Gentex Europe, part of the global Gentex Corporation, is seeking an accomplished Manufacturing Operations Manager to lead our UK manufacturing operations and drive operational excellence across our Haydock and Letchworth facilities. The role will be based at our Haydock facility with 25% travel required to our Letchworth facility.
This is a high-profile leadership role where you’ll have the opportunity to shape the future of our manufacturing capability, lead a multi-skilled team, and play a pivotal role in delivering safe, efficient, and high-quality production to support our growing customer base in the aerospace, defence, and industrial sectors.
This role goes beyond day-to-day operations — it’s about driving transformation, continuous improvement, and building a high-performing manufacturing culture. You’ll be responsible for setting strategic direction, optimising production capabilities, and ensuring our operations consistently deliver on quality, cost, and delivery expectations.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES:

• Lead manufacturing operations across the UK, establishing priorities and aligning performance with Gentex Europe’s business objectives.
• Build and embed a Lean culture, driving continuous improvement and operational excellence through structured transformation initiatives.
• Deliver against operational KPIs for safety, quality, on-time delivery, cost, and productivity.
• Oversee financial performance, optimising labour, material, and overhead costs to maximise operational efficiency.
• Drive collaboration across functions, partnering closely with Supply Chain, Engineering, Quality, Planning, and Customer Service to meet customer expectations.
• Lead site resource planning, production scheduling, and capacity modelling to support strategic growth.
• Manage CAPEX planning and implementation for new production lines and automation investments.
• Ensure compliance with ISO 9001, AS9100D, health & safety, environmental, and export control regulations.
• Champion talent development by leading, coaching, and building capability within production teams, supervisors, and support functions.

Please refer the Job description for details