Senior Refractory Maintenance Engineer

About the role

The Senior Refractory Maintenance Engineer is responsible for developing process routes for mineral projects and implementing new methodologies to improve the availability and productivity of refractory‑lined equipment. The role focuses on proactive, safe maintenance and the monitoring of innovative technological solutions.

Key responsibilities

• Create inspection and preventive maintenance plans for refractory activities.
• Support and elaborate scopes of work for specialized execution during cold shutdowns and for refractory material acquisition.
• Conduct failure analysis of refractory components and define activities for shutdown periods.
• Improve refractory lifecycle, ensure proper waste discharge, and define standards aligned with health and safety guidelines.
• Maintain compliance with Vale’s Mission, Vision, Values, Production System, HSE guidelines, and IMS policy.
• Prepare daily reports, checklists, and contribute to budget preparation and cost‑efficiency initiatives.
• Develop and monitor KPIs, mentor staff, and suggest reliability‑focused solutions.
• Prepare and evaluate contract scopes of work, technical proposals, JSA & SOP documents, and manage spare‑part availability.
• Provide technical advice to junior personnel and ensure high‑quality maintenance standards.
• Participate in planning of maintenance activities, annual stoppages, and development of new materials and technologies.

Required profile

• Extensive experience in refractory maintenance within industrial or mineral processing environments.
• Strong knowledge of preventive maintenance planning, failure analysis, and lifecycle management.
• Familiarity with health, safety, and environmental regulations and ability to develop compliant procedures.
• Proven ability to manage budgets, contracts, and technical proposals.
• Excellent analytical skills for KPI monitoring and reliability improvement.
• Capability to mentor and support lower‑level engineers and technicians.

Required skills

• Refractory maintenance engineering
• Preventive maintenance planning
• Failure analysis techniques
• Contract scope preparation and evaluation
• Health, safety and environmental compliance