Tarter Farm and Ranch

Plant Manager

Middleburg, KentuckyFull-time
About the Job
Plant Manager
Location: Green River Gate
Industry: Metals Fabrication
Reports To: Chief Manufacturing Officer
Facility: Day shift manufacturing plant  / 5 days a week

Position Summary:
The Plant Manager is responsible for the overall leadership, performance, and operational success of a metals fabrication facility.. This role drives safety, quality, delivery, cost performance, and commercial sales while building a strong culture of accountability, continuous improvement, and employee engagement.
The Plant Manager provides strategic and hands-on leadership to ensure efficient plant operations, workforce development, and sustainable growth while meeting customer expectations and business objectives.

Key Responsibilities:
Operational Leadership:
  • Lead all plant operations including production, maintenance, quality, shipping, safety and sales.
  • Ensure effective management of maintaining consistent standards across all shifts.
  • Develop and implement operational strategies to support growth, productivity, and efficiency.
  • Monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) including safety, scrap, downtime, labor efficiency, and on-time delivery.

Safety & Compliance:
  • Champion a strong safety-first culture across the facility.
  • Ensure compliance with OSHA regulations and company safety policies.
  • Lead safety initiatives and continuous improvement efforts to reduce workplace incidents.

People Leadership:
  • Lead, coach, and develop supervisors, managers, and hourly employees.
  • Build a culture of accountability, engagement, and teamwork.
  • Partner with Human Resources on hiring, workforce planning, employee relations, and training initiatives.
  • Ensure strong leadership coverage and communication across all shifts.

Continuous Improvement:
  • Drive Lean Manufacturing and continuous improvement initiatives to reduce waste and improve efficiency.
  • Identify opportunities to improve production processes, quality systems, and workflow.
  • Lead problem-solving initiatives to address operational challenges.

Quality & Customer Satisfaction:
  • Ensure products meet quality standards and customer specifications.
  • Work closely with quality teams to address defects, implement corrective actions, and drive quality improvements.

Financial Performance:
  • Manage plant budgets, labor costs, and operational expenses.
  • Identify cost-saving opportunities while maintaining product quality and delivery performance.
  • Support capital planning and equipment investments to support growth.

Cross-Functional Collaboration:
  • Work closely with engineering, supply chain, and leadership teams to meet production goals and customer demands.
  • Support new product launches, process improvements, and operational scalability.

Qualifications:
Education:
  • Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Operations Management, or related field is a plus.

Experience:
  • 8–10+ years of manufacturing leadership experience.
  • 5+ years in plant or senior operations leadership role preferred.
  • Experience in metals manufacturing, machining, fabrication, or heavy industrial environments strongly preferred.
  • Experience managing manufacturing operations.
  • Experience with sales of farm and ranch equipment

Skills & Competencies:
  • Strong leadership and team development skills.
  • Ability to lead in a hands-on, fast-paced manufacturing environment.
  • Knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, continuous improvement, and operational excellence.
  • Strong problem-solving and decision-making abilities.
  • Excellent communication and leadership presence.

What Success Looks Like in This Role:
  • A strong safety culture with proactive hazard identification.
  • Consistent production performance across all shifts.
  • Engaged workforce with strong frontline leadership.
  • Improved efficiency, reduced scrap, and operational cost control.
  • Scalable processes supporting the plant’s continued growth.

Why Join Us:
  • Opportunity to lead a growing manufacturing facility.
  • Ability to make a visible impact on operations and culture.
  • Collaborative leadership team and strong business momentum