Rolling Mill Maintenance Manager - Steel Industry

Rolling Mill Maintenance Manager

Industry: Steel Manufacturing – Rolling Mill

Location : Outside Egypt.

Department: Maintenance / Engineering

Reports To: Plant Manager / Technical Director

Location: [Insert Location]

Experience Required: 10–15 years in industrial maintenance, preferably in steel rolling mills, including at least 5 years in a maintenance management or senior maintenance leadership role.

1. Job Summary

We are seeking an experienced and technically proficient Rolling Mill Maintenance Manager to lead all mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, and automation maintenance activities within a steel rolling mill.

The successful candidate will be responsible for maximizing equipment availability, minimizing unplanned downtime, improving maintenance efficiency, and ensuring the reliable and safe operation of rolling mill machinery and auxiliary systems.

The role requires extensive hands-on experience in steel rolling mill equipment, preventive and predictive maintenance, troubleshooting, shutdown planning, spare parts management, and continuous improvement. The Maintenance Manager will work closely with Production, Quality, Engineering, and Procurement teams to achieve production targets, reduce maintenance costs, and improve overall equipment effectiveness.

2. Key Responsibilities

A. Rolling Mill Equipment Maintenance

• Manage all mechanical and electrical maintenance activities across the rolling mill.
• Ensure the reliable operation of rolling stands, gearboxes, motors, bearings, couplings, spindles, roll changing systems, and drive systems.
• Oversee maintenance of reheating furnaces, cooling beds, shears, pinch rolls, guides, conveyors, roller tables, and material handling systems.
• Maintain hydraulic and pneumatic systems, lubrication systems, cooling water systems, and industrial utilities.
• Supervise maintenance of cranes, lifting equipment, pumps, compressors, and auxiliary plant machinery.
• Identify recurring equipment failures and implement permanent corrective solutions.
• Ensure machinery operates within approved technical and safety parameters.

B. Preventive and Predictive Maintenance

• Develop, implement, and monitor preventive, predictive, and condition-based maintenance programs.
• Establish maintenance schedules based on equipment criticality, operating hours, manufacturer recommendations, and failure history.
• Use condition-monitoring techniques, including vibration analysis, thermography, oil analysis, and equipment inspections where applicable.
• Monitor equipment health and identify early warning signs of failure.
• Improve maintenance planning to reduce breakdown frequency and unplanned production stoppages.
• Establish equipment history records and maintain accurate maintenance documentation.

C. Breakdown Management and Troubleshooting

• Lead the response to critical equipment breakdowns and production interruptions.
• Coordinate troubleshooting activities to restore equipment safely and minimize downtime.
• Conduct root-cause analysis (RCA) for major and recurring failures.
• Implement corrective and preventive actions to eliminate repeat breakdowns.
• Analyze failure trends and develop equipment reliability improvement plans.
• Coordinate with production teams to prioritize maintenance activities according to operational requirements.

D. Shutdown and Overhaul Planning

• Plan and execute scheduled maintenance shutdowns, annual overhauls, and major equipment inspections.
• Prepare shutdown schedules, manpower requirements, technical scopes, and material lists.
• Coordinate with Production, Engineering, Procurement, contractors, and equipment suppliers.
• Ensure the availability of critical spare parts, tools, lifting equipment, and technical resources before shutdowns.
• Monitor shutdown progress, costs, quality, and completion schedules.
• Ensure proper testing, commissioning, and safe handover of equipment after maintenance.

E. Electrical, Drives, and Automation Maintenance

• Supervise maintenance of AC/DC motors, variable frequency drives (VFDs), electrical panels, transformers, and power distribution systems.
• Ensure the reliability of PLCs, sensors, encoders, instrumentation, and control systems.
• Coordinate troubleshooting of automation and drive-related faults affecting rolling mill performance.
• Work with electrical and automation engineers to improve system reliability and reduce electrical downtime.
• Ensure compliance with electrical safety procedures, isolation requirements, and lockout/tagout (LOTO) practices.

F. Maintenance Budget and Cost Control

• Prepare and manage the annual maintenance operating budget.
• Control maintenance expenditure, spare parts consumption, repair costs, and contractor expenses.
• Identify opportunities to reduce maintenance costs without compromising safety or equipment reliability.
• Optimize repair-versus-replacement decisions and support capital expenditure proposals.
• Monitor maintenance cost per ton of steel produced.
• Improve inventory management of critical spares and maintenance consumables.

G. Spare Parts and Inventory Management

• Establish and maintain a critical spare parts register for key rolling mill equipment.
• Define minimum and maximum stock levels based on equipment criticality and lead times.
• Coordinate with Procurement and Stores to ensure timely availability of essential components.
• Standardize spare parts where practical and reduce obsolete or excess inventory.
• Evaluate suppliers, repair workshops, and service providers based on technical capability, quality, cost, and delivery performance.

H. Team Leadership and Development

• Lead mechanical, electrical, instrumentation, and maintenance planning teams.
• Allocate responsibilities and establish clear performance targets.
• Develop technical training programs for engineers, supervisors, and technicians.
• Improve workforce productivity, technical capability, and maintenance discipline.
• Ensure proper shift coverage and emergency maintenance support.
• Promote teamwork, accountability, and a proactive maintenance culture.

I. Safety and Compliance

• Ensure compliance with plant safety procedures, environmental requirements, and applicable regulations.
• Enforce LOTO, permit-to-work, working-at-height, lifting, and confined-space procedures as applicable.
• Conduct maintenance risk assessments and ensure safe execution of all work.
• Investigate maintenance-related incidents and near misses.
• Ensure machine guards, interlocks, emergency stops, and other safety systems are maintained in good condition.
• Maintain accurate maintenance records, inspection reports, and statutory documentation where applicable.

J. Continuous Improvement and Reliability Engineering

• Implement reliability-centered maintenance (RCM), root-cause analysis, 5 Whys, and other relevant improvement methodologies.
• Monitor equipment performance and identify bottlenecks affecting rolling mill output.
• Improve equipment reliability, maintainability, and operational efficiency.
• Collaborate with Production to optimize roll changes, guide changes, lubrication practices, and equipment setup maintenance.
• Support equipment upgrades, modernization projects, and commissioning of new machinery.
• Promote 5S, standard maintenance procedures, and continuous improvement initiatives.

3. Technical Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechatronics, or a related engineering discipline.
• Minimum 10–15 years of maintenance experience in heavy industry, preferably in steel rolling mills.
• At least 5 years in a maintenance management, maintenance superintendent, or senior maintenance leadership position.
• Strong knowledge of rolling mill machinery, mechanical drives, bearings, gearboxes, hydraulic systems, and industrial lubrication.
• Experience with electrical drives, motors, PLCs, instrumentation, and automation systems appropriate to the role.
• Proven experience managing planned shutdowns, major overhauls, and emergency breakdowns.
• Practical knowledge of preventive and predictive maintenance systems.
• Experience with CMMS/EAM software and maintenance planning tools.
• Strong understanding of industrial safety requirements and maintenance risk management.
• Experience in spare parts planning, maintenance budgeting, and contractor management.

4. Required Technical Competencies

• Rolling mill mechanical and electrical systems.
• Equipment failure analysis and reliability improvement.
• Hydraulic, pneumatic, lubrication, and cooling systems.
• Motor, gearbox, bearing, coupling, and drive maintenance.
• Reheating furnaces, roller tables, shears, cooling beds, and auxiliary equipment.
• Preventive and predictive maintenance planning.
• Shutdown management and equipment commissioning.
• Maintenance cost analysis and inventory control.
• Technical drawings, equipment manuals, and maintenance documentation.
• Team leadership, troubleshooting, and decision-making under production pressure.