Manager Planning Reliability -KZN

Job Purpose

• To lead the planning, reliability engineering and continuous improvement function within the Engineering department, ensuring maximum availability and utilization of equipment fleet (STS cranes, straddle carriers, RTG, CVR, and supporting infrastructure) through structured maintenance planning, reliability-centered methodologies, data-driven decision making, and a culture of continuous improvement. The role also oversees the Warehouse, Change Management, and Data Analytics functions in support of these objectives.

Key Responsibilities
Planning and Reliability Engineering

• Develop and maintain the maintenance planning framework for all equipment categories (STS, SC, CVR, Infrastructure), ensuring preventive maintenance (PM) compliance targets are met.
• Monitor and report on fleet Availability, Utilization Rate, Breakdowns, Downtime Hours, MTBF and MTTR; drive corrective action where trends deteriorate.
• Apply reliability-centred maintenance (RCM) and root cause analysis (RCA) principles to reduce recurring failures and extend asset life.
• Own the spares planning and status-tracking process (from spares list definition through to fitment), working closely with Warehouse and Procurement to avoid stock-outs that cause extended downtime.
• Support Engineering and Claims in the technical assessment and cost tracking of equipment damage cases, ensuring maintenance and repair data feeds the broader damage cost reporting process.

Continuous Improvement

• Lead continuous improvement initiatives across the Engineering function, applying Lean, Six Sigma, or equivalent methodologies to reduce waste, downtime, and cost.
• Identify and prioritize improvement opportunities in collaboration with Execution teams (STS, SC, CVR, Infrastructure) and Operations.
• Establish and maintain standard operating procedures, work instructions, and best-practice standards for maintenance and reliability activities.
• Champion a culture of proactive problem-solving and data-driven decision making within the Engineering department.

Data Analytics and Reporting

• Oversee the Data Analytics function, ensuring dashboards and reports (daily, monthly, and annual) accurately reflect fleet performance, reliability, and cost KPIs for management review.
• Ensure data integrity across CMMS/EAM systems and other planning tools used to track equipment condition, work orders, and spares status.
• Present performance trends and improvement recommendations to the Head of Engineering and senior management on a regular basis.

Leadership and Stakeholder Management

• Manage and develop the teams within Warehouse, Change Management, and Data Analytics, ensuring clear objectives and accountability.
• Act as a key interface between Engineering, Operations, Claims, and Finance on matters relating to equipment reliability, planning, and cost.
• Ensure all activities comply with safety, health, and environmental standards.

Key Relationships

• Internal: Head of Engineering, Execution teams (STS, SC, CVR, Infrastructure), Operations, Claims, Finance, Warehouse/Procurement.
• External: Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), spares suppliers, and maintenance service providers.

Minimum Requirements
Qualifications

• BEng / BTech in Mechanical, Industrial, or Electrical Engineering (essential).
• Professional registration (Pr Eng / Pr Technologist) advantageous.
• Certification in Reliability Engineering (e.g. CMRP) and/or Lean Six Sigma (Green/Black Belt) advantageous.

Experience

• 8–10+ years of experience in maintenance planning, reliability engineering, or asset management within a heavy-industry environment (ports, terminals, mining, rail, or similar bulk material handling operations).
• Proven experience managing preventive maintenance programmes and reliability KPIs (Availability, Utilization, MTBF, MTTR) for a mixed fleet of heavy mobile and fixed equipment.
• Experience leading continuous improvement initiatives in a technical/operational environment.
• Experience with CMMS/EAM systems (e.g. SAP PM, Pragma, Maximo) and BI/reporting tools.
• Exposure to port or terminal equipment (STS cranes, straddle carriers, RTGs, or similar) advantageous, but not essential.

Key Competencies

• Strong analytical and data-driven decision-making ability.
• Effective leadership and people management skills across multi-disciplinary teams.
• Excellent stakeholder management and cross-functional collaboration.
• Structured, methodical approach to problem-solving and process improvement.
• Strong communication skills, able to present technical findings to senior management.