Mill Integration Leader

The Mill Integration Leader is responsible for ensuring the successful integration of a major capital project into existing mill operations. This role serves as the primary connection between the project organization and mill operations, ensuring the new assets, systems, processes, and organizational capabilities are safely and effectively incorporated into the operating facility. The Mill Integration Leader will provide leadership across operational readiness, mill interfaces, commissioning, startup, training, procedures, maintenance readiness, and transition to operations. The role will work closely with Project Management, Engineering, Construction, Commissioning, Operations, Maintenance, Process Control, Reliability, EHS, and mill leadership to ensure the facility is prepared to safely operate and sustain the new assets at startup.

* Serve as the primary integration point between the capital project team and mill organization.

* Ensure project decisions appropriately consider existing mill operations, infrastructure, personnel, processes, and business requirements.

* Coordinate project activities that impact existing operating areas, utilities, production systems, and mill infrastructure.

* Identify and manage operational interfaces, dependencies, constraints, and risks between the project and existing facility.

* Ensure appropriate mill stakeholders are engaged in design reviews, planning, commissioning, and startup decisions.

* Facilitate timely resolution of cross-functional issues that could impact project execution or mill operations.

* Lead development and execution of the project's Operational Readiness Plan.

* Establish readiness requirements, milestones, ownership, and performance indicators.

* Ensure operating organizations are prepared with the appropriate staffing, competencies, procedures, systems, tools, and resources prior to startup.

* Coordinate readiness assessments and identify gaps requiring closure before commissioning and startup.

* Establish clear criteria for turnover and acceptance of systems from the project organization to mill operations.

* Ensure long-term ownership and sustainability requirements are incorporated into project execution.

* Partner with the Commissioning and Startup teams to develop an integrated pre-commissioning, commissioning, startup, and ramp-up strategy.

* Ensure Operations and Maintenance are appropriately involved throughout commissioning.

* Coordinate mill resources required to support system turnover, commissioning, startup, and performance testing.

* Support development of systemization, turnover packages, startup sequencing, and operating acceptance criteria.

* Ensure appropriate operational risk assessments and startup readiness reviews are completed.

* Facilitate transition from construction and commissioning ownership to permanent mill ownership.

* Support stabilization and ramp-up following initial startup.

* Ensure operating procedures, startup/shutdown procedures, abnormal operating procedures, and emergency response requirements are developed and approved.

* Coordinate development and execution of operator and maintenance training.

* Ensure maintenance strategies, preventive maintenance plans, spare parts, critical equipment strategies, and reliability requirements are established prior to startup.

* Confirm new equipment and systems are incorporated into applicable mill management systems, including CMMS, document control, operating systems, and asset management processes.

* Ensure Process Control, automation, instrumentation, and operator interface requirements are integrated with existing mill systems.

* Coordinate project activities requiring interaction with existing operating equipment and processes.

* Work with Operations, Maintenance, Engineering, and Construction to plan tie-ins, outages, shutdowns, isolations, and brownfield work.

* Ensure project schedules are integrated with mill outage and production plans.

* Identify potential production impacts and develop strategies to minimize disruption to ongoing operations.

* Ensure operational ownership and appropriate risk management for work performed within existing operating areas.

* Champion a strong safety culture throughout design, construction, commissioning, startup, and transition to operations.

* Ensure operational risks are identified and addressed during design and execution.

* Participate in appropriate design reviews, PHA/HAZOP activities, constructability reviews, startup safety reviews, and Management of Change processes.

* Ensure safety-critical systems, procedures, training, and controls are established prior to introducing energy or process materials.

* Promote disciplined execution and clear accountability during high-risk commissioning and startup activities.

* Build alignment among Project, Engineering, Construction, Operations, Maintenance, Reliability, Process Control, EHS, and mill leadership.

* Establish clear roles and responsibilities for integration and readiness activities.

* Lead cross-functional meetings focused on operational readiness, interfaces, risks, and critical milestones.

* Communicate project impacts, readiness status, key risks, and decisions to mill and project leadership.

* Escalate issues requiring leadership intervention and drive timely resolution.

* Foster a collaborative "one team" approach between the project organization and operating mill.

* Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Operations, Construction Management, or related technical discipline, or equivalent significant industrial experience.

* Significant experience in industrial manufacturing, mill operations, major capital projects, commissioning, or startup.

* Demonstrated ability to lead complex, cross-functional initiatives involving Operations, Maintenance, Engineering, and Project teams.

* Strong understanding of operating facilities and the challenges associated with executing major capital projects within an active production environment.

* Experience with commissioning, startup, operational readiness, or project-to-operations turnover.

* Strong leadership, communication, organizational, and problem-solving skills.

* Ability to influence across organizational boundaries without relying solely on direct authority.

* Experience with large-scale brownfield or greenfield capital projects.

* Experience in pulp and paper, chemicals, refining, power generation, or other continuous-process manufacturing environments.

* Experience with system turnover, commissioning planning, startup, and production ramp-up.

* Knowledge of Process Safety Management, Management of Change, PHA/HAZOP, and startup safety review processes.

* Experience developing or leading operational readiness programs for major capital projects.

As a Koch company and a leading manufacturer of bath tissue, paper towels, paper-based packaging, cellulose, specialty fibers, building products and much more, Georgia-Pacific works to meet evolving needs of customers worldwide with quality products. In addition to the products we make, we operate one of the largest recycling businesses. Our more than 30,000 employees in over 150 locations are empowered to innovate every day - to make everyday products even better.

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