Technical manager

Job description

Company: Woodbridge

Job Title: Technical Manager Location: India

Industry: Automotive / Foam Manufacturing Reports To: Regional/Corporate Leadership Team

Role Purpose

The Technical Manager – India is responsible for leading and managing all technical functions across our Indian manufacturing footprint, including both wholly-owned and joint venture (JV) sites. The role focuses on ensuring Right-First-Time (RFT) foam pad manufacturing, reducing the Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ), and driving process optimization through the adoption of new technologies and continuous improvement initiatives.

This role also leads the implementation of the Woodbridge Production System (WPS) and Lean/CI programs, playing a pivotal role in elevating plant performance and competitiveness. Additionally, the Technical Manager will act as the Business Case Lead for India, managing the development and execution of investment and project proposals while supporting successful new program launches.

Key Responsibilities

 Safety Leadership: Promote and enforce a strong safety culture across all Indian manufacturing sites.

 Team Management: Lead, coach, and mentor plant technical teams including Process Engineering, Tooling, and Maintenance.

 Cross-Functional Collaboration: Facilitate seamless collaboration with HR, Production, Quality, Materials, and global engineering teams.

 Program Launch Support: Provide technical leadership for new program launches, ensuring alignment between global engineering (WFC) and local operations.

 Customer & Supplier Interface: Act as a technical point-of-contact to resolve production or quality challenges.

 Downtime & Efficiency: Improve OEE and reduce downtime through proactive root cause analysis and failure mitigation.

 Standardization: Drive the adoption of Woodbridge Global Standards in tooling and processes, reducing variation, scrap, and rework.

 Performance Metrics: Monitor and improve COPQ, RFT, and other critical KPIs across Indian sites.

 Technology Roadmap: Develop and deploy a strategic roadmap for technical upgrades, training, and implementation of new technologies.

 Cost Optimization: Lead efforts to optimize chemical usage and premix formulations

while maintaining product quality.

 Corporate Liaison: Serve as the key link between Corporate Technical Teams and plantlevel

technical staff.

 CI / Lean Leadership: Facilitate WPS, Lean, and CI workshops with measurable

productivity and cost gains.

 Business Case Development: Prepare, present, and execute robust business cases for

technical investments, ensuring ROI targets are met.

 Executive Communication: Provide clear, confident updates and reports to senior

leadership on technical initiatives and plant performance.

Minimum Qualifications

 Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical or Chemical Engineering

 Minimum 10 to 12 years of technical leadership experience in manufacturing (preferably

automotive sector)

Additional Skills & Competencies

 Strong analytical and data-driven problem-solving skills

 Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional and cross-border teams

 Excellent verbal and written communication skills

 In-depth experience with Lean Manufacturing and Continuous Improvement

methodologies

 Proven track record of delivering operational and technical excellence

 Project leadership experience with global or regional alignmen