Plant Engineer - Mbombela

SUMMARY:

Role Overview

Key Responsibilities

• Monitor, troubleshoot, and optimise plant equipment and systems to ensure reliable operations.
• Develop and implement strategies for the Engineering Department in alignment with operational and maintenance (O&M) goals.
• Create and enforce work instructions, policies, and procedures for effective departmental performance and legislative compliance.
• Minimise equipment breakdowns by driving preventative maintenance programmes and plant improvements.
• Evaluate planned maintenance activities for effectiveness, physically verify execution when needed, and adjust schedules to optimise uptime.
• Review preventative maintenance reports, assess frequency, and plan interventions to avoid failures.
• Lead root cause analysis following major breakdowns and define corrective and preventive actions with the maintenance team.
• Maintain a focus on continuous improvement in plant availability, efficiency, and safety performance.

POSITION INFO:
Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering (or equivalent).
• Government Certificate of Competency (GCC) – Factories.
• Minimum of 15 years’ experience in a Plant Engineer role within a power plant or utilities environment.

• Strong technical understanding of power plant operations and maintenance risks.
• In-depth knowledge of SHERQ (Safety, Health, Environment, Risk, and Quality) systems and legislative compliance.
• Skilled in conducting risk assessments and safety audits.
• Highly organised, efficient, and able to manage multiple tasks under pressure.
• Strong problem-solving, numeric reasoning, and analytical skills.
• Proven leadership, facilitation, and team management abilities.
• Competent in project management principles.
• Effective communicator with strong presentation and report-writing skills.
• Advanced computer literacy (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).
• Strong negotiation, coaching, and mentoring skills.
• Behavioural traits: integrity, reliability, professionalism, self-motivation, and a safety-first mindset.
• Quick to react in emergency situations and proactive in risk anticipation.