Rudie Wilken
Welcome Bay
Summary
Dynamic Senior Maintenance Planner with a proven track record at Ballance Agri-Nutrients, excelling in budget management and predictive maintenance. Spearheaded initiatives that cut unplanned downtime and enhanced asset reliability, showcasing strong leadership and strategic planning skills. Committed to continuous improvement and safety compliance, driving operational excellence in high-stakes environments.
Overview
24
24
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Maintenance Planner
Ballance Agri-Nutrients
01.2022 - Current
- Tasked with transforming reactive maintenance into a reliability-driven programme for a 24/7 chemical plant.
- Worked with over 40 different vendors and nearly 300 staff to ensure reliability of assets by planning, scheduling, resourcing and budgeting for proactive maintenance.
- Introduced numerous strategies leading by safety and innovation to make day to day maintenance manageable and cost effective.
- NZ's Largest Fertiliser Producer
- Cut unplanned downtime by implementing data driven maintenance schedules and SAP triggered work orders.
- Led the 2023 & 2024 Annual Shutdowns ($12.2M budget) total, coordinating 300+ contractors and internal teams to complete scoped work 1 day earlier.
- Reduced backlog work orders by overhauling prioritisation criteria and introducing a plan workflow for repeat tasks.
- Created new equipment and maintenance plans in SAP improving planning, budgeting and strategies for better cost tracking.
- Out the box thinking with prior to shutdown initiatives slashing hundreds of hours in shutdown manhours leading to the removal of multiple SIMOPS actions saving time and eliminating safety hazards.
- Implemented a maintenance burn rate excel document, to track planned vs actual work hours during major maintenance outages.
- CAPEX requests implemented during 2023 to capitalise the major outage for the Acid plant and turbine, while utilising OPEX for the smaller turnaround in the Fertilizer manufacturing plant.
- Develop 12 month rolling maintenance plans, balancing production windows with asset criticality.
- Partner with reliability engineers to embed predictive maintenance (vibration analysis, thermography) into SAP workflows.
- Act as the bridge between operations and finance, justifying CAPEX requests with lifecycle cost models.
- Lead daily stakeholder stand-ups during shutdowns to pre-empt bottlenecks (materials, permits, skill gaps).
- Contract management and negotiations with external vendors keeping track of budget spend and tracking efficiencies.
Packing & Planning Supervisor
Champion Flour Mills
06.2022 - 12.2022
- Steered packing operations for a 500-tonne/week facility amid supply chain volatility.
- Managing a team of 6 shift workers in coalition with warehouse manager and national sales office optimised day to day flour packing by liaising with Milling team days in advance to ensure milling of specified required products.
- NZ’s Premier Flour Processor
- Boosted line efficiency by leading weekly production planning meetings with the milling, sales and warehouse teams.
- Eliminated packaging waste via a staff-led initiative to audit and adjust filler settings on product change.
- Coached my team leader into supervisory roles within 5 months through structured feedback and delegation.
- Convert sales forecasts into 7-day production schedules, ensuring optimal run sequences for SKU changes.
- Troubleshoot automation glitches (FAWEMA) alongside German engineers to minimise downtime.
- Enforce GMP and HACCP standards, leading monthly internal audits.
Production & Maintenance Scheduler
Red Stag Wood Solutions
01.2021 - 01.2022
- Orchestrated end-to-end CLT (Cross-Laminated Timber) production from log procurement to finished product dispatch for a mill supplying NZ’s booming construction sector.
- Managing a team of 10 employees with day-to-day operations, logistics and maintenance.
- NZ's Largest Timber Processor
- Optimised Inventory Turnover by redesigning stock-level alerts for imported fixings and domestic timber, cutting holding costs.
- Reduced Machine Downtime via a predictive maintenance schedule (using SAP PM), prioritising high-impact equipment like kilns and planers.
- Led FSC Certification Compliance, ensuring 100% traceability for export markets with no major non-conformances during audits.
- Acted as Interim Operations Manager for 8 weeks, managing 30+ staff.
- Production Planning: Translated sales orders into daily fabrication schedules, balancing cold press glueing and machining times with customer deadlines.
- Maintenance Coordination: Partnered with engineer to reduce breakdowns by pre-scheduling blade changes and hydraulic overhauls.
- Safety & Training: Introduced SOP’s and training manuals for all staff operating the plant.
- Process Improvement: Encouraged live time entry on job cards to amend work schedules for better planning and scheduling, by updating maintenance plans with real time feedback.
Maintenance Turnaround Planner & Shutdown Coordinator
Sasol Ltd
01.2016 - 01.2019
- Planned high-risk turnarounds for a $200m+ pa chemical plant, managing 400+ contractors and avoiding unplanned outages in a 24/7 operation.
- Global Energy Leader
- Boosted Work Order Completion by 8% by introducing a priority-coding system in SAP, slashing backlog.
- Saved 200+ Labour Hours/Shutdown by standardising equipment tagging and digital work packs.
- Prevented a 72-Hour Production Halt by re-scoping and scheduling a catalyst changeover using critical path analysis and contract connections.
- Trained Operators and fitters in SAP PM, reducing data errors and improving planner-operator alignment.
- Shutdown Leadership: Coordinated annual 17-day plant-wide turnarounds ($7M budgets), ensuring <1% schedule overruns.
- Risk Mitigation: Conducted HAZOP reviews for high-pressure vessel works, achieving zero LTIs.
- Stakeholder Management: Aligned unions, contractors, and management on scoping compromises to avoid delays.
- Cost Control: Negotiated with vendors to cut costs by 7% via early awards.
Production Foreman
Sasol Ltd
03.2016 - 10.2016
- Led a 12-person shift team running high-pressure water treatment equipment, balancing output targets with strict safety protocols.
- Global Energy Leader
- Achieved 98% On-Spec Product by tightening QC checks and real-time parameter adjustments.
- Reduced Overtime by 20% via skills matrix-driven scheduling, cross-training operators.
Chemical Plant Senior Operator
Sasol Ltd
01.2002 - 01.2016
- Operated and troubleshot distillation/crystallizer vessels, Reverse Osmosis trains, centrifuges, Sand bed filters, High pressure centrifugal pumps, floating bed clarifiers, and conveyor systems in a water treatment environment.
- Global Energy Leader
- Pioneered a Shift Handover Checklist adopted plant-wide, cutting startup delays by 45 mins/shift.
- Mentored 15+ Trainees, with 100% passing competency assessments on first attempts.
Education
Some College (No Degree) - First Aid, Forklift, Risk Management
Vertical Horizons
Tauranga, NZSome College (No Degree) -
SAP Professional Coaching
Pretoria, RSASome College (No Degree) - ENCHEM 4 NZQA
Sasol Academy
Secunda, RSADiploma in Business management -
Southern Institute of Technology
Invercargill, NZSkills
- Maintenance leadership
- SAP management
- Maintenance planning
- Budget management
- Shutdown coordination
- Contract negotiation
- Team leadership
- Scheduling techniques
- Continuous improvement
- Materials coordination
- Asset management
- Work order management
- Safety compliance
- Equipment maintenance
- Technical understanding
- Strategic planning
- Machinery operations
- Job site management
- Schedule preparation
- Analytical thinking
- Mechanical aptitude
- Technical expertise
- Business integration
- Financial management
- Turnaround execution
- Project management and dashboards
- CAPEX and OPEX oversight
- Budget management up to $10M
- Predictive maintenance
- SAP PM and CMMS proficiency
- Stakeholder alignment
- Vendor management
- Eclipse permit system knowledge
- Risk assessment and mitigation
- Contract negotiation skills
- FMEA and root cause analysis
- HAZOP and process safety expertise
- Continuous improvement coaching
The Nz Fit
- Safety First: Deeply aligned with NZ’s zero-harm culture trained in Hazard ID, JSA, and permit systems.
- Agile Learner: Quickly adapt to NZ specific regulations (WorkSafe, Environmental Protection Authority, (EPA).
- Team Centric: Believe in 'we' over 'I', whether collaborating with Māori stakeholders or frontline crews.
References
Available on request.
Education Credentials
- NZQA Certifications (e.g., First Aid, Forklift, Risk Management)
- SAP PM Advanced Certification
- PRINCE2 Foundation
- Diploma in Chemical Operations (Sasol Academy) ENCHEM 4 NZQA
- Diploma in Project management
Personal Information
Hobbies: Passionate about outdoor pursuits, including angling, off-roading, camping, and hiking., Contributing to the sporting community as the wrestling North Island Athletes Representative for New Zealand.
Timeline
Packing & Planning Supervisor
Champion Flour Mills
06.2022 - 12.2022
Senior Maintenance Planner
Ballance Agri-Nutrients
01.2022 - Current
Production & Maintenance Scheduler
Red Stag Wood Solutions
01.2021 - 01.2022
Production Foreman
Sasol Ltd
03.2016 - 10.2016
Maintenance Turnaround Planner & Shutdown Coordinator
Sasol Ltd
01.2016 - 01.2019
Chemical Plant Senior Operator
Sasol Ltd
01.2002 - 01.2016
Some College (No Degree) - First Aid, Forklift, Risk Management
Vertical Horizons
Some College (No Degree) -
SAP Professional Coaching
Some College (No Degree) - ENCHEM 4 NZQA
Sasol Academy
Diploma in Business management -
Southern Institute of Technology