Operation and Process Manager

Job Purpose

The Operation and Process Manager is responsible for overseeing the daily operations and process performance of the plant. The goal is to ensure safe, reliable, efficient, and compliant functioning in accordance with contractual obligations, environmental regulations, established procedures, and performance targets.

Key Responsibilities

• Oversee the daily functioning of all treatment units, including inlet works, biological treatment, clarification, filtration, disinfection, sludge treatment, and treated sewage effluent (TSE) systems.
• Guarantee continuous plant availability and stable process performance, adhering to design specifications and contractual requirements.
• Monitor critical process parameters, TSE quality, and beneficial sludge quality.
• Analyze operational and laboratory data to identify process deviations and implement effective corrective and preventive actions.
• Optimize aeration, chemical dosing, sludge wasting, disinfection, energy consumption, and overall process efficiency.
• Collaborate with operations, laboratory, maintenance, HSE, and reporting teams to ensure seamless plant operations.
• Review daily operation logs, shift reports, laboratory results, and monthly performance reports.
• Provide support for performance tests, reliability tests, capacity tests, and assessments of contractual compliance.
• Manage sludge and by-product handling, including production, dewatering, drying, storage, and coordination of disposal.
• Ensure adherence to environmental standards, TSE quality limits, HSE requirements, and internal procedures.
• Lead and mentor process engineers and operators.
• Prepare technical reports, process trend analyses, root cause analyses, justifications for non-compliance, and improvement plans.
• Maintain professional communication with the client and internal management as needed.

Required Qualifications & Experience

• A Bachelor's degree in Environmental, Chemical, Civil, Mechanical Engineering, or a related discipline.
• A minimum of 8 to 10 years of experience in wastewater treatment plant operations.
• At least 3 to 5 years in a senior operational, process, or managerial capacity.
• Substantial experience with municipal wastewater treatment plants, ideally on large-scale projects.
• Experience within Public-Private Partnership (PPP) or Operations & Maintenance (O&M) contractual frameworks is advantageous.

Required Skills

• Proficiency in wastewater treatment processes, including biological treatment, disinfection, and sludge management.
• Capability to analyze process data, laboratory results, trends, and operational Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
• Familiarity with SCADA systems, reporting tools, compliance regulations, and plant performance monitoring.
• Excellent leadership, communication, coordination, problem-solving, and decision-making abilities.
• Capacity to perform under pressure, manage process upsets, emergencies, and conduct performance tests.

Key Performance Indicators

• Plant availability and reliability.
• TSE and environmental compliance.
• Reduction in process-related non-compliance incidents.
• Efficiency in sludge handling.
• Optimization of chemical and energy usage.
• Accuracy and punctuality of reports.
• Effective team performance and operational discipline.

Additional Information

This role is based in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.