Jobloria
Director of Industrial Engineering
Lordan Associates
Location : Spring Grove, IL, 60081
Job Type : Full Time / Part Time
Date Posted : 1 December 2025
We are seeking a highly experienced
Director of Industrial Engineering
Department:Engineering / OperationsReports To:Chief Executive Officer (CEO)Direct Reports:TBD (Production Control, Process Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Corporate Managers, QA Segment Engineers, Flex Manager)
Position Summary
We are seeking a highly experiencedDirector of Industrial Engineeringto lead operational excellence, demand responsiveness, and scalable growth in a complex job-shop manufacturing environment. This role combines strategic foresight with hands-on leadership, ensuring production capabilities align with dynamic market demands while driving continuous improvement across multiple sites.
The Director will play a critical role in enhancing efficiency, cost effectiveness, and delivery performance by optimizing processes and integrating advanced manufacturing methodologies.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead the evaluation, implementation, and maintenance of manufacturing systems (MES, ERP, simulation models, advanced analytics).
- Align operational capacity with market demand through data analytics, capacity models, and real-time scheduling.
- Ensure simulation and planning models reflect real operating conditions with validated data integrity.
- Optimize production flow and job routing to manage customer orders effectively while collaborating with Sales Leadership.
- Translate business strategy into actionable operational initiatives to enable scale, efficiency, and responsiveness.
- Stay ahead of industry trends in heavy manufacturing, evaluating emerging tools and technologies.
- Drive cross-site initiatives that improve enterprise-wide performance.
- Build and grow industrial engineering capabilities through mentoring, training, and knowledge-sharing.
- Foster a culture of continuous improvement, technical curiosity, and operational excellence.
- Partner closely with Operations, Engineering, Sales, and Plant Leadership to ensure alignment.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related field.
- 10+ years of industrial engineering or operational leadership experience in heavy manufacturing or capital equipment.
- Expertise in lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, capacity modeling, ERP/MES integrations.
- Experience with shop-floor simulation, scheduling, and data analytics platforms.
- Strong track record in continuous improvement and cross-functional leadership.
- Project management skills for scope development, timelines, and deliverables.
- Excellent communication skills with ability to lead change across multiple sites.
- Deep understanding of job shop dynamics, including short lead times and custom orders.
Freqently Asked Questions
In Spring Grove’s manufacturing landscape, prioritizing lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, and ERP/MES systems integration is crucial. These methodologies streamline production flow, reduce waste, and enhance responsiveness—key factors for a Director of Industrial Engineering aiming to optimize complex job-shop environments.
Utilizing capacity models alongside real-time scheduling tools enables precise forecasting and resource allocation. This strategic use of data analytics allows Directors of Industrial Engineering to synchronize production capabilities with fluctuating customer orders, enhancing responsiveness and reducing bottlenecks.
Professionals often move into executive roles such as VP of Operations or Chief Operations Officer. With demonstrated expertise in operational excellence and cross-site leadership, this pathway leverages strategic vision and hands-on management skills developed at the director level.
Certifications like Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and PMP are highly regarded locally. They validate expertise in process optimization and project management, aligning well with Illinois’ emphasis on operational efficiency and scalable manufacturing growth.
At Lordan Associates, the Director must navigate multi-site coordination with a strong focus on integrating advanced analytics and simulation models. The role demands balancing strategic leadership with hands-on problem solving in a dynamic, custom order-driven job-shop environment.
Lordan empowers its Directors by fostering a culture of technical curiosity and cross-departmental collaboration. Access to cutting-edge manufacturing systems and mentoring resources helps leaders implement sustainable improvements that scale across the enterprise.
Spring Grove’s proximity to manufacturing hubs makes industrial engineering leadership highly sought after. Demand is driven by regional heavy manufacturing growth, though competition intensifies for candidates with proven ERP/MES integration and cross-site leadership experience.
Given Spring Grove’s suburban setting, many employees rely on personal vehicles due to limited public transit options. Candidates should anticipate travel time variability, especially when coordinating across multiple plant locations within the region.
Salaries generally range between $130,000 and $165,000 annually, reflecting the role’s seniority and technical demands. Market factors like regional manufacturing density and required expertise in lean processes influence compensation packages.
Lordan’s Director role uniquely blends strategic foresight with direct operational involvement across diverse manufacturing sites. This contrasts with more narrowly focused roles elsewhere, emphasizing leadership in cross-functional improvement and advanced analytics integration.
Spring Grove, IL