Tupande Engineering & Maintenance Lead (Fixed-Term) at One Acre Fund

About the Role

• Seeking an exceptional Engineering Lead to lead factory machinery and equipment maintenance. The lead will establish engineering maintenance excellence across the Tupande Soko factories and reduce operational downtime for our processing operations.

Responsibilities

Build and own the maintenance management system

• Implement a CMMS across all three factories within 90-120 days of joining; own the equipment hierarchy, PM job plans, and work order lifecycle
• Design and standardize preventive maintenance schedules for all critical equipment; target 80:20 planned-to-unplanned maintenance ratio within 12 months
• Own the cross-factory spare parts strategy: set minimum stock levels, manage replenishment, and prevent stockouts on critical items
• Establish RCA processes for major failures; track corrective actions to closure and use findings to improve PM plans
• Troubleshoot complex equipment failures directly, providing on-the-spot technical interventions when maintenance staff or vendors are unavailable.
• Mentor and model best-practice repair techniques during direct interaction with the maintenance team to elevate technical standards.

Drive management visibility through reporting and KPIs

• Design, maintain, and present the Tupande Soko maintenance KPI scorecard to the Soko Director monthly.
• Produce weekly factory-level maintenance reports for Business Leads; provide clear production-impact assessments and escalation flags
• Maintain a cross-factory equipment risk register; flag capital investment needs and imminent replacement requirements to the Soko Director
• Attend monthly Soko leadership meetings as the technical representative of the maintenance function

Professionalize the maintenance workforce

• Lead the transition from operator-led to technician-led maintenance: define job families, competency frameworks, and career pathways
• Partner with HR to recruit dedicated Maintenance Technicians (mechanical and electrical) at each factory (where needed)
• Design and deliver TPM autonomous maintenance training for machine operators (cleaning, lubrication, basic checks)
• Coach and assess technicians and operators on maintenance standards; conduct monthly team reviews with factory leads

Internal and External Coordination

• Oversee maintenance-related vendor relationships and manage associated service contracts in partnership with the Procurement team
• Define scoping requirements and establish Service Level Agreements (SLAs) in coordination with Corporate Operations for non-technical repairs (e.g. factory structure repairs and maintenance)
• Ensure correct specifications listed for machines, spare parts and consumables requested by all factory teams

Ensure safety and food safety compliance

• Ensure all maintenance activities comply with safe systems of work: permit to work, LOTO, confined space, and relevant Kenyan regulatory requirements (KEBS, DOSH, NEMA)
• Maintain HACCP-required equipment records for food-contact assets; lead the maintenance function's contribution to food safety audits
• Champion a zero-harm safety culture; conduct regular safety walks and close out hazard reports

Qualifications

Technical skills (must have prior to joining):

• Degree in an appropriate engineering field
• Active registration as an engineer in Kenya
• Preventive/predictive maintenance programme design and implementation
• Experience with avocado oil machinery repairs and maintenance preferred
• Experience with industrial dehydrators, macadamia processing, and industrial-level biochar production preferred
• CMMS operation and administration
• Mechanical and/or electrical fault-finding and root cause analysis on industrial plant equipment
• KPI dashboard development and maintenance performance reporting
• Spare parts inventory management

Knowledge (required understanding):

• Food safety management systems and HACCP requirements as applied to plant maintenance
• Kenyan occupational health and safety legislation (OSHA, DOSH requirements)
• TPM (Total Productive Maintenance) or World Class Manufacturing principles
• Kenyan regulatory environment for food manufacturing (KEBS, relevant standards