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Yard Manager - Heavy Industrial/Pipe Manufacturing Operations

Affinity Executive Search

Little Rock, AR

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JOB DETAILS
SKILLS
Business Performance Management, Continuous Improvement, Crane, Cross-Functional, Documentation, ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), Establish Priorities, Forklift, Heavy Equipment/Vehicles, Housekeeping/Cleaning, Industrial Management, Inventory Cycle Counts, Inventory Management, Leadership, Loaders, Loading/Unloading, Logistics, Maintain Compliance, Manufacturing, Manufacturing Load, Manufacturing Operations, Material Process Control, Materials Management, Materials Tracking, OSHA, Onboarding, Operational Improvement, Operational Support, Operations Management, People Management, Performance Management, Performance Metrics, Problem Solving Skills, Process Improvement, Production Support, Reporting Dashboards, Root Cause Analysis, SAP, Startup, Supply Chain Operations, Team Lead/Manager, Time Management, Warehousing
LOCATION
Little Rock, AR
POSTED
3 days ago
Yard Manager - Heavy Industrial / Pipe Manufacturing Operations

Location: Little Rock, Arkansas

A leading heavy manufacturing and logistics operation is seeking a hands-on Yard Manager to oversee the safe, disciplined, and efficient operation of a large industrial yard supporting pipe manufacturing, staging, inventory flow, and customer shipment readiness.

This is a plant-based operational leadership role responsible for day-to-day execution across material flow, yard operations, manpower deployment, equipment utilization, inventory accuracy, and dispatch readiness within a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
Key Responsibilities
  • Lead safe and efficient yard operations supporting plate, WIP, finished goods, quality hold material, staging, and outbound shipments
  • Manage daily yard flow including unloading, storage, stacking, transfer staging, shipment preparation, and dispatch readiness
  • Oversee safe handling of heavy materials including pipe, steel plate, cranes, forklifts, loaders, yard trucks, and rigging activities
  • Ensure compliance with all HSE standards including pre-shift safety meetings, equipment inspections, traffic control, housekeeping, and safe lifting practices
  • Coordinate closely with manufacturing, quality, maintenance, logistics, rail, port, and inventory teams to support production continuity and customer delivery requirements
  • Maintain disciplined inventory and location accuracy through SAP/WMS transactions, cycle counts, physical verification, and material tracking processes
  • Lead and develop a team of supervisors, equipment operators, material handlers, yard personnel, and support staff across multiple shifts
  • Manage manpower allocation, overtime control, shift handoffs, equipment deployment, and daily execution priorities
  • Support on-time customer shipments through proper staging, loading coordination, documentation accuracy, and escalation of operational constraints
  • Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on reducing re-handling, congestion, dwell time, damage, overtime, and overall handling cost per ton
  • Utilize KPI reporting and root-cause analysis to improve operational performance, inventory accuracy, safety, and shipment reliability
  • Support hiring, onboarding, training, cross-training, and performance management of yard operations personnel
Qualifications
  • 7-10+ years of experience in heavy industrial yard operations, logistics, material handling, steel/pipe operations, warehouse operations, rail/truck/barge loading, or manufacturing support environments
  • 3-5+ years of supervisory leadership experience managing hourly operations teams in industrial or manufacturing environments
  • Experience leading large teams of operators, material handlers, supervisors, and yard personnel in a fast-paced operational setting
  • Strong knowledge of heavy equipment operations, safe lifting practices, rigging, pipe/plate stacking, traffic flow management, and industrial housekeeping
  • Experience with inventory management systems, SAP/WMS/ERP systems, cycle counting, location control, and material tracking processes
  • Ability to support shift-based operations including weekends and customer-critical operational schedules
  • Strong problem-solving, communication, and cross-functional leadership skills
Preferred Experience
  • Steel, pipe, line pipe, plate, structural steel, energy infrastructure, rail transloading, port operations, or heavy manufacturing experience strongly preferred
  • Experience supporting new facility start-ups, operational ramp-ups, yard expansions, or large-scale logistics operations
  • OSHA, forklift, crane/rigging, rail safety, or related industrial safety certifications preferred
  • Experience with KPI dashboards, continuous improvement, 5S, visual management, and operational performance systems preferred
Leadership Profile

The ideal candidate is a highly visible, hands-on operational leader who prioritizes safety, accountability, execution discipline, inventory accuracy, and continuous improvement while building strong cross-functional relationships across manufacturing, logistics, quality, maintenance, and supply chain operations.

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