Maintenance & Automation Manager

Interested in a career that matters?

The Maintenance & Automation team plays a critical role in ensuring asset reliability, maintenance excellence, automation performance, and Operational Technology (OT) compliance at the Valinhos manufacturing site. By partnering closely with Production, Engineering, EHS, Quality, and Logistics, the team maximizes equipment availability, drives continuous improvement, and enables safe, efficient operations through innovative technologies.

We are looking for an experienced leader who combines technical expertise, strategic thinking, and a passion for innovation. In this role, you will have the opportunity to shape the site's maintenance, automation, and digital transformation agenda while working closely with local stakeholders and global Maintenance Excellence and Automation teams. The team currently consists of maintenance technicians, a maintenance planner, a maintenance specialist, automation and project resources, students, and external contractors who work collaboratively to ensure operational reliability and business success.

The Role & Your Impact

This role combines operational, tactical, and strategic responsibilities. You will lead the site's maintenance, reliability, automation, and technology strategy, ensuring high levels of asset availability, operational efficiency, and safe plant operations.

As a key member of the site leadership network, you will balance daily operational performance with long-term technology and automation roadmaps, helping to drive reliability improvements, digital transformation, and sustainable business growth.

Your key responsibilities in this role

• Lead the maintenance and reliability strategy for the Valinhos site, ensuring high equipment availability, operational efficiency, and safe plant operations.
• Act as the primary interface between site operations and the global Maintenance Excellence and Automation teams, driving implementation of standards, best practices, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Develop and execute the site's automation and technology roadmap, supporting digital transformation and operational performance improvements.
• Ensure compliance with Operational Technology (OT) requirements, including cybersecurity standards, governance practices, lifecycle management, and risk mitigation.
• Lead maintenance planning, asset care programs, technical capability development, contractor management, and small capital improvement projects.
• Support capacity expansion initiatives and capital projects.
• Lead technical investigations, root cause analyses, and reliability improvement programs.
• Drive maintenance cost optimization while maintaining safety, compliance, and reliability standards.

What you'll need to be successful in this role

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Automation Engineering, Mechatronics, Industrial Engineering, or a related field.
• Fluent English communication skills.
• Significant experience in maintenance, engineering, automation, and manufacturing environments.
• Proven experience leading technical teams in an industrial setting.
• Strong knowledge of reliability engineering, preventive and predictive maintenance, maintenance planning, and asset management.
• Experience with PLCs, SCADA systems, industrial control systems, and manufacturing automation technologies.
• Understanding of Operational Technology (OT) governance and industrial cybersecurity principles.
• Strong stakeholder management and cross-functional collaboration capabilities.
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
• Ability to influence across functions and work effectively within a global matrix organization.

Additional Skills & Interests We Value

• Experience working with global technical organizations.
• Knowledge of Industry 4.0 initiatives, digital manufacturing, and data-driven maintenance practices.
• Certifications in TPM, Reliability Engineering, Lean Manufacturing, or Maintenance Excellence.
• Advanced Spanish language skills.
• Strong leadership and talent development capabilities.
• Strategic mindset combined with strong execution and operational discipline.
• Continuous improvement mindset with a passion for technology, automation, and innovation.
• High accountability, resilience, and ownership.

Our purpose guides the way

In Novonesis, we know that solutions rooted in biology can help solve humanity’s biggest challenges. Since we began more than a century ago, this has been our guide. It’s how we've gotten so far. And it’s how we'll impact the future. Now, more than ever, the world needs change. And with biosolutions, the possibilities for transformation are endless. If our purpose resonates with you, we encourage you to apply.

Opportunities for everyone

We are committed to an inclusive recruitment process and equal opportunity for all applicants. Therefore we ask you to apply without a cover letter or photo and instead include a few sentences in your CV explaining your motivation for applying.

We make all employment decisions based on business needs and welcome candidates with a wide range of backgrounds, including ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, or veteran status.

Explore other openings

If this position isn’t the right fit, you may still find other opportunities with us. You’re welcome to explore open roles or create a job agent to stay connected with future opportunities at novonesis.com/Career