R&D Quality Manager- Kast
Location: onsite in Nottinghamshire
Base salary up to £45K subject to skills & experience, plus an excellent benefits package including company bonuses.
It's an exciting time to join Kohler Co., with over 30 diverse brands in 50+ countries, we are continuing to experience significant growth and re-investment into our privately owned, $7 billion business.
We are seeking an experienced Quality Manager to join our team at Kast, a leading manufacturer of concrete products for the luxury bathroom market and a subsidiary of Kohler Co. This is an exceptional opportunity for you to lead the research and development and quality methodologies to ensure world class manufacture of premium Kast concrete products.
Specific Responsibilities
1. To act as strategic business leader for quality across all areas with specific focus on customer, supply chain and manufacturing quality.
2. To be the strategic business leader for research and development across all areas.
3. Responsible for development and methodology relating to the production processes including but not limited to mould making, concrete mixes and casting, pigments, finishes and packaging.
4. Testing, evaluating current and new products.
5. Evaluation of competitor products.
6. Engage a culture of long-term research & development; research and optimise new technologies and ingredients within category and adjacent categories, empower an innovative research spirit and deliver pro-active activities to support long term strategy.
7. To own and develop the company quality system and the related external third-party systems accreditations.
8. To act a focal point and manage the company response to warranty issues, serious and escalated complaints, stoppage of shipment and product recalls.
9. To own and take leadership in developing and implementing plans to reduce the company Cost of Quality.
10. Act as focal point to represent the business on quality issues and best practice quality development.
11. Identify processes within the factory for areas of weakness and improve yield and quality
12. Actively work with the team to ensure robust quality processes, plans and validation is in place for all new products.
13. Work with relevant stakeholders to identify gaps in the current business quality processes and develop and implement prioritized plans and policies targeting improvements.
14. To ensure strict quality standards are introduced and maintained throughout the production process.
Skills/Requirements
15. Strong Concrete Industrial Technical experience.
16. A Diploma or MSc in Advanced Concrete Technology (or equivalent).
17. Experience in mixing colours/applying coatings.
18. Mentoring experience in developing talent within the concrete industry.
19. A detailed knowledge of the testing and compliance requirements relating to concrete.
20. A proven innovative flair driving Research and Development within concrete and associated fields.
21. Experience in, or exposure to, Concrete Industry bodies such as The Institute of Concrete Technology.
22. Knowledge and implementation experience of technologies including CAD/ 3D Printing and
23. Process Automation within concrete/associated industries.
We can offer you a lot in return!
We empower each associate to #BecomeMoreAtKohler with a competitive total rewards package to support your health and wellbeing, access to career growth and development opportunities, a diverse and inclusive workplace, and a strong culture of innovation. With a genuine commitment to creating better tomorrows, we’re driving meaningful change in our mission to help people live gracious, healthy, and sustainable lives.
About Us
At our EMEA Corporate Services we support Kohler businesses in our region, we have an excellent team of dedicated associates focused on delivering exceptional customer service and ensuring every interaction is a genuine, positive and rewarding experience for both our internal and external customers. We represent the Corporate Functions found in Kohler, Wisconsin here in the EMEA region – Finance, Tax, IT, Internal Audit, Procurement, Regional Operations for Global Shared Services, Environment Health & Safety, Legal, & HR. We all pride ourselves on adding value to the Kohler businesses we support in the region and work closely with our Kohler Corporate colleagues in Wisconsin on global initiatives and projects.
Beyond the competitive benefits and compensation, Kohler proudly offers a rich history, steeped in creativity and a commitment to our associates and communities. We invite you to learn more about our culture and company at .
You can also find out more about our operating philosophy, Believing in Better
Kohler is an equal opportunity employer. It is Kohler’s policy to recruit, hire, and promote qualified personnel in all job classifications without regard to gender, age, disability, religion, belief, sexual orientation, marital status or race. If, as an individual with a disability, you require any adjustments during the recruitment process, please contact the HR department through
Note for Recruitment Agencies – the Kohler Talent Acquisition team is responsible for managing all current vacancies through direct hiring and referrals wherever possible. We do work with recruitment agencies and where we require external support we will formally release those vacancies to the agencies on our Preferred Supplier List deemed best placed to assist us. Speculative CVs sent by any agency to Kohler Co. without a specific request by our Talent Acquisition Team will not be accepted and with no introduction fee applicable.