Ratheesh Jagadeesan Rema

In my role as Maintenance Manager – Utilities at KDD, I am responsible for ensuring the reliable, safe, and efficient operation of all central utility systems that support one of Kuwait’s leading food manufacturing companies. My focus areas include:

• Industrial Refrigeration Plants (Ammonia/ Ice-Water) – performance, reliability & optimization.
• HVAC Systems – maintaining controlled environments for production and storage.
• Boilers & Steam Systems – ensuring consistent thermal energy supply.
• Compressed Air Systems – uptime, quality, and efficiency.
• Water Treatment & Utility Distribution – City Water WTP performance and sustainability.
• Energy Management & Efficiency Projects – reducing operational cost and carbon footprint.
• Preventive & Predictive Maintenance – strengthening asset reliability.
• Team Leadership & Safety Compliance – ensuring safe, aligned, and high-performing operations.
  
  This role enables me to drive operational excellence across critical utility assets while supporting KDD’s high standards in production, quality, and food safety.

• Managed and maintained utility systems, including HVAC, electrical, and plumbing, ensuring optimal performance and compliance with safety standards.
• Led the implementation of an energy management program, resulting in a 20% reduction in energy costs over two years.
• Coordinated preventive maintenance schedules, reducing equipment downtime by 15%.
• Supervised a team of 126 heds, providing training and support to ensure adherence to maintenance protocols.
• Conducted regular facility inspections, identifying and addressing potential safety hazards.
• Collaborated with external contractors for major repairs and renovations, ensuring projects were completed on time and within budget.

Refrigeration:

Central Processing Plant - CPP1, CPP2, CPP3 and Cradle site with aggregate foot print of 124MW Ammonia refrigeration plnats installed by partners: GRADE Refrigeration - GEA, Alsalem York services - JCI, Omega Engineering - Mycom, 3CL, Johns Engineering, Clauger Technofridg.

• Supervised, Monitored and controlled the maintenance and operation of industrial refrigeration systems, ensuring temperature control and system reliability. Few significant among the 124 MW footprint by application Central Refrigeration: (5) -2°C Propylene Glycol cilled medium with JCI YORK SAB 87, (7) YORK JCI VMY 447H, (3) YORK SAB 283S, Ref.Capacity: 36.5MW , CPP1 HVAC Air conditioning: (3) YORK SAB 233 S, Ref. Capacity: 5MW , CPP2 HVAC Air conditioning: (8) OMEGA MYCOM N200VLDD-MSX , Ref. Capacity: 8MW, CPP3 HVAC Air conditioning: (10) GEA GRADE, Ref. Capacity: 33.9MW (11) Cold storages +4°C, (5) Frezer stores -10°C, -18°C by YORK JCI, GEA GRADE, OMEGA, with an aggregate Ref.Capacity: 22.5MW, (8) Spiral blast freezers by OMEGA, GEA GRADE -15°C to -17°C with an aggregate Ref.Capacity: 6.5MW,
• Implemented preventive maintenance schedules, reducing unexpected failures by 30%.
• Enhanced system efficiency through regular performance assessments and upgrades.

Steam Systems:

• Managed and optimized steam generation and distribution systems, ensuring efficient and reliable operation.
• Conducted regular maintenance and inspections of boilers and steam lines, reducing downtime by 15%. Cochran Thermax Firetube (10 Ton)10Nos . Total Capacity: 100 Ton steam generation.
• Implemented energy-saving measures that led to a 10% reduction in steam consumption.

Water Treatment:

• Coordinated with cross-functional teams to drive project success.
• Oversaw the operation and maintenance of water treatment facilities, including reverse osmosis and chemical dosing systems. WETTICO, AES, VEOLIA R.Os 12 Nos. Total Capacity: 18696 M3/Day water production.
• Ensured compliance with environmental regulations and water quality standards through rigorous testing and monitoring.
• Reduced water usage by 20% through the implementation of water recycling initiatives.

Compressed Air Systems:

• Managed the maintenance and operation of compressed air systems, ensuring optimal performance and efficiency. LP Air: 8 bars, Air production: 3745 L/Sec. (10) AtlasCopco ZR250 VSD, (5) TT325 TamTurbo, HP Air: 36 bars , Air production: 153 M3/Min. (7) Ateliers François.
• Conducted leak detection and repair programs, reducing air loss by 25%.
• Upgraded air compressor controls, resulting in a 15% energy savings.

Fire Pumps:

• Maintained and tested fire pump systems to ensure compliance with safety standards and regulatory requirements. (2) Patterson Capacity: 3000 GPM , (2) REDDY-BUFFALOES Capacity: 3000 GPM , PENTAIR Capacity : 1500 GPM
• Coordinated with fire safety teams to conduct regular drills and inspections.

Waste Management:

• Managed waste treatment and disposal processes, ensuring compliance with environmental regulations. Inlet flow (throughput) for treatment (7,205 M³/day) Total ETP MBR output: (6,423 M³/day)
• Developed and implemented waste reduction programs, achieving a 30% reduction in waste generation.
• Coordinated with external vendors for hazardous waste disposal, ensuring safe and compliant handling.

• Ensured the availability and duly met the end-user demand for all Utility supplies: Refrigeration, Steam, Compressed Air, Treated water, Nitrogen and Carbon dioxide.
• Reviewed stock of materials and followed up for the availability of additional spares.
• Followed-up with suppliers for timely spare parts supplies and pushed for elapsed lead time/ delivery date and ensured COA’s and food grade certificates are delivered along with Invoices.
• Prepared ERSA for Engineering spares, Raised PR’s and requested for timely approvals.
• Highlighted discrepancies in stocks:-Utility consumables and engineering spares and followed-up corrective actions.
• Conducted reviews, prepared and presented case study reports of major equipment failures.
• Conducted “Tool Box meeting” and discussed “One point Leasons”, RCA findings with team for improving effective performance of maintenance tasks.
• Planned and executed PPM (Above:97%)of all utility machineries and equipments to meet the site demand.
• Assigned Maintenance work orders to Technicians evaluated performance effectiveness and completed by TECO.
• Participated with Audit teams and timely corrective action done (Gemba,GMP, AIBI Internal Audits.)
• Coordinated and liaise with other teams and management to ensure all relevant information is communicated efficiently and effectively (Planned shutdowns, unexpected events/crisis.)
• Ensured all duties are conducted according to the SOP’s as specified in the manufacturers recommendations/in compliance with Almarai Quality system.

• Performed routine and preventive maintenance on Refrigeration and Air conditioning systems, ensuring minimal disruption to operations.
• Assisted in the development of maintenance schedules and procedures, optimizing Refrigeration equipment lifespan and performance.
• Troubleshot and resolved technical issues of Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning equipments, providing prompt and effective solutions to minimize downtime.
• Conducted safety inspections of Refrigeration plants and implemented corrective actions to maintain a safe working environment.
• Collaborated with the engineering team on facility improvement projects, contributing to enhanced operational efficiency.
• Gathered requirements for ongoing Refrigeration and Air-conditioning projects and organised details for management use.
• Oversaw 6 Junior Refrigeration technicians and facilitated on the job training.
• Assisted in the planning and execution of Refrigeration and Air-conditioning equipment upgrades and retrofit projects to improve efficiency and compliance.
• Responded to emergency service calls and participated in after-hours on-call rotation as needed.
• Maintained a clean and organized work environment, adhering to company safety protocols and procedures.

• Developed and implemented production schedules to meet customer demands while optimizing resources.
• Coordinated with cross-functional teams including procurement, manufacturing, and logistics to ensure smooth production flow.
• Collaborated with engineering teams to introduce new products or process improvements into the production line.
• Monitored inventory levels and work-in-progress to prevent stockouts and delays in production.
• Enabled accurate performance tracking by producing, maintaining and distributing [Monthly] KPI reports.
• Analyzed production data and performance metrics to identify areas for improvement and implement corrective actions.
• Ensured [99]% on-time delivery, liaising with sales and manufacturing to estimate lead time.
• Drove team productivity, maintaining training matrix to determine skill and competency gaps.
• Eliminated manufacturing bottlenecks through effective finite capacity scheduling, increasing production efficiencies by [99.8]%.
• Liaised with sales team for accurate customer demand prediction.
• Assisted in budget preparation, supported cost-reduction efforts.