Refractory Maintenance Master Engineer

About the role

The Refractory Maintenance Master Engineer is the technical authority for refractory systems across two pelletizing plants that use travelling grate, rotary kiln and annular cooler technologies. The role drives the development of process routes, implements new methodologies and ensures the availability and productivity of equipment through proactive, high‑quality refractory maintenance.

Key responsibilities

• Define and implement the refractory asset management strategy to maximise campaign life and equipment reliability.
• Lead refractory materials selection, castables and gunning applications, and brick lining system design.
• Conduct refractory failure analysis, thermal degradation studies, dry‑out and curing procedures.
• Develop and execute inspection and preventive maintenance plans, including thermographic inspections, endoscopy and wear monitoring.
• Perform root‑cause failure analysis (RCFA), FMEA and reliability engineering studies, and analyse MTBF and availability data.
• Prepare and manage contracts, SOW packages, technical bid evaluations, budget control and vendor performance.
• Mentor the maintenance team, provide stakeholder communication and support shutdown planning.

Required profile

• Extensive experience in refractory maintenance within industrial or mining environments.
• Proven ability to lead technical projects and manage contracts.
• Strong analytical mindset for reliability and failure analysis.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.

Required skills

• Refractory materials selection, castables and gunning applications.
• Brick lining system design and installation quality assurance.
• Refractory failure analysis, thermal degradation mechanisms, dry‑out and curing procedures.
• Root‑cause failure analysis (RCFA), FMEA methodology, reliability engineering principles.
• Thermographic inspection, endoscopy, shell temperature monitoring, refractory wear monitoring techniques.
• MTBF and availability analysis.
• Contract management, SOW development, technical bid evaluation, budget control, vendor performance evaluation.