Forging Manager Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

The Maintenance Manager is responsible for leading all maintenance, equipment reliability, and facility support activities within a high-production industrial manufacturing environment. This role develops and executes preventative, predictive, and corrective maintenance programs to maximize equipment uptime, improve operational performance, and support safe, uninterrupted production.

The ideal candidate has strong maintenance leadership experience within aerospace, forging, steel, machining, metals, or another heavy manufacturing environment. This individual must be comfortable managing maintenance personnel, budgets, contractors, capital projects, and complex industrial equipment while maintaining a hands-on understanding of mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, and pneumatic systems.

• Lead the maintenance department, including Supervisors, Technicians, Mechanics, Electricians, and outside contractors.
• Develop and manage preventative, predictive, and corrective maintenance programs for production and facility equipment.
• Establish maintenance priorities based on production requirements, equipment criticality, safety, and operational impact.
• Monitor equipment reliability and implement strategies to reduce downtime and improve overall equipment effectiveness.
• Oversee maintenance and repair of CNC machines, forging equipment, hydraulic presses, furnaces, compressors, pumps, overhead cranes, material handling systems, and facility infrastructure.
• Manage the Computerized Maintenance Management System, including work orders, preventative maintenance schedules, equipment histories, and performance reporting.
• Develop and monitor maintenance budgets, labor costs, contractor expenses, spare parts inventory, and capital expenditures.
• Lead root cause investigations for significant equipment failures and implement long-term corrective actions.
• Partner with Production, Engineering, Quality, Environmental Health and Safety, and Operations teams to support manufacturing goals.
• Plan and coordinate major shutdowns, equipment installations, facility upgrades, and machinery relocation projects.
• Evaluate equipment condition and develop repair, replacement, and capital investment recommendations.
• Maintain appropriate inventory levels for critical spare parts, tools, and maintenance supplies.
• Recruit, train, mentor, and evaluate maintenance personnel while supporting succession planning and technical development.
• Establish department KPIs, including equipment uptime, preventative maintenance completion, response time, maintenance cost, and recurring downtime.
• Ensure compliance with OSHA requirements, lockout/tagout procedures, environmental standards, and internal safety policies.
• Promote Lean Manufacturing, 5S, Total Productive Maintenance, and continuous improvement throughout the maintenance organization.

• 8–15+ years of industrial maintenance experience within a manufacturing environment.
• 5+ years of experience managing or leading maintenance personnel.
• Experience within aerospace, forging, steel, metal processing, machining, or heavy manufacturing strongly preferred.
• Strong knowledge of mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic, and industrial control systems.
• Experience managing maintenance programs for CNC equipment, hydraulic presses, furnaces, overhead cranes, compressors, pumps, and material handling systems.
• Strong understanding of industrial electrical systems, including 480V power, motors, controls, VFDs, relays, sensors, and PLC-controlled equipment.
• Proven experience developing preventative and predictive maintenance programs.
• Experience managing maintenance budgets, contractors, spare parts inventory, and capital improvement projects.
• Ability to read and interpret electrical schematics, hydraulic diagrams, mechanical drawings, and technical manuals.
• Strong leadership, communication, planning, and problem-solving skills.
• Proficiency with CMMS platforms, Microsoft Office, and maintenance reporting tools.

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Facilities Management, or a related field preferred.
• Associate’s degree or technical certification combined with extensive maintenance leadership experience may also be considered.
• Experience with PLC troubleshooting and industrial automation systems such as Allen-Bradley, Siemens, or similar platforms.
• Familiarity with reliability-centered maintenance, predictive maintenance technologies, and equipment condition monitoring.
• Knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, Total Productive Maintenance, Six Sigma, and root cause analysis methodologies.
• Experience supporting AS9100 or another highly regulated manufacturing quality system.
• Certified Maintenance and Reliability Professional or similar certification is a plus.
• OSHA 30 or equivalent safety leadership training preferred.