Operations Leader

Ingersoll Rand is committed to achieving workforce diversity reflective of our communities. We are an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations and ordinances. 

Job Description: Operations leader – Sanand Plant

Position Overview

We are seeking a seasoned, high-caliber Operations Leader with 15 to 20 years of manufacturing experience to oversee our plant operations at Ingersoll Rand India, Sanand Plant. In this role, he will hold end-to-end accountability for Production, Maintenance, and Facilities.

As a key strategic and tactical leader, he will drive operational excellence across a state-of-the-art industrial engineering setup focused on capital equipment manufacturing. He will oversee a diverse product portfolio ranging from standard Make-to-Order (MTO) products to highly complex, custom Engineered-to-Order (ETO) systems, such as advanced Air Compressors, Biogas Compressors, and Air Treatment systems (including Industrial Dryers and Gas Generators). He will lead cross-functional teams to achieve world-class benchmarks across key plant metrics, fostering a culture of high performance and continuous improvement aligned directly with India business goals.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership & Governance

• Operational Strategy: Align the Sanand Plant manufacturing, maintenance, and facility strategies with corporate objectives and India business goals to support regional growth, domestic expansion, and global export ambitions.
• Product Line Strategy (ETO & MTO): Strategize plant footprint and resources to balance high-volume efficiency for Make-to-Order (MTO) lines with high-flexibility, project-managed execution for custom Engineered-to-Order (ETO) engineering contracts.
• Budget & Capex Management: Develop and manage the annual operational budget (Opex) and Capital Expenditure (Capex) plans for production machinery, specialized testing rigs, facility upgrades, and maintenance infrastructure.
• Capacity Planning: Optimize plant footprint, local labor utilization, and equipment capacity to meet fluctuating project demand for complex engineering capital equipment.

Tactical Execution & Plant Management

• Complete Product Build Management: Oversee the end-to-end execution of product builds on the shop floor, ensuring absolute synchronization across core operational skillsets:
  • Assembly: Guide complex mechanical, structural, and piping integration of heavy capital equipment.
  • Controls: Oversee the integration, wiring, and programming of electrical control panels, instrumentation, and automation systems.
  • Test: Drive rigorous pneumatic, hydraulic, and performance testing protocols under design conditions.
• Customer Inspection & Clearance: Lead the operational readiness for formal Customer Inspections (including Factory Acceptance Tests - FAT). Ensure seamless technical coordination, compliance with customer-approved quality plans, and immediate resolution of inspection punch-lists to secure formal clearance for project order dispatch.
• Maintenance & Asset Reliability: Lead predictive, preventive, and corrective maintenance programs to maximize Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) and minimize unplanned downtime of critical manufacturing assets and testing loops.
• Facility & Infrastructure Management: Manage plant facilities, utility infrastructure (power, HVAC, high-pressure compressed air and gas testing loops), and statutory environmental compliance to ensure uninterrupted, safe plant operations.

Core Performance Metrics (KPIs)

His success in this role will be measured by driving a robust culture around five critical pillars, alongside deep team development:

People & Engagement Focus

Beyond operational metrics, a primary responsibility is driving Employee Engagement. He will lead, mentor, and build the capability of a diverse engineering and technician workforce, fostering a collaborative, transparent, and high-energy culture on the shop floor.

Profile Requirements

Education & Experience

• Experience: 15 to 20 years of progressive experience in manufacturing operations, with a strong, proven background in assembly, testing, controls integration, and manufacturing of industrial engineering capital equipment.
• Domain Expertise: Explicit experience managing operations for industrial Air Compressors (e.g., screw, centrifugal, reciprocating), Biogas/Process Gas Compressors, and Air Treatment systems (Industrial Dryers and Gas Generators) is highly preferred.
• Leadership Experience: Minimum 5+ years in a senior leadership role managing multi-disciplinary teams (Production, Maintenance, Quality, and Facilities) within a multinational company (MNC) environment, ideally overseeing operations within a world-class facility.
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Production, or Industrial Engineering. An MBA or advanced degree in Operations Management/Supply Chain is highly desirable.

Technical & Professional Competencies

• Core Technical Skillsets: Deep comprehension of specialized shop-floor builds, including precision mechanical assembly, electrical controls/instrumentation, and high-pressure testing setups.
• Project Clearance Competency: Proven experience interfacing with domestic and global clients, third-party inspection agencies (TPIAs), and leading formal project order clearances.
• ETO & MTO Execution: Proficient in managing the shifting dynamics of a dual-model plant environment—handling fast-moving MTO components alongside complex, long-cycle ETO engineering contracts.
• Lean & World Class Manufacturing: Proven expertise in implementing Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, Total Productive Maintenance (TPM), and 5S frameworks.
• Stakeholder Management: Strong cross-cultural communication, stakeholder management, and reporting skills aligned with global MNC standards.

Added Advantages

• Familiarity with high-integrity structural and pressure-retaining welding processes in line with international quality standards.
• Experience supervising precise material forming and heavy metal fabrication activities.

Ingersoll Rand Inc. (NYSE:IR), driven by an entrepreneurial spirit and ownership mindset, is dedicated to helping make life better for our employees, customers and communities. Customers lean on us for our technology-driven excellence in mission-critical flow creation and industrial solutions across 40+ respected brands where our products and services excel in the most complex and harsh conditions. Our employees develop customers for life through their daily commitment to expertise, productivity and efficiency. For more information, visit www.IRCO.com.