Production Manager

Production Manager – Aerospace Manufacturing Location: Portsmouth, UK Company: F.P.T. Industries Ltd – DART Aerospace Employment Type: Full-time, Permanent Department: Manufacturing / Operations Join DART Aerospace DART Aerospace is a global aerospace manufacturer delivering mission-critical equipment and solutions to customers across the commercial and defence aerospace sectors. At our Portsmouth facility, F.P.T. Industries manufactures safety-critical aerospace products, including aircraft fuel systems and emergency flotation equipment, within a highly regulated manufacturing environment. We are looking for an experienced Production Manager to lead our manufacturing operations and drive improvements across Safety, Quality, Delivery, Cost and People (SQDCP). This is a senior, hands-on operational leadership role for someone who can deliver today's production commitments while building the systems, capability and culture required for future growth. What You'll Do Lead Production Execution You will take ownership of the daily, weekly and monthly production plan, translating SIOP requirements and business priorities into effective shop-floor execution. You will:

• Lead day-to-day manufacturing operations and ensure production commitments are achieved
• Drive adherence to the production plan and implement recovery actions when performance deviates
• Identify capacity constraints, material shortages, bottlenecks and operational risks early
• Provide accurate production forecasts and visibility of expected month-end performance
• Ensure staffing, skills, shifts and capacity are aligned with production demand Drive Productivity & Operational Excellence You will play a central role in improving manufacturing performance across the site. You will:
• Increase productivity, throughput, efficiency and labour utilisation
• Identify and eliminate manufacturing bottlenecks and waste
• Reduce lead times and improve manufacturing flow
• Lead Lean and continuous improvement initiatives
• Establish effective Daily Management Systems
• Work closely with Manufacturing Engineering to improve processes and identify automation opportunities
• Challenge established working practices and implement simpler, faster and more effective ways of working Build Quality into Production Production will own the quality of what it manufactures. You will:
• Strengthen process discipline and quality ownership across manufacturing
• Improve Right First Time performance
• Reduce defects, rework, scrap, concessions, escapes and customer returns
• Ensure quality issues are contained quickly and corrective actions are implemented
• Partner with Quality and Engineering to eliminate recurring manufacturing problems through effective root-cause analysis Lead Safety You will provide visible HSE leadership across manufacturing and ensure safety is treated as an integral part of operational performance. This includes maintaining high standards of PPE compliance, workplace organisation, housekeeping and 5S, while ensuring hazards, near misses and incidents are properly reported, investigated and addressed. Develop High-Performing Teams You will lead and develop Production Leaders, Supervisors and Team Leaders, creating clear accountability throughout the manufacturing organisation. You will:
• Set clear expectations for leadership behaviour and operational performance
• Maintain a strong leadership presence on the shop floor
• Coach leaders to understand and own their performance
• Address underperformance consistently and effectively
• Develop high-potential employees and succession capability
• Build an engaged, accountable and performance-driven manufacturing culture How We Measure Success You will establish and manage performance through Safety, Quality, Delivery, Cost and People (SQDCP) metrics. Operational reviews will be concise, data-driven and focused on actions, ownership and results. Your manufacturing organisation will directly contribute to achieving site objectives for customer delivery, revenue, profitability and growth. What We're Looking For We are looking for an experienced manufacturing leader who combines strong operational control with the ability to improve and transform manufacturing performance. You should bring:
• Significant leadership experience within manufacturing operations
• Experience leading a sizeable manufacturing organisation through Production Leaders, Supervisors and Team Leaders
• A demonstrated track record of improving Safety, Quality, Delivery, Cost and People
• Strong experience improving productivity, efficiency, throughput and labour utilisation
• Strong knowledge of production planning, capacity management and manufacturing flow
• Practical experience with Lean Manufacturing and Continuous Improvement
• Experience implementing or operating effective Daily Management Systems
• Strong knowledge of manufacturing quality systems, process control and root-cause problem solving
• Strong HSE leadership experience
• Commercial awareness and an understanding of how manufacturing performance impacts revenue and profitability
• Strong analytical skills and confidence using operational data to drive decisions
• The ability to lead effectively in a fast-paced and demanding manufacturing environment Aerospace / Regulatory Experience Experience within aerospace, defence or another highly regulated manufacturing environment is strongly preferred. Experience with the following would be particularly valuable:
• AS9100
• CAA / EASA Part 21
• CAA / EASA Part 145
• Aerospace manufacturing and MRO environments The Leadership Profile This role requires someone comfortable moving between the shop floor and senior leadership discussions. You should be able to roll up your sleeves when short-term delivery requires it, while also making the structural changes necessary to improve long-term manufacturing performance. You will have significant autonomy and will be expected to make decisions, challenge performance, develop your leadership team and maintain operational control as the business grows. Ready to Lead Manufacturing Performance? If you have built high-performing manufacturing teams and know how to turn production plans into measurable operational results, we would like to hear from you. Apply now to join DART Aerospace in Portsmouth.