HYCO Shift Supervisor

About the Role

This position leads shift operations for the HYCO Steam Methane Reformer unit and associated equipment in Jubail, Eastern, Saudi Arabia. The role combines hands-on operational oversight with leadership responsibility, ensuring safe, reliable, and efficient plant performance while supporting customer requirements and team development.

Air Products describes its culture as one focused on innovation, collaboration, and belonging, with work that contributes to major industrial, healthcare, and space-related outcomes. The company was founded in 1940 and is known for industrial gases, operational excellence, and a strong commitment to safety and environmental care.

Principal Accountabilities

The supervisor is expected to provide operational direction, maintain safe systems of work, support troubleshooting and maintenance activities, and help the plant achieve production, reliability, quality, and customer service goals. The role also involves close coordination with site leadership, engineering, maintenance, and customer counterparts.

Safety

• Maintain a safe workplace and lead by example in the use of company and industry safety practices to prevent incidents and injuries.

Technical

• Direct the HYCO Steam Methane Reformer unit team and related equipment according to work instruction procedures, and operate the unit when needed.
• Guide troubleshooting, maintenance, repair, and testing activities using input from the Assistant Site Manager, Site Manager, Engineering, and Maintenance teams.
• Support startups, shutdowns, and plant emergencies while maintaining accurate document control and quality assurance follow-up.
• Ensure operational practices protect equipment safety, reliability, maintainability, utilities, controls, facilities, and safety/security systems.
• Contribute operational input for scheduled outages so contractual obligations are met.
• Run the plant efficiently using data-based decisions to meet safety and reliability targets and maximize profitability.
• Work jointly with shift, maintenance, engineering, and site teams to meet production targets, improve energy efficiency, and keep operations safe.

Operations

• Protect personnel by enforcing APQ basic safety practices, including safety permits, lockout/tagout, confined space controls, and related procedures.
• Ensure environmental regulatory obligations are fully met.
• Support compliance with corrective maintenance and preventive maintenance tasks.
• Assist with shutdown and turnaround planning.
• Ensure adherence to Air Products and APQ standards as well as global best practices in EH&S, productivity, reliability, quality, and customer service.
• Deliver customer expectations for safety, reliability, product quality, and supply flexibility.
• Help build plant capability through coordination with site leadership, engineering, and maintenance.
• Coach and motivate the operations team to deliver operational excellence and customer satisfaction.
• Develop, train, and promote high-performing employees who work well in teams, communicate openly, stay focused on customers and employees, and deliver results.
• Maintain close working relationships with engineering and maintenance teams to continuously review plant systems and equipment through a Plant Process Advisory Model.
• Participate in and help lead incident investigations and root cause analysis, then implement lasting corrective actions.
• Serve as the single point of contact for internal HYCO unit matters, representing APQ and coordinating internal resources while keeping the customer updated on progress.
• Support operational excellence through productivity, reliability, quality, cost control, service, continuous improvement, and budget performance.
• Maintain coordination with customer counterparts across refinery units to align feedstock, utilities, power, hydrogen, steam, and future demand expectations.
• Ensure personal and operator logs are accurate and compliant with the published matrix.
• Review IOW Event Manager logs every day and confirm that appropriate actions are taken.
• Inspect all active leaks on each shift and record any deterioration in the report.
• Audit operator logs daily, review them, and assign follow-up actions.
• Complete the team work list on daily, weekly, monthly, and annual cycles.
• Make sure mitigation plans are implemented for all emergency and high-level log items involving safety, environmental, availability, utilization, or energy risks.

Minimum Requirements and Qualifications

• A bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering, mechanical engineering, or chemical process operations is preferred; however, an associate technical degree or 2-year certificate may be considered if supported by relevant experience and proven competence.
• Experience in gas, petrochemical, or similar industries in operations, engineering, or maintenance roles.
• HYCO experience is an advantage.
• Minimum 10 years of experience, including at least 4 years in line supervision of process operations.
• Ability to help a team progress to Level 1 / Board Level status within 2 to 4 years, with operators assessed during training and placed according to competence.
• Expected to remain actively involved in plant operations when the situation requires it.
• Strong coordination background in multi-team environments involving operations, engineering, and maintenance.
• Clear leadership, interpersonal, and teamwork skills with the ability to communicate effectively across all organizational levels and with external stakeholders.
• A collaborative mindset that supports a one-team culture.
• Capability to manage customer interaction on a daily basis.
• Broad technical understanding of operations, engineering, and maintenance activities.
• Strong English speaking and writing skills.
• Working knowledge of local environmental, health, and safety requirements.

About Air Products

Air Products is a global industrial gases company with a long-standing focus on innovation, reliable operations, and environmental stewardship. The organization aims to support a cleaner future for customers, communities, and the wider world through safe and effective industrial solutions.