Engineering Planning and Store Manager – Danone Southern Africa

Location: Boksburg, Gauteng, South Africa

Company: Danone Southern Africa

Reference ID: 2026-28455

Job Type: Full-Time, Permanent

Posted: 08 October 2026

Closing Date: Open Until Filled

About the Company

Danone is a global leader in the food and beverage industry, operating on a mission to bring health through food to as many people as possible. In South Africa, Danone produces some of the country’s most trusted household dairy and nutrition brands, including NutriDay, YogiSip, Inkomazi, and DanUp. Operating a state-of-the-art production facility in Boksburg, Danone combines world-class manufacturing standards with a deep commitment to environmental, health, and food safety governance.

The workplace culture at Danone is fast-paced, innovative, and empowering. Guided by the philosophy that “everyone is born with superpowers,” Danone fosters an entrepreneurial environment where employees take ownership of their professional development. Joining Danone in Boksburg offers engineering and supply chain professionals a collaborative platform to drive operational excellence within a global FMCG leader.

Company Summary

• Industry: Food & Beverage Manufacturing, FMCG & Engineering Operations
• Company Size: Global Enterprise Leader
• Work Culture: Empowering, Health-Focused, Operational Excellence, Innovative
• Location: Boksburg, Gauteng, South Africa

Available Opportunities

Danone Southern Africa is recruiting an Engineering Planning and Store Manager on a full-time basis for their manufacturing facility in Boksburg. Functioning as a key individual contributor within the Operations division, you will oversee computerised maintenance management systems (CMMS), inventory control, spare parts procurement, and maintenance scheduling.

Core Responsibilities:

• CMMS & Maintenance Governance: Implementing and managing best-in-class CMMS governance (SAP PM) to support statutory compliance, equipment performance, Quality Food Safety (QFS), and Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) standards.
• Engineering Stores & Inventory Control: Overseeing engineering spare parts inventory, establishing critical spares stock levels, executing stock and non-stock purchases, and maintaining data integrity in accordance with Danone standards.
• Maintenance Planning & Shutdown Management: Developing preventive, predictive, and corrective maintenance schedules, managing maintenance backlogs, and coordinating resources for plant shutdown execution.
• Asset Reliability & RCA Execution: Applying reliability concepts (MTBF, MTTR, asset care strategies) and Root Cause Analysis (RCA) methodologies to minimize equipment downtime on automated production lines.
• Cross-Functional Stakeholder Engagement: Collaborating across internal departments—including Sales, Marketing, Supply Chain, and SSD—as well as external vendors, co-packers, and equipment OEMs.

Key Objectives

Your success as the Engineering Planning and Store Manager at Danone Boksburg will be evaluated by equipment uptime, CMMS data accuracy, spare parts availability, and inventory budget control. Within your first 90 days, you will be expected to:

1. Audit Engineering Stores & CMMS Data: Conduct a comprehensive review of engineering spare parts inventory, establishing critical stock thresholds and updating SAP PM master data.
2. Optimize Preventive Maintenance Schedules: Align preventive and predictive maintenance work orders with plant operational schedules to reduce unscheduled downtime.
3. Streamline Shutdown Planning Workflows: Establish clear resource allocation plans and parts staging workflows for upcoming factory maintenance shutdowns.
4. Ensure 100% EHS & Food Safety Compliance: Verify that all maintenance planning procedures and engineering store protocols strictly comply with Danone QFS and EHS guidelines.

What You Will Learn

Stepping into this specialized management role within Danone’s manufacturing plant provides advanced technical and operational exposure. In this position, you will build expertise in:

• Advanced SAP PM & CMMS Governance: Master enterprise maintenance management software, work order lifecycle management, and spare parts cataloging in a high-tech plant.
• World-Class FMCG Asset Reliability: Principles of condition monitoring (vibration analysis, thermography), predictive maintenance modeling, and Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) optimization.
• Spares Criticality & Budget Management: Mathematical approaches to safety stock calculations, lead-time management, and engineering inventory budget control.
• Global Quality & Safety Frameworks: Deep practical knowledge of food safety governance (QFS), EHS compliance, and statutory maintenance standards within dairy production.

What You Gain

Joining Danone Southern Africa on a permanent basis brings strong corporate stability, career growth, and attractive professional advantages:

• Permanent Professional Appointment: Full-time corporate role within an internationally recognized FMCG manufacturing group.
• Competitive Salary & Employee Benefits: Market-related compensation package accompanied by performance incentives, medical aid contributions, and retirement funds.
• High-Visibility Career Growth: Direct exposure to senior plant leadership and cross-functional supply chain teams, creating pathways for internal progression.
• Empowering Workplace Culture: A career environment that values personal initiative, innovation, and individual “superpowers.”

Experience & Qualifications

Essential Minimum Requirements:

• Certificate or Tertiary Diploma in Engineering (Mechanical, Electrical, Industrial, Supply Chain, or equivalent).
• Minimum 3–5 years of experience in maintenance planning and engineering stores management within a manufacturing or FMCG environment.
• Proven experience working with CMMS systems (preferably SAP PM) and ERP systems for work order planning, scheduling, and reporting.
• Demonstrated experience in maintenance scheduling (preventive, predictive, corrective), shutdown planning, and backlog management.
• Exposure to food safety standards, EHS regulations, and statutory compliance within an automated plant environment.
• Strong technical understanding of Root Cause Analysis (RCA), reliability concepts (MTBF, MTTR), asset lifecycle management, and spares criticality assessments.
• Excellent budget management, organizational, data analysis, and cross-functional communication skills.

Advantageous Criteria:

• Trade Test qualification as an Artisan / Millwright / Technician.
• Formal certification or training in SAP PM or advanced CMMS software.
• Knowledge of condition monitoring techniques (thermography, vibration analysis) and reading engineering documentation (P&IDs, OEM manuals).

Interview Questions to Prepare For

Candidates applying on applyretail.co.za should prepare to answer the following interview questions during the selection process:

1. “How do you determine critical spare parts stock levels and safety stock thresholds in SAP PM to prevent production downtime?”
   • Tip: Detail analyzing equipment criticality, lead times from OEM suppliers, historical failure rates (MTBF), and balancing inventory carrying costs against the risk of unplannd downtime.
2. “How do you manage maintenance backlog and prioritize work orders during a major plant shutdown?”
   • Tip: Highlight classifying work orders by safety, regulatory, and production impact, coordinating technician availability, pre-staging required spares, and tracking execution against shutdown timelines.
3. “Can you share an example of how you used Root Cause Analysis (RCA) to resolve a recurring mechanical or electrical equipment failure?”
   • Tip: Describe gathering failure data, facilitating a 5-Why or Fishbone analysis with artisans, identifying root causes, and updating preventive maintenance tasks in the CMMS.
4. “Why do you want to lead engineering planning and stores management at Danone’s Boksburg manufacturing facility?”
   • Tip: Express your passion for world-class asset reliability, admiration for Danone’s health-driven brand portfolio, and drive to maintain high standards of QFS and EHS compliance.

Career Advice for Applicants

To ensure your application stands out on applyretail.co.za:

• Highlight SAP PM & CMMS Expertise: Explicitly showcase your hands-on experience with SAP PM, ERP systems, maintenance scheduling, and inventory control on your CV.
• Detail FMCG & Food Safety Exposure: Emphasize any past experience working in food manufacturing, automated production lines, and QFS/EHS compliance environments.
• Confirm Boksburg Commute: Verify that commuting to Danone’s manufacturing site in Boksburg, Gauteng, for regular operational shifts is practical for you.
• Submit Complete Documentation: Upload your updated CV, certified Tertiary Diploma/Certificate, Trade Test (if applicable), ID copy, and contactable references when applying.

How to Apply

1. Click the “Apply Now” button below on applyretail.co.za.
2. Upload your CV, Engineering Diploma/Certificate, ID document, and contactable references.
3. Complete the online Danone Southern Africa application form using job reference ID 2026-28455.

Apply now