Maintenance & Reliability Leader

Company Overview

Valentra is a focused chemical manufacturing company built on a strong operational legacy. We operate a network of formaldehyde and derivative production facilities across the U.S. Gulf Coast, supplying essential materials to blue-chip customers who depend on safe, reliable, and high-quality products and solutions.

While our name is new, what has not changed is how we operate. Valentra leads with care and is deeply committed to our plants, our people, and the communities where we live and work. We take pride in close, collaborative partnerships with our customers and suppliers, delivering the reliability and responsiveness their operations require.

We operate with uncompromising integrity and a strong drive for excellence, continuously improving how we work and how we serve our customers. When you join Valentra, you become part of a hands-on organization where accountability is clear, safety comes first, and every role makes a meaningful impact.

Location

Based out of Geismar, LA, this is a multi-site role supporting three manufacturing locations across Louisiana and Texas

Position Overview

The Maintenance & Reliability Leader is responsible for building, implementing, and leading a standardized maintenance and reliability program across three chemical manufacturing sites. This role will refine the CMMS framework, develop asset strategies, and provide leadership to a team of 8 Mechanical and Electrical & Instrumentation (E&I) technicians, along with a Maintenance Lead.

The ideal candidate brings strong practical experience in chemical or process manufacturing environments and is comfortable working in plants with rotating equipment, pressure systems, and process columns. This is a key role in transitioning maintenance from reactive to planned, reliability-focused execution.

Job Responsibilities

Maintenance Program & CMMS Leadership

• Lead the configuration and implementation of a new CMMS across all sites
• Develop and standardize:
  
  • Asset hierarchy and equipment criticality
  • Preventive maintenance (PM) programs
  • Job plans, bills of material, and spare parts strategies
• Establish work management processes including planning, scheduling, backlog control, and KPI tracking
• Train technicians and supervisors on CMMS usage and maintenance best practices

Reliability Engineering

• Develop and execute reliability strategies for critical assets, including:
  
  • Blowers and fans
  • Motors and drives
  • Pumps and seals
  • Pressure vessels and storage tanks
  • Absorber and distillation columns
• Support root cause failure analysis (RCFA) and implement corrective actions
• Drive improvements in equipment uptime, mean time between failures (MTBF), and maintenance cost effectiveness

Technical & Team Leadership

• Provide day-to-day leadership for Mechanical and E&I technicians across three sites building talent and collaboration across the organization
• Support troubleshooting of complex mechanical and electrical issues
• Act as a technical escalation point for maintenance and operations teams
• Promote consistent maintenance standards and practices across all locations

Safety, Compliance & PSM

• Ensure maintenance activities comply with Process Safety Management (PSM) requirements where applicable
• Support mechanical integrity programs including inspections, testing, and documentation
• Participate in Management of Change (MOC), PHA follow-ups, and incident investigations as required
• Champion safe work practices and contractor safety

Continuous Improvement

• Partner with Operations, Engineering, and Site Leadership to improve plant reliability and maintainability
• Support capital projects, equipment upgrades, and turnarounds as needed
• Establish maintenance KPIs and regularly report performance and improvement opportunities
• Lead the organization in implementing predictive tools where appropriate

Competencies

• Hands-on, practical problem solver
• Strong leadership and communication skills
• Comfortable working in lean organizations and wearing multiple hats
• Able to influence without large support structures
• Organized, systems-oriented, and data-driven

Minimum Qualifications

Experience

• 10+ years experience in maintenance and/or reliability roles in chemical, petrochemical, refining, or process manufacturing environments, with some team leadership experience preferred.
• Demonstrated experience implementing or significantly improving a CMMS
• Proven ability to lead maintenance programs in multi-site operations

Technical Knowledge

Strong working knowledge of:

• Rotating equipment (blowers, pumps, motors, gearboxes)
• Pressure vessels and storage tanks
• Absorber and distillation columns
• Electrical and instrumentation fundamentals sufficient to lead E&I technicians
• Maintenance best practices and reliability concepts

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical or Electrical Engineering preferred, or
• Equivalent experience with a proven track record of maintenance and reliability leadership

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in PSM-regulated environments
• Background in chemical manufacturing or continuous process operations
• Familiarity with reliability tools such as RCM, FMEA, or RCFA
• Prior experience building robust maintenance programs 
• Certified Maintenance and Reliability Professional (CMRP) certification

Other

We are an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to gender, pregnancy, race, national origin, religion, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran or military status, status as a qualified individual with a disability or any other characteristic protected by law.

To be considered for this position candidates are required to submit an application for employment through our career site and, be at least 18 years of age.  Any offer of employment will be conditioned upon successful completion of a drug test and background investigation, as well as authorization for the Company to conduct additional periodic background checks as required by the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) or regulations adopted by the department of Homeland Security or other regulatory agencies. A prior criminal record is not an automatic bar to employment, and the Company will conduct an individualized assessment and reassessment, consistent with applicable law, prior to making any final employment decision.