Position Summary: The Director of Contract Manufacturing & New Product Scale-up is responsible for the planning and execution of product scale-up in support of new product launches at owned manufacturing sites and for contract manufacturing at third parties in North America and overseas. The Director will seek to balance network efficiencies while maximizing profitability and return on capital employed. The Director will be the primary point of contact for establishing contract manufacturers to deliver the needed product at the right time, quality and overall cost of goods as well as the scale-up / commercialization of new products in internal manufacturing sites.
Essential Responsibilities:
Reporting to the Chief Manufacturing Officer, this role will work closely with Operations, Commercial, Supply Chain, Procurement and R&D teams to identify opportunities where Toll Manufacturing makes sense to replace and/or complement current Verdesian manufacturing. The role will select potential candidates; establish a relationship; define and vet capability for capacity, technology, quality, safety, intellectual property protection, customer service and other compliance requirements; and participate in start-up where applicable.
Plan, coordinate and perform the strategic and tactical activities/tasks required to successfully support and complete a Contract/Toll manufacturing relationship. This will include the following functions: toller selection, qualification, planning, contracting, scheduling, technical transfer from Verdesian, scale-up and pilot product qualification, start-up through establishment of on-going supply, post-campaign and administrative documentation.
Actively provide technical support and guidance to other functional teams.
Partner with Supply Planning and Procurement to manage on-going supply from all tollers/manufacturers to meet Verdesian standards for safety, service, quality and cost. Scope includes RM purchasing, FG production and inventory management of same.
Evaluate, support and implement process improvements to increase efficiencies in safety, quality, service, productivity, compliance and cost for both internal and toll processes. This includes strategic consolidation of toll/manufacturing sites, increased use of electronic data transfer and communication, developing uniform procedures for both inter and intra departmental functions and data archiving.
Work to positively impact the overall process of toll/manufacturing, specifically in the areas of EHS, quality, lead times and on-time supply, productivity, waste reduction, and cost containment/reduction.
Partner closely with Supply Chain to manage inventories of raw materials, formulations, packaging and finished goods to ensure security of supply of products at third party contract manufacturers to ensure the most cost-efficient levels.
Support project teams and business processes such as the Stage Gate Process with new product launches and key support to business projects from idea/creation to completion.
Actively lead the 'commercialization phase for new product launches, or changes, in conjunction with the Project Management Team; optimize workflow and define roles & responsibilities for each step owner so that overall process is more efficient and key milestones are met as per the project plan timeline. Actively track timelines and activities in the commercialization phase to ensure on-time launches.
Other duties as assigned by immediate supervisor.
Criteria:
Experience in qualifying tollers / contract manufacturers including technical and quality evaluation, tech transfer and scale-up, and supply contract negotiations.
Understand and align the capabilities of Tollers with the demands of business.
Strong project management experience and capability to prioritize and manage multiple projects at the same time.
Financial literacy and business acumen.
Strong analytical skills, problem-solving skills, and attention to detail.
Ability to excel in a team-based environment.
Must be able to effectively conduct business while travelling and be able to accommodate travel, frequently on short notice.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Ability and interest to work in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial and team-oriented environment.
Qualifications:
Minimum of 8 years of experience in engineering/manufacturing roles in a process manufacturing environment, or a minimum of 12 years comparable work experience.
Bachelor's degree in related field; Chemical Engineering degree preferred.
Lean manufacturing and business process experience a plus.
Verdesian Life Sciences is an equal opportunity employer to all, regardless of age, ancestry, color, disability, military or veteran status, national origin, political affiliation, race, religious creed, sex, and sexual orientation.