Engineering Manager Canary Enterprises

We're looking for an experienced

Engineering & Facilities Manager to lead the safe, reliable, and compliant operation of our manufacturing assets and facilities across

Canary Foods and EasiYo.

This is a pivotal leadership role where you'll have the opportunity to influence site performance, deliver capital projects, strengthen engineering capability, and drive a culture of continuous improvement. Reporting to the Operations Manager, you'll play a key role in ensuring our facilities and equipment support world-class food manufacturing outcomes.

A Bit About The Role

As Engineering & Facilities Manager, you'll be responsible for the overall engineering, maintenance, facilities, and capital projects strategy across the business.

Leading a dedicated engineering team, you'll ensure our plant and facilities operate safely, efficiently, and reliably while supporting production, quality, food safety, and commercial objectives.

Key Areas Of Responsibility Include

• Leading preventative and corrective maintenance programmes across all plant and equipment
• Driving equipment reliability, asset management, and continuous improvement initiatives
• Managing site facilities, including utilities, buildings, grounds, HVAC, refrigeration, compressed air, water, steam, and electrical infrastructure
• Ensuring compliance with all statutory and regulatory obligations, including BWOF requirements, contractor management, and building services compliance
• Delivering capital projects from business case development through to commissioning and handover
• Managing maintenance and facilities budgets, CAPEX planning, and expenditure performance
• Leading structured problem-solving and root cause analysis to improve plant performance, reliability, and OEE
• Partnering closely with Production, Quality, Health & Safety, Supply Chain, and Finance teams to support operational excellence
• Developing a high-performing engineering team through coaching, accountability, and capability building

You'll also provide engineering oversight for EasiYo-owned assets operated by third-party manufacturing partners, ensuring our standards for reliability, safety, and asset management are consistently met.

A Bit About You

You are a proven engineering leader who enjoys balancing strategic thinking with practical execution.

You thrive in a manufacturing environment, are highly organised, and can confidently manage multiple priorities across maintenance, facilities, operational support, and project delivery.

To Be Successful In This Role, You'll Bring

• A trade qualification or tertiary qualification in Engineering, or equivalent industry experience
• Significant experience in a senior engineering, maintenance, or facilities leadership role within manufacturing
• Proven success managing preventative maintenance programmes, asset management systems, and engineering teams
• Experience delivering capital projects from concept through to commissioning
• Strong knowledge of facilities management, utilities, and statutory compliance requirements
• Sound understanding of health and safety legislation, contractor management, and machine safety principles
• Experience managing budgets, CAPEX planning, and financial performance
• Knowledge of food manufacturing environments, GMP, HACCP, and quality systems (highly regarded)
• Strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills

Most importantly, you're someone who takes ownership, builds strong relationships, drives accountability, and is passionate about creating a safe and high-performing workplace.

A Bit About Us

Canary Foods and EasiYo form part of the Yili Oceania Group, alongside Westland Milk Products, Oceania Dairy, and Pure Nutrition.

Owned by the Yili Group, one of the world's leading dairy companies, our New Zealand operations manufacture high-quality food and nutrition products that are exported to more than 40 countries around the globe.

Together, the Yili Oceania businesses produce over 170,000 tonnes of finished product annually and generate revenue exceeding $1.3 billion. Our growth is driven by innovation, operational excellence, and a commitment to producing world-class products for customers both here and overseas.

Underlying everything we do are our values of Excellence, Accountability, Innovation, Win-Win, and Respect.

Why join us?

This is an opportunity to make a genuine impact in a business that is investing in its people, plant, and future capability.

You'll join a collaborative leadership team, work on meaningful improvement initiatives, and play a critical role in shaping engineering performance across our manufacturing operations.

Where to from here?

We encourage you to apply even if you don't meet every requirement listed above. Research shows that many great candidates hesitate to apply unless they tick every box — if you're excited by the opportunity and believe your skills and experience align with the role, we'd love to hear from you.

Please submit your application via westlandcareers.co.nz.

Applications close 26 July 2026.

Applications will be reviewed as they are received, and we may close the role earlier if a suitable candidate is identified. We encourage interested applicants to apply as soon as possible.

Applicants must have the legal right to work in New Zealand.