Distribution Maintenance Supervisor

Job ID: 17815 

Alternate Locations:  

Newell Brands is a leading consumer products company with a portfolio of iconic brands like Graco®, Coleman®, Oster®, Rubbermaid®, Sharpie® and Yankee Candle® - and 24,000 talented teammates around the world. Our culture is built on values in action: Integrity, Teamwork, Passion for Winning, Ownership, and Leadership. We work together to win, grow, and make a real impact—supported by a high-performing, inclusive, and collaborative environment where you can be your best, every day.

Position Summary:

The Distribution Maintenance Supervisor leads the day-to-day maintenance of a highly automated distribution center, with primary responsibility for the reliability and up time of the Dematic Automated Storage and Retrieval System (ASRS) and its integrated material-handling equipment. The supervisor directs a team of maintenance and fault technicians, drives a proactive preventive and predictive maintenance program, and partners with operations to ensure throughput, safety and service commitments are met. This is a hands-on leadership role. The successful candidate combines strong technical depth in automated storage and retrieval technology with the people-leadership skills to develop a high-performing team and the discipline to sustain a safe, reliable and cost-effective operation.

Responsibilities:

• Own the reliability, availability and performance of the Dematic ASRS — including storage/retrieval cranes or shuttles, conveyor, sortation, palletizing/depalletizing and end-of-line equipment.
• Lead rapid troubleshooting and recovery of equipment faults and system stoppages to minimize downtime and protect order fulfillment.
• Monitor system performance through the warehouse control/execution software (e.g., Dematic iQ) and use data and alarms to identify and correct recurring failure modes.
• Build, schedule and enforce a preventive maintenance (PM) program for all automated and conventional material-handling assets, using the CMMS to plan work, track history and manage spare parts.
• Introduce and grow predictive maintenance practices (vibration, thermography, condition monitoring) to shift the team from reactive to proactive maintenance.
• Manage spare-parts inventory and critical-spares strategy to balance uptime risk against carrying cost.
• Supervise, coach and develop a team of maintenance and fault technicians; set priorities, assign work and review performance.
• Build technical capability across the team on Dematic ASRS and controls, closing skill gaps through training, cross-training and vendor support.
• Plan staffing and shift coverage to support continuous operation and manage overtime responsibly
• Champion a zero-injury safety culture and ensure all maintenance work follows Lockout/Tagout (LOTO), arc-flash, fall-protection and confined-space requirements.
• Ensure compliance with OSHA, NFPA 70E and applicable local, state and federal regulations, and maintain accurate maintenance and safety records.
• Conduct risk assessments, incident investigations and root-cause analysis, and drive corrective actions to completion.
• Track and report key maintenance metrics — uptime, mean time between failures (MTBF), mean time to repair (MTTR), PM completion and maintenance cost.
• Lead reliability and continuous-improvement projects, applying root-cause and Lean/Six Sigma methods to eliminate chronic losses.
• Manage the maintenance budget for the area and control contractor, parts and service spend.
• Manage relationships with Dematic and other OEM/service partners, including service contracts, warranty work and on-site support.
• Support commissioning, upgrades and capital projects for automation and facility systems, coordinating with engineering and operations.

Qualifications:

• 5+ years of industrial maintenance experience in a distribution, fulfillment or manufacturing environment, including 2+ years in a supervisory or lead role.
• Direct, hands-on experience maintaining and troubleshooting automated material-handling systems — with demonstrated familiarity supporting ASRS equipment (unit-load or mini-load AS/RS, Mult shuttle, conveyor and sortation).
• Working knowledge of warehouse control/execution software,
• Strong electrical and mechanical troubleshooting skills, including PLC-controlled systems (e.g., Allen-Bradley/Rockwell, Siemens), servo/VFD drives, motors, sensors, pneumatics and safety circuits.
• Ability to read and interpret electrical schematics, mechanical drawings and PLC logic.
• Solid working knowledge of Lockout/Tagout, arc-flash safety (NFPA 70E), fall protection and general OSHA requirements.
• Proficiency with a CMMS for work-order and PM management, plus core computer skills (email, spreadsheets).

Preferred Qualifications:

• Formal Dematic training or certification on ASRS, Multishuttle or Dematic iQ software.
• Experience with predictive/condition-based maintenance and reliability programs (RCM, TPM).
• Lean, Six Sigma or continuous-improvement certification.
• Experience supporting a high-volume, 24/7 e-commerce or omnichannel fulfillment operation.
• Experience with capital projects, automation commissioning or system upgrades.

Skills:

• Safety leadership — sets the standard and holds the team accountable for working safely.
• Technical troubleshooting — diagnoses complex automated systems quickly and accurately under pressure.
• People leadership — develops, motivates and retains technical talent.
• Bias for action — responds decisively to downtime while protecting long-term reliability.
• Data-driven — uses metrics and root-cause analysis to drive sustained improvement.
• Collaboration — partners effectively with operations, engineering and vendors.

Physical Requirements & Work Environment:

• Work in an active distribution center environment with automated equipment, varying temperatures and noise.
• Ability to stand, walk, climb, bend and work at height; access catwalks, mezzanines and ASRS aisles.
• Ability to lift and carry up to 50 lbs. and use hand and power tools.
• Availability to respond to breakdowns across shifts, including nights, weekends, holidays and on call as needed.

“The Virginia base pay range for this position is from $84,000 to $115,500. Salary will be based on prior experience related to the skills required for this position.”

Newell Brands (NASDAQ: NWL) is a leading global consumer goods company with a strong portfolio of well-known brands, including Rubbermaid, Sharpie, Graco, Coleman, Rubbermaid Commercial Products, Yankee Candle, Paper Mate, FoodSaver, Dymo, EXPO, Elmer’s, Oster, NUK, Spontex and Campingaz. We are focused on delighting consumers by lighting up everyday moments. Newell Brands and its subsidiaries are Equal Opportunity Employers and comply with applicable employment laws. EOE/M/F/Vet/Disabled are encouraged to apply.