Senior Manager, Metallization Operations (Rare-Earth Manufacturing)

Location: Begins in Durham, NC and moves to Benson, NC when the new facility is complete; regular production-floor presence is required. Must be a U.S. Person due to access to U.S. export-controlled information or facilities.

Company

hirify.global manufactures American rare-earth permanent magnets for critical defense, aerospace, automotive, and other high-technology applications.

What you will do

• Lead metallization startup from design reviews and factory acceptance testing through installation, commissioning, process qualification, and rate ramp.
• Partner with engineering, process technology, automation, maintenance, EHS, and equipment suppliers on equipment configuration, controls, material flow, maintainability, and environmental systems.
• Design the continuous multi-shift operating model, including staffing, supervision, technician coverage, qualification standards, and shift handoffs.
• Recruit, onboard, train, and develop the operations organization before equipment turnover.
• Own safety, environmental compliance, throughput, yield, metal recovery, quality, availability/OEE, energy performance, and consumable efficiency.
• Manage the operating budget, headcount plan, cost model, resource forecasts, and corrective actions through commissioning and ramp.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Materials Science, Metallurgical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, or a related technical discipline.
• Eight or more years of metallurgical, chemical/process, or heavy industrial manufacturing experience, including five or more years leading production teams in continuous or multi-shift operations.
• Strong knowledge of high-temperature metallurgical or process operations, process chemistry, thermal and electrical systems, material and yield balances, and process controls.
• Experience leading greenfield or major-expansion commissioning and process qualification from design and equipment acceptance through startup, stabilization, and rate ramp.
• Experience building operations organizations, managing manufacturing quality systems, structured problem solving, safety and environmental performance, and operating budgets.
• Must be a U.S. Person due to required access to U.S. export-controlled information or facilities.

Nice to have

• Experience with rare-earth metallization, molten-salt electrolysis, nonferrous reduction/refining, or comparable electrochemical metal production.
• Experience in steelmaking, melting and casting, or another high-temperature continuous metallurgical operation.
• Greenfield plant startup experience with international equipment suppliers, factory acceptance testing, automation or robotics integration, or major process-technology deployment.
• Experience with environmental compliance, air-emissions systems, process waste streams, chemical management, MES, historians, or shop-floor data collection.
• Lean or Six Sigma experience.

Culture & Benefits

• Mission focused on national security and economic resiliency.
• Work in a high-temperature industrial production environment with regular use of PPE, including respirators.
• Regularly navigate the production floor, climb stairs, and stand or walk for extended periods.
• Follow applicable safety policies, procedures, environmental controls, and regulatory requirements.