Executive Précis

Position: Production Director

Facility Scale: 200+ Multi-Shift Operations Staff

Manufacturing Footprint: High-Volume Hybrid Digital, Offset Litho, & Large-Format Production

Operating Model: On-Demand E-Commerce & Automated Web-to-Print Manufacturing

Location: Southend on Sea, Essex, UK

Salary: Circa £80,000 plus senior management benefits (car allowance, private healthcare, performance related bonus)

Strategic Purpose & Business Context

This role represents the senior operational leadership position within one of the UK’s premier high-volume, on-demand commercial print manufacturing plants. Operating an advanced e-commerce web-to-print model, the facility processes thousands of individual jobs daily, ranging from short-run digital and large-format graphics to high-volume B1 lithographic runs.

The Production Director is tasked with maintaining industry leading SLAs while leading a multi-shift workforce of 200 staff across manufacturing, engineering, and logistics.

The key objective for the role is to bridge the leadership gap between the business’ Strategic Operational Leadership and day to day Production Management that’s responsible for all Factory and Shop Floor manufacturing.

As Production Director you will embrace and be a champion of “Industry 4.0” touchless workflow automation, driving Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE), minimising waste, and supporting continuing commercial growth.

Job Specification & Requirements

Role Overview

• The Production Director holds end-to-end responsibility for factory operations, production performance, quality engineering, and supply chain across digital, lithographic, and large-format print manufacturing capabilities. Operating at the intersection of print production and high-speed web-to-print software integration, your responsibility will cultivate a continuous improvement culture grounded in Lean Manufacturing and data-driven operational delivery.

• The ideal candidate will possess strong technical fluency in modern press technology alongside senior-level acumen in managing complex multi-shift teams, high-capacity material workflows, and tight SLA fulfilment requirements.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Manufacturing Leadership & Production Performance Strategy

• Factory Oversight: Direct round-the-clock manufacturing across digital press suites, B1/B2 sheetfed litho departments, wide-format roll/flatbed areas, automated cutting/binding/finishing lines, and dispatch hubs.
• SLA & Capacity Management: Dynamically allocate press capacity and staff resources to reliably meet strict 12-to-48-hour turnarounds for e-commerce and trade clients without compromising product quality or shop-floor safety.
• Continuous Improvement: Spearhead site-wide Lean, 5S, and Six Sigma initiatives aimed at reducing press makeready times, optimising layout workflows, and lowering raw material scrap rates.
• CapEx & Technology Roadmap: Support the development of multi-year capital expenditure strategies, lead machinery vendor technical evaluations, support the negotiation of equipment acquisitions, and manage the commissioning of automated presses and post-press lines.

2. Automation & Workflow Systems Integration

• Touchless Workflow Expansion: Collaborate with Software and Prepress Specialists to enhance automated imposition, dynamic batching, and API-driven job routing from front-end e-commerce platforms directly to CTP and press consoles.
• MIS / ERP Telematics: Ensure the performance of Management Information Systems (MIS) and Shop Floor Data Capture (SFDC) tools for real-time order tracking, precise job costing, and predictive maintenance scheduling.
• Robotics & Material Logistics: Oversee the adoption of automated material handling, inline finishing technologies, and courier dispatch API integrations to streamline order-to-ship cycles.

3. People Leadership & Organisational Development

• Workforce Management: Directly lead and mentor production managers, shift supervisors, prepress managers, maintenance engineering, and continuous improvement specialists across a 200-person site.
• High-Performance Culture: Instil a culture of accountability, precision, and operational excellence across all manufacturing departments.
• Skills Frameworks: Help establish structured apprenticeship and cross-training programs to ensure operational resilience across all manufacturing departments.

4. Quality, Safety & Environmental Standards

• Quality Assurance: Ensure strict compliance with ISO 9001 (Quality), ISO 12647 (Colour Management & FOGRA standards), and ISO 14001 (Environmental) certifications.
• HSE Compliance: Enforce rigorous Health, Safety, and Environmental practices, maintaining zero-harm standards, proper machine guarding, COSHH chemical safety, and ergonomic best practices in line with all current UK legislation.
• Sustainability Leadership: Lead energy reduction, paper & substrate recycling, and sustainable ink/chemistry adoption to align with net-zero target pathways.

Candidate Qualifications & Experience

Experience

• 5+ years in senior print production leadership (e.g., Production Director, Senior Production Manager, Manufacturing Manager, Operations Director, or Factory Manager) ideally within a combined digital, litho, and large-format manufacturing environment.

Competency

• Proven track record managing multi-shift print production facilities of 100+ employees.

Technical Domain

• Technical expertise in sheetfed litho, high-speed digital web/sheetfed presses, UV flatbed/roll-to-roll large format, and automated finishing systems (cutting tables, laminating, binding, folding).

Automation & Systems

• Understanding of print MIS/ERP systems (e.g., Tharstern, EFI Pace, HP Site Flow), integrated and automated JDF/JMF workflows, and web-to-print integration.

Methodologies

• Formal certification or the demonstrable implementation of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma (Green/Black Belt preferred), and Kaizen principles.

Commercial Acumen

• Demonstrated financial proficiency in departmental Cost & P&L management, CapEx evaluation, and material supply chain management.

Core Competencies & Capabilities

• On-Demand Operational Agility: Ability to manage extreme daily job counts and fluctuating order volumes inherent to e-commerce print models.
• Data-Driven Leadership: Skilled in using real-time pressroom telemetry, OEE metrics, and waste-tracking dashboards to drive shift-level accountability.
• Decisive Crisis Management: Cool-headed approach to resolving high-pressure operational bottlenecks, press downtime, and critical supply chain disruptions.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Strong communicator able to liaise effectively between senior executive, shopfloor management, software engineering, departmental heads and outside vendors & logistics partners.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE): Optimisation of pressroom & finishing OEE metrics across litho, digital, and finishing assets.
• On-Time, In-Full (OTIF): Achievement of >98.5% OTIF across all despatch windows and SLA tiers.
• Touchless Processing Rate: Year-on-year increase in percentage of orders processed from web shop to press without manual intervention.
• Substrate & Ink Waste: Targeted reduction in paper spoil, setup waste, and chemistry usage.
• Safety & Audit Compliance: Zero Lost Time Injuries (LTIs) and full retention of ISO accreditations.