Lead Operator
Mariana Minerals· Plant Operations
East TexasFull-timePosted 1mo ago
About the role
Operator Lead to supervise shift-level plant operations at Joaquin, TX facility, directing a small crew to meet quality, safety, and production targets, serving as the primary liaison between the shift crew and the Director of Operations/Process Engineering.
Responsibilities
- Lead and coordinate the shift crew, assigning tasks and priorities across production areas at the start of and throughout each shift.
- Conduct shift-start safety stand-downs and communicate priorities, hazards, and operational status to the crew.
- Monitor and control process equipment (tanks, pumps, filter presses, reactors, dryers, and packaging equipment) via HMI and manual checks to maintain plant parameters within target ranges.
- Direct loading/unloading of trucks, cleaning of filter presses, and packaging of products.
- Respond to process upsets and abnormal conditions, escalating to the Maintenance team or Process Engineer as needed and authorizing lockout/tagout for repairs.
- Review shift logs, production data, and quality results; ensure accurate and timely documentation of plant activity in log sheets and the CMMS/plant systems.
- Coordinate with Maintenance to prioritize and schedule repairs and preventive maintenance without disrupting production.
- Perform and verify routine safety and housekeeping inspections across assigned plant areas.
- Train and mentor operators on procedures, safety protocols, and equipment operation.
- Support plant start-up, shutdown, and commissioning activities as needed.
Qualifications
- Minimum 2-4 years of plant or industrial operations experience, with prior experience directing or leading a small team preferred.
- Manufacturing, chemical processing, or industrial plant experience is preferred but not required; strong candidates from other operational backgrounds will be considered.
- Ability to read and interpret P&IDs, standard operating procedures, and equipment manuals.
- Comfortable working with industrial chemicals and process equipment, and following established safety protocols.
- Sound troubleshooting skills, with the ability to identify process or equipment issues and determine appropriate corrective action or escalation.
- Strong attention to detail with solid record-keeping and basic mathematical skills.
- Ability to work in an environment involving exposure to chemicals, fumes, dust, and varying weather conditions, using required PPE.
- Ability to lift a minimum of 50 pounds and work in and around industrial equipment.
- Willingness to work rotating shifts, including nights, weekends, and holidays as required by plant operations.
- Hydrometallurgy experience Mining experience Battery material experience (desired)
- Proficient with Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, Power Point, Outlook), Skype, Visio, Adobe (PDF), SharePoint, SAP, Microsoft Project (may be required).
Skills
Required:Team leadershipProcess monitoringSafety and compliance
Last updated Sep 30, 2026. Interested? Apply on the company site.
About Mariana Minerals
We to the Future of Minerals, verify the mineral supply chain.
Mariana Minerals is a software-first, vertically integrated minerals company focused on supplying the minerals critical to modern energy, AI, and defense technologies.
software-firstmineralsenergyAIdefense
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