What is a Plant Superintendent?

No, a plant superintendent doesn't supervise the leafy green kind of plant, although some may say it would be easier than supervising people. Instead, the plant superintendent is responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of a manufacturing plant and ensuring productivity.

The plant superintendent's job involves a lot of working with people. They supervise workers at the plant, train new hires, and ensure that everybody is following safety procedures. They also oversee the manufacturing process and ensure that all products are up to quality standards without exceeding the budget. They may implement systems like KanBan boards to improve efficiency.

The plant superintendent needs to be good at organizing logistics and people. Many prepare for this position by getting a bachelor's degree in business or a similar field, although a diploma isn't necessary to succeed. They also need practical experience working in a manufacturing plant, often as a manager.

What Does a Plant Superintendent Do

There are certain skills that many plant superintendents have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed interpersonal skills, leadership skills and problem-solving skills.

Learn more about what a Plant Superintendent does

How To Become a Plant Superintendent

If you're interested in becoming a plant superintendent, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 63.8% of plant superintendents have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 7.3% of plant superintendents have master's degrees. Even though most plant superintendents have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.

Learn More About How To Become a Plant Superintendent
Top Plant Superintendent Jobs Near You

Plant Superintendent Career Paths

In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of plant manager you might progress to a role such as manufacturing director eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title manufacturing director.

Plant Superintendent

Average Salary for a Plant Superintendent

Plant Superintendents in America make an average salary of $95,149 per year or $46 per hour. The top 10 percent makes over $134,000 per year, while the bottom 10 percent under $67,000 per year.
Average Plant Superintendent Salary
$95,149 Yearly
$45.74 hourly
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Roles and Types of Plant Superintendent

The role of a plant superintendent includes a wide range of responsibilities. These responsibilities can vary based on an individual's specific job, company, or industry.Here are some general plant superintendent responsibilities:

  • Ensure the safety of all employees; lead a comprehensive safety program to prevent injuries. Comply with all federal, state,
  • Responsible for all aspects of the breaking operation (both 1st
  • Primary purpose of position: responsible for supervising

There are several types of plant superintendent, including:

Production Supervisor

Role:

A production supervisor oversees the manufacturing processes of products. They organize and monitor the workflow by scheduling and coordinating daily tasks. They communicate production goals, evaluate results, discipline, and motivate employees.

Production supervisors manage the inventory and control the cleanliness and safety of the working environment. They make sure the equipment is safe to use and arrange repairs if necessary. They design and monitor working processes, provide information on the work, resolve problems, analyze, and report progress.

Working as a production supervisor requires experience in the field of production. You will take care of the selection and training of the staff and the mentoring of assistant supervisors, making sure they keep up and support their personal growth.

  • Average Salary: $63,391
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree

Superintendent

Role:

The best thing about being a superintendent is the kids. Sure, you may not have a direct impact on them, but the things that you approve or deny can impact their education. And like the saying goes, "children are the future" so your job is pretty important. After all, you don't want to be the reason the future is bleak.

With all pressure aside, it's pretty cool having a handle on how and what kids will be learning. And when they do succeed, that's got to be a great feeling. That's where you being supportive of teachers comes into play. Not everyone learns the same way, and no one knows how your school's students learn better than your teachers. So it's important to listen to them. Because they know what's going on.

Another huge part of being a superintendent is balancing the budget. Sometimes you're going to have to figure out a way to pay for something. Whether that leads you to invest in a money tree or dig for treasure, some things are just more important than others. That's where a good backbone comes into play. You need to learn how to say "no" for some situations.

  • Average Salary: $82,458
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree

Plant Manager

Role:

The plant manager is responsible for overseeing the productivity of the employees. You are expected to ensure that the plant runs efficiently and safely while maintaining optimal operation by assigning workers, developing production schedules, creating work schedules, and also hiring and training new staff. You are allowed to watch and organize the daily operations of manufacturing plants. Keep in mind; you will not only be involved with manufacturing plants but also organizational plans. You will also be in charge of overseeing the entire location, collecting and analyzing new data, ensuring the safety of both the plants and the workers, and also monitoring the production equipment to ensure it remains in good shape.

Being a plant manager requires you to defend quality control each time manufactured items leave the plants. You must also maintain relationships with other sections and departments to ensure a smooth-running organization. As a plant manager, some skills necessary for the role include optimal interpersonal relationships and excellent leadership skills. You also need problem-solving skills and outstanding time management skills. The average salary of a plant manager yearly is $99,000. A bachelor's degree in business management or other related field is needed to be a plant manager.

  • Average Salary: $113,843
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree
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States With The Most Plant Superintendent Jobs

Mouse over a state to see the number of active plant superintendent jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where plant superintendents earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.

Average Salary: Job Openings:

Number Of Plant Superintendent Jobs By State

RankStateNumber of JobsAverage Salary
1California1,229$104,548
2Texas770$90,189
3Florida591$70,146
4Ohio525$96,257
5Illinois522$87,612
6Georgia477$78,207
7North Carolina429$88,206
8New York424$90,658
9Pennsylvania410$99,456
10Michigan388$96,958
11Indiana366$82,008
12Virginia320$86,515
13Iowa287$71,631
14Arizona284$86,330
15Wisconsin278$94,288
16Massachusetts277$104,950
17Tennessee274$79,688
18Colorado263$72,544
19Washington243$98,519
20Minnesota236$87,138
21Alabama220$76,341
22Missouri210$72,392
23South Carolina209$79,292
24Kentucky197$75,563
25New Jersey190$103,418
26Maryland185$90,814
27Oregon147$101,309
28Kansas144$88,960
29Louisiana120$74,033
30Utah111$92,517
31Mississippi111$86,633
32Nevada110$92,694
33Oklahoma107$87,251
34Connecticut96$101,033
35Nebraska96$83,261
36Arkansas87$73,541
37Montana69$85,579
38New Mexico64$84,005
39Idaho58$87,369
40New Hampshire56$86,249
41West Virginia53$81,596
42South Dakota48$82,210
43North Dakota39$88,935
44Delaware33$90,509
45Wyoming33$74,307
46Maine29$81,389
47Vermont28$90,032
48Hawaii24$64,302
49Rhode Island20$95,017
50Alaska16$105,205

Plant Superintendent Education

Plant Superintendent Majors

Business
38.9 %
Management
7.0 %
Mechanical Engineering
6.8 %

Plant Superintendent Degrees

Bachelors

63.8 %

Associate

17.1 %

Masters

7.3 %

Top Colleges for Plant Superintendents

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-State Tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

2. University of Texas at Austin

Austin, TX • Private

In-State Tuition

$10,610

Enrollment

40,329

3. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-State Tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

4. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-State Tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

5. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-State Tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

6. University of South Florida

Tampa, FL • Private

In-State Tuition

$6,410

Enrollment

31,321

7. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Blacksburg, VA • Private

In-State Tuition

$13,620

Enrollment

27,730

8. SUNY at Buffalo

Buffalo, NY • Private

In-State Tuition

$10,099

Enrollment

21,404

9. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

In-State Tuition

$53,740

Enrollment

5,567

10. Lehigh University

Bethlehem, PA • Private

In-State Tuition

$52,930

Enrollment

5,030

Top Skills For a Plant Superintendent

The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 10.4% of plant superintendents listed plant safety on their resume, but soft skills such as interpersonal skills and leadership skills are important as well.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Plant Superintendent Resume templates

Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Plant Superintendent templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Plant Superintendent resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.

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Plant Superintendent Resume
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Plant Superintendent Resume

Plant Superintendent diversity

Plant Superintendent Gender Distribution

Male
Male
97%
Female
Female
3%

After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:

  • Among plant superintendents, 3.1% of them are women, while 96.9% are men.

  • The most common race/ethnicity among plant superintendents is White, which makes up 69.9% of all plant superintendents.

  • The most common foreign language among plant superintendents is Spanish at 84.2%.

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Best States For a Plant Superintendent

Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a plant superintendent. The best states for people in this position are Alaska, Massachusetts, California, and New Jersey. Plant superintendents make the most in Alaska with an average salary of $105,205. Whereas in Massachusetts and California, they would average $104,950 and $104,548, respectively. While plant superintendents would only make an average of $103,418 in New Jersey, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.

1. Michigan

Total Plant Superintendent Jobs: 388
Highest 10% Earn:
$140,000
Location Quotient:
1.24

$96,958

Avg. Salary

View 388 Plant Superintendent Jobs In MI

2. Ohio

Total Plant Superintendent Jobs: 525
Highest 10% Earn:
$139,000
Location Quotient:
1.27

$96,257

Avg. Salary

View 525 Plant Superintendent Jobs In OH

3. Wisconsin

Total Plant Superintendent Jobs: 278
Highest 10% Earn:
$137,000
Location Quotient:
1.24

$94,288

Avg. Salary

View 278 Plant Superintendent Jobs In WI
Full List Of Best States For Plant Superintendents

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Top Plant Superintendent Employers

Most Common Employers For Plant Superintendent

RankCompanyAverage SalaryHourly RateJob Openings
1Dean and$135,668$65.228
2Safeway$122,384$58.848
3Cargill$117,901$56.6820
4Johns Manville$109,484$52.649
5Harsco$107,962$51.906
6Lear$101,964$49.0215
7Tyson Foods$98,824$47.519
8Ball$96,698$46.4919
9Anheuser-Busch$93,547$44.979
10CertainTeed$92,456$44.456
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Plant Superintendent Videos

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Updated April 6, 2023