SUMMARY:
General Mechanical Supervisor – Mining, Engineering & Plant Operations
Location: Middelburg or Witbank, Mpumalanga, South Africa (Local candidates preferred)
Job Type: Full-Time, Permanent
Reports To: Engineering Manager / Operations Director
Salary Range: R550,000 – R820,000 per annum (inclusive of benefits, performance incentives, and allowances)
Position Overview
A high-capacity mining and heavy industrial operation is seeking a seasoned, hands-on General Mechanical Supervisor to lead the execution of mechanical maintenance, repair, and optimization strategies across all plant and field operations. This role is pivotal in ensuring maximum availability of critical assets including fixed and mobile equipment, mechanical infrastructure, and rotating systems.
The successful candidate will be both technically competent and operationally strategic, capable of managing mechanical teams, improving plant reliability, reducing equipment downtime, and maintaining high standards of safety and compliance.
POSITION INFO:
Key Responsibilities
1. Mechanical Asset Management & Maintenance Execution
- Oversee the daily performance, diagnostics, and lifecycle management of equipment such as conveyors, crushers, pumps, gearboxes, and hydraulic/pneumatic systems.
- Implement and enforce preventive and predictive maintenance plans to minimize reactive work and breakdowns.
- Coordinate scheduled shutdowns, inspections, and major repairs, ensuring minimal disruption to operations.
Qualifications & Experience
- Minimum Education: Red Seal Trade Test as Fitter, Millwright, or Mechanical Artisan.
- Preferred: N6 or NDip in Mechanical Engineering; GCC (Factories or Mines) is highly advantageous.
Experience:
- Minimum 7–10 years hands-on mechanical maintenance experience in mining, smelting, manufacturing, or industrial plant environments.
- At least 3–5 years in a mechanical supervisory or foreman-level role, managing multi-skilled maintenance teams and assets.
- Proven record of plant uptime improvement, project execution, and mechanical performance enhancement.
2. Leadership & Team Supervision
- Manage, motivate, and mentor a team of qualified artisans, fitters, mechanical assistants, and third-party contractors.
- Lead toolbox talks, shift briefings, and task allocations, ensuring safety, productivity, and accountability.
- Support skills development and internal training in mechanical maintenance best practices.
3. Technical Fault Diagnosis & Root Cause Analysis (RCA)
- Lead technical investigations into mechanical failures, component wear, vibration anomalies, and process-related equipment damage.
- Apply structured RCA methodologies to recommend corrective actions and improve long-term reliability.
- Collaborate with engineering and reliability teams to upgrade systems, recommend design improvements, or optimize configurations.
4. Operational Integration & Cross-Functional Coordination
- Liaise with production, maintenance planning, procurement, and engineering teams to align mechanical availability with operational targets
Communicate job priorities, equipment status, and emerging risks to all relevant departments.
- Participate in daily planning meetings, KPI reviews, and plant performance assessments.
5. Health, Safety, Quality & Compliance
- Enforce compliance with OHSA, MHSA, ISO 45001, and company-specific mechanical safety protocols.
- Lead site inspections, mechanical audits, LOTO procedures, and lifting gear inspections.
- Maintain up-to-date job safety analyses (JSAs), risk assessments, and incident investigations.
6. Systems & Reporting
- Ensure accurate record-keeping of job cards, equipment histories, and maintenance schedules using CMMS/ERP systems (e.g., SAP, Pragma).
- Track and report on equipment availability, MTTR, MTBF, and other mechanical KPIs.
- Submit weekly and monthly reports to the Engineering Manager with updates on task completion, failures, and resource needs.
Technical Skills
- Strong working knowledge of rotating equipment, hydraulics, pneumatics, conveyors, crushers, vibrating screens, pumps, and gearboxes.
- Proficient in mechanical drawings, fault-finding methods, tolerances, fits, and technical specifications.
- Experience using CMMS systems (SAP PM, Pragma On Key, or similar).
- Familiar with lifting equipment, rigging standards, and machinery alignment.
-Competence in basic fabrication, welding, and field repairs is an advantage.
