General Foreman Melt Shop in Bridgeville, Pennsylvania at Universal Stainless

We are seeking a highly driven and operationally focused Melt Shop General Foreman to lead daily Melt Shop operations in a high-production specialty steel environment. This role is responsible for driving production from scrap build through EAF melting, AOD refining, teeming, and bottom-pour ingot production while ensuring safe, efficient, and cost-effective operations.

The ideal candidate will possess strong leadership abilities, deep melt shop operational knowledge, hands-on maintenance awareness, and the ability to aggressively manage production schedules, manpower, refractory life, furnace availability, and downstream flow. This individual must thrive in a fast-paced, unionized heavy industrial environment and be capable of coordinating operations across multiple departments and shifts.

This role is not a desk-management position — the successful candidate must be highly visible on the floor, capable of troubleshooting operational bottlenecks in real time, and able to push production safely while maintaining quality and equipment reliability.

Specific Responsibilities:

Specific primary responsibilities are defined by the following, but those listed are not all-inclusive:

• Support Melt Shop Manager
• Lead, motivate, manage and direct Melters and hourly staff
• Control and improve safety, process consistency, productivity, cost and equipment effectiveness
• Enhance safety, morale – identify and reduce hazards
• Ensure compliance with Safety & Health, Environmental and Quality Policies
• Manage, control and coordinate manpower schedules and work assignments
• Through example, create a culture driven by:
  • A sense of urgency
  • Attention to detail
• Secure and deploy resources to support Melt Shop
• Plan, execute and monitor work
• 7 day horizon
• 72 hour detail
• Make decisions, solve problems
• Achieve production standards, including quality, yields, productivity
• Improve efficiency by eliminating non-value added work
• Plan and coordinate production schedules to meet “melt on time” requirements
• Ensure adherence to standardized processes & practices
• Support improvement efforts
• Plan and coordinate all operations throughout the melt shop including raw materials through “next operation”, maintenance and refractories
• Help initiate and drive 5s and Autonomous Maintenance projects

Qualifications: Strong leadership and problem-solving skills. Good interpersonal communication skills; ability to plan, coordinate, organize, priortize, and redirect activities to meet goals. Strong detail orientation. Ability to effectively utilize contemporary software and office equipment.

• Ten-years+ experience in an industrial environment
• Minimum 3–5 years of leadership experience in a supervisory or foreman role
• Bachelor’s degree in any Management, Business or Trade field
• General electrical and mechanical knowledge – help with troubleshooting and developing timelines
• Experience using Excel and PowerPoint

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in:
  • Metallurgical Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Industrial Technology
  • Operations Management
  • Related technical field

• Lean Manufacturing or Six Sigma experience
• Experience with Level 1 / Level 2 systems, PLCs, or SCADA systems
• Knowledge of ESR/VAR operations is a plus
• Experience with specialty steel grades and bottom-pour operations strongly preferred

Physical and Other Requirements:

• Ability to safely move around a heavy industrial plant environment up to 12 hours per day
• Lifting up to 50 pounds on an occasional basis
• Ability to work irregular shifts and extended hours as required, and maintain job performance standards