Plant Manager

Location: Oak Ridge, TN  

Schedule: Full-Time 

Standard Nuclear is fueling America’s nuclear renaissance at industrial scale. Our mission is to deliver the essential building blocks of nuclear power—enabling cost-effective, safe, and secure energy for the world. 

The Plant Manager is responsible for the overall leadership, performance, and safe operation of Standard Nuclear’s Oak Ridge nuclear fuel fabrication facility. This role provides strategic and day-to-day leadership across plant operations, ensuring the facility achieves its production, safety, quality, regulatory, financial, and operational objectives while fostering a strong nuclear safety culture. 

As the senior operations leader for the facility, the Plant Manager is accountable for manufacturing execution, workforce performance, operational discipline, equipment reliability, continuous improvement, and cross-functional coordination. This role oversees production operations while partnering closely with Engineering, Quality, Nuclear Safety, Criticality Safety, Radiological Controls, EH&S, Maintenance, Facilities, Supply Chain, Planning, Security, and other support organizations to ensure safe, compliant, and efficient plant operations. 

The Plant Manager is responsible for building and developing a high-performing operations organization as the facility accelerates manufacturing. This includes establishing operational excellence, driving continuous improvement, developing frontline leaders, and ensuring all work is performed safely, consistently, and in full compliance with applicable quality, radiological, regulatory, and nuclear safety requirements. 

This is a hands-on leadership role requiring a strong presence on the manufacturing floor and the ability to balance operational execution with long-term organizational growth. 

RESPONSIBILITIES 

Plant Leadership & Operations 

• Lead the safe, secure, and efficient operation of Standard Nuclear’s Oak Ridge nuclear fuel fabrication facility 

• Own plant performance across production, safety, quality, regulatory compliance, schedule, and cost 

• Foster a strong nuclear safety culture focused on compliance, accountability, operational discipline, and continuous improvement 

• Establish clear performance expectations and ensure operations are conducted in accordance with company policies, approved procedures, and regulatory requirements 

• Provide visible leadership on the manufacturing floor and reinforce expectations for safe, disciplined, and reliable operations 

Manufacturing & Production Performance 

• Execute the facility production plan, ensuring manufacturing commitments are achieved safely, on schedule, and within quality standards 

• Monitor and improve key operational metrics, including throughput, yield, labor productivity, equipment availability, schedule adherence, downtime, and manufacturing cost 

• Work with Engineering to identify production constraints and support corrective actions to improve reliability, efficiency, and production capacity 

• Optimize utilization of personnel, equipment, and facility resources while supporting the introduction of new manufacturing capabilities and processes 

• Drive production performance as the facility accelerates manufacturing and scales operations 

Safety, Quality & Regulatory Compliance 

• Ensure compliance with applicable DOE, NRC, NQA-1, environmental, radiological, criticality safety, security, and company requirements 

• Promote safe work practices, contamination control, material accountability, and disciplined operational execution 

• Partner with Quality, Nuclear Safety, Radiological Controls, Criticality Safety, EH&S, and Security to support audits, inspections, readiness reviews, and regulatory assessments 

• Ensure timely and effective implementation of corrective actions and maintain operational readiness 

• Reinforce a culture where safety, quality, compliance, and production performance are integrated into daily operations 

Leadership & Workforce Development 

• Lead and mentor production supervisors, technicians, operators, and other plant personnel while promoting accountability and professional development 

• Ensure personnel are properly trained, qualified, and prepared to support current and future operational needs 

• Develop frontline leaders who can execute production plans, reinforce standards, and support a disciplined manufacturing environment 

• Foster a culture of teamwork, ownership, continuous learning, and operational excellence 

• Build the organizational capability required to support long-term production growth 

Continuous Improvement & Operational Discipline 

• Establish effective daily management systems, production reviews, shift handoffs, and performance metrics 

• Lead root cause investigations and implementation of sustainable corrective actions for operational, safety, quality, and equipment issues 

• Develop scalable manufacturing systems and processes to support long-term production growth 

• Drive improvements in throughput, yield, equipment reliability, labor productivity, and cost performance 

• Ensure lessons learned from production, maintenance, quality, and safety events are translated into durable operational improvements 

Cross-Functional Leadership 

• Partner with Engineering, Maintenance, Facilities, Supply Chain, Planning, Quality, Finance, EH&S, Nuclear Safety, Security, Licensing, and executive leadership to optimize plant performance 

• Balance production priorities with maintenance, capital projects, staffing, and long-term operational objectives 

• Communicate plant performance, operational risks, resource needs, and improvement initiatives to executive leadership 

• Support facility expansions, commissioning activities, operational readiness reviews, customer engagements, and regulatory interactions 

• Ensure cross-functional teams are aligned around plant priorities, constraints, and execution needs 

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS 

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Operations Management, Industrial Technology, Business, or a related field; equivalent experience will be considered 

• 10+ years of experience in manufacturing, plant operations, industrial operations, or production leadership 

• Experience leading supervisors, technicians, operators, and cross-functional plant teams in a manufacturing or industrial environment 

• Demonstrated experience owning plant or site-level performance across safety, quality, production, cost, staffing, and operational execution 

• Strong understanding of manufacturing systems, production metrics, operational discipline, maintenance coordination, and continuous improvement 

• Experience operating in regulated, safety-critical, high-reliability, or quality-controlled manufacturing environments 

• Proven ability to build teams, develop frontline leaders, establish accountability, and lead through growth or operational change 

• Strong problem-solving, communication, decision-making, and cross-functional leadership skills 

• Experience with DOE, NRC, NQA-1, nuclear, radiological, criticality safety, or other highly regulated environments strongly preferred 

• Experience in nuclear fuel fabrication, nuclear operations, chemical processing, aerospace, defense, energy, or advanced manufacturing is a plus 

BENEFITS 

• Health, Dental & Vision Insurance 

• Health Savings Account 

• Disability and Life Insurance 

• 401(k) Plan 

• Paid Time Off and Holidays 

WORK ENVIRONMENT 

This role is based on-site at Standard Nuclear’s Oak Ridge, TN nuclear fuel fabrication facility and requires regular presence on the manufacturing floor. 

The position involves frequent interaction with production teams, technical staff, plant support functions, industrial equipment, controlled areas, and regulated work environments. Work may involve use of PPE, participation in work planning, and adherence to site safety, quality, radiological, contamination control, criticality safety, security, and operational procedures. Occasional travel may be required to support company operations, vendors, customers, or regulatory activities. Reasonable accommodation will be provided to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. 

Standard Nuclear embraces equal opportunity and is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability, or any other legally protected status.  

To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.