Maintenance & Reliability Manager

ABOUT US

Australian Sustainable Dairies (ASD Group) are building the future of dairy in Australia, bringing high quality, better for you, and sustainable products to Australian consumers. We are Australia’s largest fresh organic dairy business, producing award winning yoghurt, milk & cheese products, across our market leading brands Barambah Organics, and five:am Organic. We are passionate about our brands, our culture, and our team. We have fun, we work hard and support each other to exceed goals and continue our rapid growth trajectory.   

THE ROLE

Reporting to the Supply Chain Associate Director, the Maintenance & Reliability Manager role is responsible for improving the reliability, performance, and lifecycle management of manufacturing equipment across operations at our Carrum Downs manufacturing plant, as well as managing site facilities and infrastructure.

This role leads reliability strategies, preventative and predictive maintenance programs, and continuous improvement initiatives to minimise downtime, reduce maintenance costs, and ensure safe, compliant production.

The position works closely with production and quality to support high-volume dairy processing operations while maintaining people and food safety and regulatory compliance.

Specifically, the key responsibilities of this role includes (but not limited to):

• Develop and implement reliability strategies for dairy processing equipment including pasteurizers, homogenizers, separators, fillers, packing lines and utilities (boilers, refrigeration, compressors, CIP, water and trade waste).
• Lead reliability improvement programs including RCM (Reliability Centred Maintenance) and FMEA.
• Analyse failure data and drive corrective and preventative actions.
• Ensure maintenance strategies are translated into daily/weekly maintenance plans for the maintenance team.
• Manage and optimise preventative and predictive maintenance programs.
• Lead root cause analysis and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Oversee asset lifecycle planning, upgrades, and commissioning.
• Manage site facilities, buildings and infrastructure, coordinating planned maintenance, repairs and external contractors to support safe and efficient operations.
• Ensure compliance with HACCP, safety, and regulatory requirements.
• Provide technical leadership and training to maintenance teams.
• Utilise CMMS to track performance metrics (MTBF, MTTR, OEE).
• Deliver regular reliability reporting to senior management.
• Drive continuous improvement to increase Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE).

ABOUT YOU

This pivotal role is ideal for an expert in reliability engineering methodologies (RCM, FMEA, RCA) with strong knowledge of dairy processing equipment and food manufacturing systems. You bring a hands‑on leadership style, a passion for continuous improvement, and the technical capability to drive meaningful reliability outcomes.

The successful candidate will have:

• 5–10 years’ experience in maintenance, reliability, or engineering (ideally food/dairy).
• Strong knowledge of mechanical/electrical systems and reliability methodologies (RCM, FMEA, RCA).
• Experience with CMMS and preventative/predictive maintenance programs.
• Experience in facilities management, including building and infrastructure maintenance & contractor coordination.
• Skilled in data analysis, problem‑solving, and continuous improvement.
• Collaborative leader with strong communication skills and a hands‑on approach.
• Desirable: Reliability or Lean/Six Sigma certifications.
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