Lead the reliability function at our Bathurst Pet Food Manufacturing Plant
Mars Petcare Australia home to loved brands such as Pedigree, Whiskas, ADVANCE
Permanent full‑time role, based onsite Bathurst, NSW | Relocation support available
Ready to lead reliability, shape the future of a site, and make a visible impact every single day?
We're looking for an experienced Technical Manager – Reliability to lead the reliability function at our Bathurst Pet Food Manufacturing Plant — a role where your leadership, technical expertise and mindset for continuous improvement will truly matter.
This is a pivotal role at the heart of the site. You'll lead a talented, multi‑disciplinary team and partner closely with Operations to ensure our plant runs safely, reliably and efficiently — today and into the future.
What You'll Do
* Owning the plant‑wide reliability strategy, covering electrical, mechanical, utilities and services
* Leading, coaching, and developing a high‑performing reliability team and contractor partners
* Optimising maintenance practices to improve uptime, reduce unplanned downtime and support safe production
* Managing asset health end to end, embedding preventive and predictive maintenance approaches
* Acting as a trusted partner to Operations, aligning maintenance plans with production priorities
* Managing the maintenance and reliability budget, balancing cost, risk and performance
* Driving continuous improvement, digital enablement and smarter ways of working
* Ensuring safety, compliance and governance underpin everything we do
* Providing clear reporting, insights and asset performance visibility to support data‑driven decisions
You'll directly manage day‑shift electricians and contractors, and act as the key site contact for external service providers.
Why This Role Matters
This role has a direct and visible impact on site performance — influencing uptime, cost efficiency, safety and long‑term asset resilience. You'll champion asset health, guide capital investment and refurbishment decisions, and play a key role in shaping how the site evolves.
You'll collaborate closely with Operations, Engineering, Digital and FI teams, ensuring reliability is embedded into projects, systems and everyday decision‑making.
What We're Looking For
* A Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related technical discipline
* 5+ years' experience in maintenance or reliability leadership (FMCG, food, pet food or complex manufacturing preferred)
* Strong expertise in reliability engineering, asset management and failure analysis
* Proven ability to lead, coach and develop multi‑disciplinary teams
* Experience driving continuous improvement using structured problem‑solving tools
* A proactive, collaborative leadership style with strong stakeholder engagement
Nice to have:
* Experience in food or pet food manufacturing
* Exposure to predictive / condition‑based monitoring
* Experience with CMMS, digital maintenance systems and analytics
Driving the Next Phase of Site Transformation
Bathurst is in the midst of an exciting transformation journey. In this role, you'll play a critical part in continuing that momentum by leading the adoption of new technologies, digital tools and modern reliability practices.
You'll help evolve the way the team works, shifting from reactive maintenance to predictive, data‑led decision‑making, embedding new ways of working and building capability across the site. This is an opportunity not just to maintain assets, but to shape the future of reliability, influence culture and help the site become more connected, resilient and fit for the next generation of manufacturing.
Why Mars Petcare?
At Mars, we're serious about safety, quality and investing in our people. You'll be empowered to lead, supported to grow and trusted to make decisions that matter.
And if you're not already in Bathurst — relocation support is available for the right candidate .
If you're ready to lead reliability with purpose, energy and impact — we'd love to hear from you.
Applications close: Thursday 8th of January 2026
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