Control Room Supervisor

Aspen is a technology leader in sustainability and electrification solutions. The Company's aerogel technology enables its customers and partners to achieve their own objectives around the global megatrends of resource efficiency, e-mobility, and clean energy. Aspen's PyroThin products enable solutions to thermal runaway challenges within the electric vehicle ("EV") market. Aspen Battery Materials, the Company's carbon aerogel initiative, seeks to increase the performance of lithium-ion battery cells to enable EV manufacturers to extend the driving range and reduce the cost of EVs. The Company's Cryogel and Pyrogel products are valued by the world's largest energy infrastructure companies. Aspen's strategy is to partner with world-class industry leaders to leverage its Aerogel Technology Platform into additional high-value markets. Aspen is headquartered in Northborough, Mass.

The Control Room Supervisor is a key position in maintaining the operational readiness of Aspen Aerogels East Providence facility. This role will be required to use knowledge, experience, and judgement, to lead, coordinate, and communicate with different departments, to ensure the facility is operating in safe conditions with high quality control.

In addition, the position supports a 24/7 manufacturing facility using advanced process & technical skills while supervising a shift-based team of 4 Control Room Engineers & 4 Manufacturing Engineering Technicians. The Control Room team is responsible for troubleshooting all process & post-process issues, DCS, and controls equipment while adhering to operating discipline and standards. Monitors the effectiveness of all plant processes, quantifies results and presents findings to management.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Control Room Supervisor Responsibilities

• Maintains, controls, and directs plant activities to ensure control room monitoring remains the primary focus and directs the crew for the strategic implementation of normal and emergency operating procedures.
• Maintains close oversight of control room activities to detect errors or lapses in judgement or a breakdown in role responsibilities by other crew members, including asserting their authority for command and control whenever high standards are not being maintained.
• Ensures plant activities are properly managed and coordinated and determines which activities require control room staff attention, including minimizing distractions.
• Ensures the established method of collecting plant O.E.E. data is maintained. Provides input and support to future digital transformational projects.
• Performs the function of field support supervisor or incident assessor when required.
• Participates as Emergency Response Organization member and responds to call-ins.
• Provides input to Engineering Projects to assist in ensuring that facilities are designed/constructed in accordance with agreed specifications and functional requirements.
• Acts as champion for the control room in identifying plant project functional requirements and control room needs for resource allocation and improvements.
• Assists in ensuring that new designs and alterations/modifications to existing installations are inherently safe and in accordance with operational requirements and philosophy.
• Coordinate with engineering, maintenance, and production partners for flawless start-up of new projects and be part of operations organization afterwards.
• Nurtures a close partnership with maintenance for achieving and maintaining minimal downtime and for root cause analysis investigations.
• Capable of Coaching lesser experienced operations staff
• Monitor, troubleshoot, and operate the plant after startup.
• Ensure the plant operates safely and remains in compliance with plant requirements and governmental regulations.
• Learn and obtain the necessary skills to effectively oversee activities of Control Room Operators and Auxiliary Operators and to investigate operational problems and evaluate plant impact.
• Perform administrative functions related to plant operational requirements. Issue Maintenance work requests and maintain plant logging requirements.
• Supervisory responsibilities include interviewing, hiring, training, and developing employees; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; timekeeping; addressing complaints and resolving problems.

Manufacturing Support Responsibilities

• Accountable for contributing to established production goals through safe and efficient operation of plant control room and control systems.
• Work closely with Finishing & Production operators, Shift Supervisors and Production Manager to identify and communicate daily issues, priorities, and production changes.
• Participate as necessary in "root cause" investigations of safety and/or process incidents.
• Work with internal or external partners in all day-to-day maintenance/reliability/equipment performance, instrument/hardware, programming/sequencing issues and quality control concerns
• Participate in daily production meetings, weekly staff meetings and other scheduled meetings.
• Participate as an integral part of the team during plant outages from equipment shutdown through startup of the process.
• Assists production and utility operators and departments in troubleshooting.
• Respond to system communications/data/server related issues coordinating with IT and/or outside resources as needed.

Process Control/Automation Responsibilities

• Provide C&A SME guidance and directions to support plant operation, IT, engineering, facility and maintenance activities to ensure operational readiness in East Providence facility.
• Monitor plant processes and control systems to optimize plant output, maximize production, and minimize costs.
• Demonstrate the ability to troubleshoot issues related to control equipment. Able to document research findings, and present solutions to problems. Understand and correctly identify hazards and risk.
• Able to understand and interpret diagrams such as P&ID, field panels drawings, and electrical wiring diagrams.
• Use knowledge of control systems to assist with troubleshooting both hardware and software issues.
• Identify opportunities to improve process automation and/or production output.
• Generate reports to track production and control system KPIs.
• Performs other related duties as assigned by management.
• Adopt and follow Aspen's core values of Safety, Quality, Integrity, Teamwork, Customer Service, and Innovation on both a personal and professional level.
• Provide technical inputs to DCS currently being built by contractor.
• Participate in and support commissioning and startup of plant.
• Key team member for plant daily Production Planning.
• Supervise and monitor plant operational parameters to meet the requirements of safe and reliable operations.
• Ensure all the activities are carried out according to Safety and operational management systems.
• Report equipment failures and raises/escalate actions, if necessary, to restore equipment availability and maintain highest plant reliability.
• Implement or approve overrides, alarm shelving, and inhibits as and when required, strong experience of DCS system and alarm management is required.
• Analyze operations situations and remedies to operational anomaly.
• Accountable for fully understanding the integrated facility process plant operations.
• Responsible for ensuring that the DCS (Distributed Control System) for plants startup and shutdown operations are operated efficiently to meet Company's objectives and production targets.
• Assist in preparation of necessary plant/operational reports as requested.
• Responsible for ensuring the safe shutdown, isolation and blow down of relevant section/plant during emergency situations.
• Adhere to policy, standards and approved operating procedures while performing the duties / tasks.
• Accountable for work team with respect to training and competency development
• Review team members competency status with respect to control room operations and close competency gaps
• Identify, investigate, and report faults.
• Oversee the communication between control room operators and field operators to ensure safe operations.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Two-year associates/technical degree preferred in industrial process or controls related area. Relevant chemical process related experience fully considered.
• 5 years of work experience in a manufacturing environment is required; chemical manufacturing experience is strongly preferred. 3+ years of supervisory experience preferred.
• 5+ years of experience operating a process plant distributed control systems (DCS) and with machine level controls (Rockwell Automation PLC preferred).
• Prior experience with OSHA's Process Safety Management standard preferred.
• Key skill sets that are integral for success in this role include:
  
  
  
  • self-motivated/driven.
  • time management: position involves supporting a high level of various production activities and requires effective prioritization.
  • strong interpersonal and communication skills that can be sustained under high stress situations.
  • strong sense of urgency and commitment
  
  
  
  
• Strong safety background
• A good understanding of fundamental physical and chemical science concepts and competence in at least algebra-level mathematics.
• The candidate must be able to develop concise & technically sound documents and can communicate effectively.
• General understanding of project procedures and requirements related to construction, testing, plant inspection, turnover, commissioning, and start-up.
• Possess Supervisory and presentation skills and the ability to develop staff.
• Strong interpersonal skills are required to be able to liaise successfully with other disciplines.
• Previous experience with ABB 800xA control system preferred.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT:

• Frequently required to stand
• Frequently required to walk
• Frequently required to sit
• Frequently required to utilize hand and finger dexterity
• Occasionally required to climb, balance, bend, stoop, kneel or crawl
• Occasionally exposed to wet and/or humid conditions (non-weather)
• Occasionally works near moving mechanical parts
• Occasionally works around fumes, airborne particles, or toxic chemicals
• Occasionally exposed to outside weather conditions
• While performing the duties of this job, the noise level in the work environment is usually moderate / loud
• The employee must occasionally lift and/or move more than 50 pounds / frequently lift and/or move up to 25 pounds / continually lift and/or move up to 10 pounds.

The above is intended to describe the general content of and requirements for the performance of this job. It is not to be construed as an exhaustive statement of duties, responsibilities or physical requirements. Nothing in this job description restricts management's right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

PERKS OF JOINING OUR TEAM!

Aspen is committed to offering a comprehensive benefits package, a positive and productive work environment, encouraged work/life and family balance, and opportunities for growth and development, in a culture that is focused on inclusion, sustainability, and working together to solve the world's toughest challenges.

Aspen is proud to offer a competitive benefits package including Medical, Dental, Vision, Tuition Reimbursement, Paid Holidays, Sick Time, and PTO. In addition, we also offer Fitness Reimbursement, a 401k Employer Match, Life and Disability Insurance, and other benefits.

Aspen Aerogels, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, and other legally protected characteristics. The EEO is the Law poster is available here: http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/posters/pdf/eeopost.pdf.

Aspen Aerogels, Inc. is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation because of a disability for any part of the employment process, please send an e-mail to abuttitta@aerogel.com or call and leave a voice message at (508) 466-3111 and let us know the nature of your request and your contact information and we will return your message.

For Our Rhode Island Applicants:
Aspen Aerogels, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, and other legally protected characteristics. The East Providence, RI facility of Aspen Aerogels is subject to Title 28, Chapter 29-6.2 of Rhode Island General Laws, which governs Worker's Compensation.