Head of Production (Precision Engineering)

Why the role exists
THe company is developing the Thai plant from a regional supply site into a fully-fledged group manufacturing location with rising output, higher automation content and clearly measured productivity. The Production Manager is the operational owner of that transition and is expected to build a local management layer strong enough to run the plant to European standards without permanent expatriate supervision.
Mission — first 24 months

1. Take full operational ownership of machining, assembly and logistics; establish stable, transparent KPI reporting (OEE, on-time delivery, scrap and rework, productivity per head, inventory turns).
2. Raise on-time delivery performance to above 90 %. This target cannot be reached from the shop floor alone: it requires close, day-to-day cooperation with the production planning and scheduling function on sequencing, lot sizing, capacity levelling, material availability and realistic date commitments. We expect the Production Manager to work with planning as a partner, not to treat the schedule as something handed down.
3. Introduce or consolidate a working lean system on the shop floor — 5S, standard work, shop floor management, structured problem solving — with demonstrable and sustained results, not a one-off project.
4. Deliver a defined annual productivity improvement in machining and assembly [target: x % p.a.].
5. Prepare, justify and execute investments in machinery and assembly automation, including business cases, payback calculations and supplier selection, in cooperation with the Managing Director and the German parent.
6. Develop supervisors and team leaders into genuine first-line managers and reduce the dependency on individual key operators.

3. Responsibilities
Operations

• Overall responsibility for CNC machining (turning and milling of valve bodies, discs, shafts and actuator components), assembly and testing, internal logistics and warehouse.
• Production planning and capacity management in coordination with sales, planning and purchasing; adherence to delivery dates for local and intercompany demand.
• Quality performance of the production processes in cooperation with QA; ownership of process capability, scrap and rework.
• Occupational safety, 5S, order and cleanliness, and compliance with Thai labour and environmental regulations.

Continuous improvement

• Roll-out and day-to-day leadership of the lean toolset: value stream mapping, 5S, SMED, standard work, kanban and pull, TPM, and structured problem solving such as A3, 8D and PDCA.
• Systematic reduction of set-up times, cycle times, throughput times and inventory.
• Definition, tracking and defense of shop-floor KPIs; daily shopfloor management routine.

Technology and investment

• Planning of machinery and automation investments: requirement definition, specification, supplier evaluation, quotation comparison, business case with payback and ROI, acceptance and ramp-up.
• Development of assembly automation and semi-automation concepts — fixtures, poka-yoke, test benches, assembly cells, handling and robotics where economically justified.
• Support of new product industrialization together with the German engineering organization: process and tooling design, work instructions, routings and cycle time standards.
• Layout planning and material flow optimization for the site.

Leadership

• Leadership and development of supervisors, team leaders, technicians and operators [total approx. 100+ people].
• Manpower planning, shift models, skill matrices, training plans and succession for key positions.
• Cost center and budget responsibility for the production area.
• Building a performance and improvement culture, and acting as the interface between Thai shop-floor practice and German group expectations.

4. Candidate Profile
The two decisive criteria are long-standing, hands-on CNC experience and a proven record of leading production teams. Everything else is negotiable; these two are not.
Must-have

• CNC experience (core criterion). At least 10 years of hands-on professional experience in CNC machining environments — turning and milling. Deep working knowledge of process planning, tooling, fixtures, programming logic and CAM, machine capability, cycle time and cost per part. The candidate must be credible in a technical discussion both with a machine tool supplier and with his or her own programmers and setters, and must be able to judge a machining problem at the machine rather than from a report.
• Team leadership (core criterion). Several years of continuous disciplinary leadership of production teams, including leading through supervisors and team leaders. Proven track record of developing people, managing performance and carrying change through a shop floor. We will ask for concrete numbers: how many people, over how many years, and where those people are today.
• Nationality and residence. Thai national preferred, or a candidate with permanent residence and a long-term commitment to Thailand. Full working proficiency in Thai is essential for shop-floor leadership.
• Education. Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Industrial, Manufacturing or Production Engineering; Master's degree an advantage.
• Overall seniority. Minimum 12 years in manufacturing, of which at least 5 years in a management role with full responsibility for a production area of comparable size.
• European or Western company background. Several years in a European — ideally German — or otherwise Western-owned manufacturing subsidiary in Thailand. The candidate must be used to matrix reporting into a foreign parent, to written standards and documentation, and to direct, fact-based communication.
• Assembly. Experience in the assembly of mechanical and electro-mechanical products, including testing, in small and medium batch sizes with high variant diversity.
• Lean. Demonstrable, hands-on track record of implementing a lean production system, with quantified before-and-after results the candidate can explain in detail.
• Productivity. Proven, measurable productivity gains delivered under his or her own leadership.
• Investment planning. Experience preparing and executing capex projects for machinery and automation, including business case and support of supplier negotiations.
• Languages. Thai at native level and business-fluent English, spoken and written, sufficient for technical discussion and reporting with the German parent.
• Location. Resident in, or willing to relocate to, the Chonburi / Sriracha / Eastern Seaboard area; daily on-site presence.

Strongly preferred

• Experience in valves, pumps, fittings, hydraulics, precision mechanics, machine building or comparable metal-working discrete manufacturing.
• Assembly automation: specification and introduction of semi-automated or automated assembly and test stations, including cobots or robotics where economically justified.
• Foundry, casting or machining-of-castings experience — raw part quality, machining allowances, supplier development.
• Confidence with production data, OEE systems and MES. Note: our ERP is CEE; experience with any ERP system is useful, but ERP knowledge is explicitly not a selection criterion.
• Green- or brownfield experience: line relocation, layout change, capacity expansion, product transfer from a European plant to Asia.
• Formal lean or CI qualification (Six Sigma Green or Black Belt, TPS or TPM training) — as evidence, not as a substitute for practice.
• Prior exposure to BOI-promoted operations and Thai industrial regulations.

Competencies and personality

• Hands-on and present on the floor. This is not a desk role. We are looking for someone who spends a large part of the day in the shop, sees problems personally and does not wait for reports.
• Data-driven. Argues with numbers, builds business cases and tracks results after implementation rather than declaring victory at go-live.
• Backbone. Able to hold a position towards the Managing Director and towards Germany, and to say clearly when a target is not achievable and why.
• Developer of people, not a firefighter who keeps knowledge to himself or herself.
• Culturally bilingual. Able to operate within a Thai team culture while meeting German expectations regarding directness, documentation, deadlines and escalation.
• Stable career pattern; frequent short tenures will be questioned.

Priority Must-have skill/Experience What to verify before interview

Priority Must-have skill / experience What to verify before interview

1 — Essential Strong CNC machining expertise At least 10 years of hands-on CNC turning and milling experience. Understands tooling, fixtures, programming logic/CAM, machine capability, cycle time and cost per part. Ask for a machining problem they personally resolved.

2 — Essential Production team leadership At least 5 years managing a production area of comparable size, within 12+ years of manufacturing experience. Confirm direct/indirect headcount, number of supervisors managed and experience leading approximately 100+ employees.

3 — High Lean implementation and productivity improvement Has personally implemented lean methods and sustained improvements. Request one example with before-and-after figures, such as output per employee, setup time, scrap or lead time.

4 — High Production planning and capacity management Can work with Planning to manage sequencing, capacity, material availability and delivery commitments. Ask how they improved on-time delivery.

5 — High Mechanical assembly and testing Experience managing mechanical or electromechanical assembly and testing, particularly high product variety and small-to-medium batches.

6 — High Machinery investment and automation Has prepared and executed capex projects, including specifications, supplier evaluation, ROI/payback, installation and production ramp-up.

7 — High People development Evidence of coaching supervisors, building skill matrices, managing performance and developing successors. Ask who they developed and what responsibility that person later assumed.

8 — High KPI and problem-solving capability Can explain how they use OEE, delivery, scrap/rework and productivity data to identify problems and track results.

9 — Required Thai and English communication Strong Thai for shop-floor leadership and business-fluent English for technical discussions and reporting. Conduct part of the screening call in English.

10 — Required in the JD Western manufacturing environment Several years in a European or Western-owned manufacturing business, with experience reporting to an overseas parent and working with documented standards.