PACKAGING AND MAINTENANCE LEAD

Packaging and Maintenance Lead

Department: ISC

Location: HEAD OFFICE

Asahi Breweries Europe Group is a leading brewing company with 128 years of heritage, offering premium brands like Pilsner Urquell and Asahi Super Dry across CEE.

Ursus Breweries is the largest beer producer in Romania. The brands in the Ursus Breweries portfolio are: URSUS, Timișoreana, Ciucaș, Peroni Nastro Azzurro, Kozel, Azuga, Pilsner Urquell, Asahi Super Dry. Ursus Breweries currently owns 3 breweries in Brasov, Buzau and Timisoara and a mini-brewery in Cluj-Napoca. Ursus Breweries is part of Asahi Europe & International. For more information about the company and its programs, please visit: www.ursus-breweries.ro and www.desprealcool.ro.

Ursus is made with people, and we care about our people!

Role Overview:

The Packaging and Maintenance Lead is responsible for defining and executing national strategies in packaging and maintenance across all breweries. The role ensures alignment, standardization, and operational excellence through the development and implementation of Packaging and Maintenance Roadmaps, with a focus on equipment, automation, people development, and productivity.

Key priorities include improving equipment efficiency, reliability, sustainability, and compliance, while driving productivity and cost optimization through continuous improvement initiatives. The role also manages national maintenance standards to maximize asset performance and utilization, and actively supports packaging innovation and development in alignment with the company’s strategic goals.

Responsibilities:

Leads Packaging Strategy and Roadmap

• Lead the national packaging roadmap to drive consistent performance across all packaging lines.
• Define and monitor productivity KPIs to manage and improve packaging performance.
• Ensure alignment of the packaging strategy with legal requirements and evolving Asahi standards.
• Collaborate with AEI packaging stakeholders to exchange best practices and implement innovations.
• Integrate automation and system enhancements into the roadmap to strengthen competencies and increase productivity.
• Own the long-term packaging capacity plan in coordination with the supply planning function.

Leads Maintenance Strategy and Roadmap

• Develop and implement a comprehensive national maintenance strategy, aligned with the Asahi Way Maintenance Pillar standards.
• Balance reliability-focused methodologies with productivity improvements and cost-effectiveness.
• Lead the creation and execution of national maintenance plans and standards.
• Engage regularly with AEI Maintenance SMEs and country leads to drive alignment and continuous improvement.
• Establish structured maintenance data reporting systems to support informed decision-making.
• Define national maintenance KPIs aligned with group benchmarks.
• Act as the national owner of maintenance costs, including internal teams, third-party services, and spare parts.
• Optimize spare parts inventory levels and implement governance processes for approval and control.
• Promote and lead best practices in spare parts management to minimize downtime and maximize efficiency.
• Lead the technical agenda for machinery safety, ensuring legal compliance and driving effective technical solutions.
• Serve as subject matter expert in machinery safety.

CAPEX Strategy and Investment Planning (Packaging & Maintenance)

• Ensure the right assets are in place to support long-term capacity needs at minimal cost.
• Monitor industry trends, emerging technologies, and regulatory shifts to identify CAPEX optimization opportunities.
• Lead the development of CAPEX strategies in response to regulatory changes (e.g., EU PPWR compliance).
• Assess the feasibility, cost-effectiveness, and ROI of proposed investments.
• Partner with procurement and suppliers to source sustainable, innovative, and cost-efficient solutions in packaging and maintenance.

Innovation and Continuous Improvement

• Drive innovation and continuous improvement initiatives across packaging and maintenance nationally.
• Align packaging development with evolving business and market requirements.
• Oversee Value Engineering (VE) initiatives for packaging and maintenance.
• Develop business cases for major CAPEX projects and support brewery teams in building cases for smaller-scale initiatives.

Effective Work Pillar (Asahi Way)

• Contribute to equipment design learnings through participation in Basic Operating Care.
• Oversee the development and execution of driving systems/action plans to achieve KPI targets.
• Lead root cause analysis and loss deployment for key KPIs within strategic roadmaps.
• Provide leadership and/or support for systemic problem-solving based on issue scope and complexity.

People Leadership and Development

• Lead the national packaging performance agenda from a strategic, operational, and people perspective.
• Ensure a strong succession pipeline and drive talent development across packaging and maintenance functions.

Requirements (must have):

• University degree in Mechanical Engineering, Food Science, Biotechnology, or a related technical discipline.
• Minimum 10 years of professional experience, including at least 5 years in the beverage industry.
• At least 5 years of proven managerial experience in a technical or manufacturing environment.
• Strong technical knowledge of packaging operations, industrial equipment maintenance, and associated processes.
• Advanced skills in change management, with the ability to lead transformation initiatives effectively.
• Strong strategic thinking and sound decision-making capabilities.
• Advanced proficiency in English, both written and spoken.

Requirements (nice to have):

• Experience working in a multi-site or regional manufacturing environment.
• Certification in Lean, Six Sigma, or other continuous improvement methodologies.
• Familiarity with the Asahi Way or similar operational excellence frameworks (e.g., TPM, WCM).
• Previous involvement in packaging innovation projects or product development cycles.
• Proficiency in using data analytics tools or systems for performance monitoring and reporting.
• Experience managing CAPEX projects related to packaging automation or digital transformation.

We are committed to nurturing a workplace where we celebrate and respect difference, and support everyone to be true to who they are! At Ursus Breweries, part of Asahi Europe and International, we believe you can SHINE AS YOU ARE - no matter your age, gender, gender expression, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disabilities, religion, beliefs, citizenship, or national origin.  We want to support you to be courageous in your individuality and to know that whoever you are and whatever your circumstances, you can belong with us without having to conform.