The Industrial Engineer is responsible for improving manufacturing performance through process optimization,

labor efficiency, plant layout improvement, capacity analysis, and standardization of work across plastic extrusion operations. This role supports production, quality, maintenance, and engineering by identifying waste, improving flow, reducing cost, and increasing throughput in a manufacturing environment with extrusion lines and downstream finishing operations. The Industrial Engineer will analyze plant data, develop labor and machine standards, improve material flow, support capital projects, and lead continuous improvement efforts to improve safety, quality, delivery, and

productivity.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Analyze manufacturing processes on plastic extrusion lines to improve throughput, labor efficiency, scrap reduction, and uptime
• Develop and maintain labor standards, machine capacity models, and production rate expectations
• Evaluate plant layout, workflow, and material movement to improve operational efficiency
• Lead continuous improvement projects focused on reducing waste, downtime, changeover time, and non-value-added activity
• Partner with production and engineering teams to improve line balancing and staffing models 
• Track and report key plant metrics such as OEE, labor utilization, scrap, throughput, and schedule attainment
• Conduct time studies and process observations to establish standard work and identify improvement opportunities
• Support new product launches by assessing labor needs, process flow, line readiness, and space requirements
• Assist in capital planning by providing ROI analysis, productivity assumptions, and operational impact assessments
• Work with operations and maintenance to identify bottlenecks and improve equipment utilization
• Improve raw material, WIP, and finished goods flow through the plant
• Support ERP and production reporting accuracy related to routings, labor standards, and capacity assumptions
• Develop visual management tools, dashboards, and reporting methods for plant performance
• Participate in kaizen events and other structured improvement activities
• Ensure process improvement efforts support safety, quality, and customer

QUALIFICATIONS  

• Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or related field
• 3+ years of experience in manufacturing, preferably in plastics, extrusion, or continuous process manufacturing
• Strong understanding of labor analysis, workflow design, capacity planning, and continuous improvement methods
• Experience with time studies, standard work, and productivity improvement in a plant environment
• Familiarity with manufacturing KPIs such as OEE, scrap, uptime, yield, and labor efficiency
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills 
• Proficiency in Excel and experience with ERP or manufacturing reporting systems
• Ability to work cross-functionally with production, quality, maintenance, and engineering teams
• Strong communication and organizational skills

PREFERRED EXPERIENCE 

•  Experience in plastic extrusion, profile extrusion, sheet extrusion, or similar continuous manufacturing processes
• Experience with lean manufacturing, kaizen, 5S, and root cause problem solving 
• Knowledge of plant layout planning, line balancing, and material handling optimization
• Exposure to capital equipment implementation and process startup support
• Experience using BI tools or data visualization platforms for plant reporting