingTradesIndustrial Shop ExperienceMechanical AptitudeCustomer CommunicationExcelProject Management Software

Preferred

Mechanical EngineeringRisk Assessment

Stack & domain

Microsoft ExcelMicrosoft ProjectMechanical EngineeringReading Technical DrawingsUnderstanding Production OperationsStrong Customer CommunicationAbility To Manage Concurrent ProjectsOrganizedMechanically InclinedManufacturingIndustrial Shop Experience

About the role

Original posting from Mural Group via Ashby

Manufacturing Project Manager | Ashland, Kentucky | Direct Hire | Full Benefits

Steel Equipment Service Center | Industrial Environment | 40-60 Active Jobs

Overview

Mural is partnering with a globally backed steel equipment service company to find a Manufacturing Project Manager for their Ashland, Kentucky operation. Our client is a North American service hub for one of the world's top steel equipment manufacturers -- they repair, refurbish, and re-manufacture heavy steel mill components for major steel producers across the country. Their Project Managers are on the shop floor daily, managing 40 to 60 active repair and refurbishment jobs at once for external customers.

This is a direct hire opportunity with full benefits at a stable, globally backed company.

What you will be doing

You will own the full project lifecycle for incoming repair and refurbishment work -- from scoping and procurement through production coordination, schedule management, cost control, and customer delivery.

  • Develop project scopes of work and translate customer needs into production work orders
  • Identify parts to be procured or refurbished; coordinate purchasing with the Proposal Engineer and Production team
  • Monitor job schedules and control costs across 40 to 60 active projects at a time
  • Serve as the primary customer contact from job intake through completion -- providing consistent, proactive updates
  • Conduct risk assessments and flag potential delays or cost overruns before they happen
  • Lead project kick-off meetings and keep Sales and Production aligned throughout
  • Interpret engineering drawings and coordinate machining and fabrication activities accordingly
  • Write technical reports for customers and internal record keeping
  • Maintain organized electronic documentation for every active job
  • Domestic and international travel: 10 to 15 percent

The right background

Our client's best Project Managers came up from the manufacturing and trades side -- machinists, millwrights, maintenance technicians -- because they understand what the work actually requires. You do not need to have "Project Manager" on your resume to be the right fit. You do need to be comfortable on an active industrial shop floor (steel-toed boots and hard hat are part of the routine), mechanically inclined enough to read drawings and understand machining and fabrication operations, and organized enough to keep dozens of concurrent jobs moving without dropping the ball.

  • Manufacturing, trades, or industrial shop experience strongly preferred
  • Ability to manage 20 or more concurrent projects without losing track of any of them
  • Strong customer communication -- you will be the voice of the company throughout every job
  • Proficiency in Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Project or equivalent
  • Mechanical aptitude: reading technical drawings, understanding production operations
  • Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or related field preferred but not required -- the right background matters more than the degree

What the client offers

  • Direct hire -- no temp period, no conversion
  • Medical, dental, and vision coverage
  • Life and disability insurance
  • 401(k) with employer match
  • Paid time off accrual
  • Career growth within a global industrial organization

Source: Mural Group careers (Ashby)

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