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Open search ·
Confidential opportunity · Energy production · Belgium
Thermal plant operations manager(M/F) your shift leaders, your instructions
A thermal installation running continuously, procedures to write and a shift team not yet complete: you choose your shift leaders and train them.
5 to 10
Years of plant operation expected
24hours a day
Continuous operation
5years
of experience minimum
60-75k€
Annual gross · Permanent contract managerial grade
The role in 30 seconds
The essentials,before the detail
What you hold
Run the installation · Build the shift team · Organise shifts and on-call duty.
Who you report to
Site management.
What you need to know
A good part of the operating instructions has yet to be written or reworked, and the shift team is not complete: you recruit it.
Before you read on
Minimum required, to be ticked in full
- 5 to 10 years of continuous-operation plant control on an energy-from-waste plant or a biomass power plant, failing that on an industrial boiler or heating plant
- Boiler and full steam cycle, rotating machinery included: control room, transients and degraded modes
- Shift work and on-call duty: has been a shift leader, then supervised a shift team
- A managed technical team: shift leaders, round operators or technicians recruited and trained
- Daily presence on site in Belgium
Ideal, what puts you ahead
- An operating organisation structured or rebuilt (instructions, tests)
- Experience in managing solid fuel and its handling
- An operating permit held, with continuous emissions monitoring
- English, for suppliers and the manufacturer
Far from the minimum? An open application will serve you better.
The criteria that matter: 5 to 10 years of continuous-operation plant control on an energy-from-waste plant or a biomass power plant, failing that on an industrial boiler or heating plant · Boiler and full steam cycle, rotating machinery included: control room, transients and degraded modes · Shift work and on-call duty: has been a shift leader, then supervised a shift team.
01 · The company
Confidential assignment
Who is hiring,without its name
An operator of energy installations. Its name is given to you if your profile is selected. Volta Executive runs the search end to end.
5 to 10
Years of plant operation expected
On a thermal installation in continuous operation.
24hours a day
Continuous operation
Shift operation and on-call duty.
60-75k€
Gross annual
Permanent contract under local law, cadre status.
02 · The role
Thermal plant operations manager · Permanent contract (cadre)
What you do,in practice
Run the installation
Boiler and steam cycle, rotating machinery included: availability, efficiency, transients and degraded modes. The team has little hindsight: you learn it by training those who run it.
Build the shift team
Shift leaders, round operators, control technicians: the team is not complete and each one is a hire. A poorly trained shift shows immediately.
Organise shifts and on-call duty
Rotas, schedules and on-call duty within the local legal framework. You are the first to be called when continuous operation demands it.
Write the operating instructions
Operating instructions, work procedures, start-up and shutdown sequences. Every degraded mode is written, explained and rehearsed in training before it is used for real.
Manage the fuel
Receipt, moisture, particle size, contaminants, rejection rate, stock and truck flows.
Hold safety and environment
Safety of shift crews, lockout procedures, work permits, ATEX, emission thresholds under continuous monitoring.
Coordinate with maintenance
Outages and interventions prepared together, so that operation restarts without surprises.
The context
The role,unfiltered
The context, what draws a strong profile and the real challenges, written as they are.
🔥 Responsable exploitation · installation thermique · Belgique
📍 Le poste, sans filtre
Vous tenez la conduite d'un site de production d'énergie qui tourne 24 h/24. L'équipe postée n'est pas au complet : vous recrutez vos chefs de quart et vos techniciens de conduite, poste par poste, et vous les formez sur l'installation. Une bonne part des consignes, des modes opératoires et des modes dégradés est à écrire ou à reprendre.
L'équipe a peu de recul sur l'installation : vous l'apprenez en même temps que vous formez ceux qui la conduisent.
⚠️ Les vrais challenges
- Des consignes à écrire ou à reprendre : vous fixez comment la machine se conduit, et vous en répondez.
- Une équipe à composer poste par poste : chaque chef de quart est un recrutement, et un quart mal formé se voit tout de suite en marche continue.
- Peu de recul sur l'installation : vous apprenez ses transitoires en formant les autres.
- L'astreinte, les nuits et les week-ends : la marche continue ne s'arrête pas, et vous êtes le premier appelé.
- Une charge élevée la première année : recruter, écrire et conduire en même temps.
💡 Ce que vous y gagnez
- Vous choisissez vos chefs de quart au lieu d'hériter d'une équipe.
- Les consignes de la salle de commande seront écrites de votre main.
- Votre règle devient celle du site : un quart ne découvre jamais une manœuvre le jour où il doit la faire. Chaque mode dégradé est écrit, expliqué et rejoué en formation.
- 60 000 à 75 000 € brut par an, statut cadre.
03 · The trade
The trade's value chain
The trade in one lineand the part that falls to you
- Handover
- Storage
- Combustion
- Steam
- Energy delivered
Your scope: from fuel receipt to steam, in 24-hour operation.
Volta Executive · outline diagram, taken from the role brief
04 · The organisation
Your place
A clear place,at the right level
The shift team is not complete: you build it shift by shift, then you keep it running.
- Shift leadersTo recruit and train
- Round operatorsRounds, manoeuvres, fuel
- Control techniciansControl room
- MaintenanceOutages and interventions coordinated
We tell you frankly
A good part of the operating instructions has yet to be written or reworked, and the shift team is not complete: you recruit it. The team has little hindsight on the installation, and you learn its transients while you train the others. The first year is demanding. In continuous operation, on-call duty, nights and weekends are part of the job.
05 · You, and the framework
What matters
The must-haves,non-negotiable
- 5 to 10 years of continuous-operation plant control on an energy-from-waste plant or a biomass power plant, failing that on an industrial boiler or heating plant
- Boiler and full steam cycle, rotating machinery included: control room, transients and degraded modes
- Shift work and on-call duty: has been a shift leader, then supervised a shift team
- A managed technical team: shift leaders, round operators or technicians recruited and trained
- Daily presence on site in Belgium
What makes the difference
- A plus
An operating organisation structured or rebuilt (instructions, tests)
- A plus
Experience in managing solid fuel and its handling
- A plus
An operating permit held, with continuous emissions monitoring
- A plus
English, for suppliers and the manufacturer
- Won't work
Never operated a combustion or energy production installation
- Won't work
Never supervised a shift team
- Won't work
A background solely in reporting or design office, with no control room
- Won't work
No mobility to Belgium
The salary, plainly
60 to 75k€
gross per year
- Gross annual, local-law contract
- Permanent contract under local law, cadre status, full time
- Belgium, daily presence on site
- On-call duty, nights and weekends included
- Shift team to recruit, heavy workload in the first year
What happens next, in two steps
- You send your CVon this page, in two minutes
- If your profile matches, we will get in touchFlorian Beurtey, who leads the assignment
This role isn't quite right for you? Do not apply to this role: your CV would be read against its criteria, not yours. Send an open application instead, I read it for my other assignments, most of which are never published.
Do you tick the required minimum? Apply here, you will get a straight answer.
06 · Your application
Send your CV
Thermal plant operations manager (M/F), Belgium
- No account needed.
- Every CV is read against the requirements of the role.
- If your profile matches, we will get in touch.
Your CV stays confidential.
Frequently asked questions
What candidatesask first
What is the role and where is it based?
Thermal plant operations manager on a permanent contract, cadre status, in Belgium. A thermal installation in continuous operation, instructions to write and a shift team not yet complete: you choose your shift leaders and you train them.
What is the pay?
€60-75k gross per year, depending on profile and experience.
What are the essential criteria (must-haves)?
5 to 10 years of continuous-operation plant control on an energy-from-waste plant or a biomass power plant, failing that on an industrial boiler or heating plant; Boiler and full steam cycle, rotating machinery included: control room, transients and degraded modes; Shift work and on-call duty: has been a shift leader, then supervised a shift team; A managed technical team: shift leaders, round operators or technicians recruited and trained; Daily presence on site in Belgium.
Which profiles are not a fit?
Never operated a combustion or energy production installation; Never supervised a shift team; A background solely in reporting or design office, with no control room; No mobility to Belgium. An application outside the criteria receives no reply.
How to apply?
You send your CV on the job page. If your profile matches, Volta Executive will contact you. The client's name is shared if your profile is selected.
Who is hiring?
Volta Executive, a recruitment and executive search firm for industry and energy, founded by Florian Beurtey, an engineer who graduated from the École des Mines de Saint-Étienne and AgroParisTech. The assignment is confidential.
Who is hiring
Volta Executive,an engineer who hires engineers
Volta Executive is a recruitment and executive search firm for industry and the energy transition, in France and internationally: energy-from-waste (EfW, SRF), biomass and cogeneration, district heating, anaerobic digestion, energy efficiency, energy storage, electrical engineering. Florian Beurtey, an engineer from Mines Saint-Étienne and AgroParisTech, who has worked at EDF, Safran and INRAE, leads every assignment and meets every candidate before presenting them.
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