Post Job Free
Sign in

Leadership, Manufacturing, Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma

Location:
Evansville, IN
Posted:
May 16, 2014

Contact this candidate

Resume:

RICK NIKOLICH

*** ****** ****

Email: *********@*******.***

Mount Vernon, Indiana 47620

812-***-****

SUMMARY

Senior level Plant/Operations Manager, with Black Belt Six Sigma

certification, with a strong record of increasing profits, cost reduction,

lean manufacturing, and teamwork development where the focus is 30%

operations and 70% process improvement (time, cost, quality). Successfully

realized over $1 million in savings in one year, through training of

Engineering Six Sigma Green Belts and Lean Kaizen implementation.

Background includes development and maintenance of multi-million dollar

budgets, high volume production feasibility, hiring and supervising staff

of over 600, lean single piece flow transformation, over $1 million

inventory reductions, staff reductions, successful plant certifications for

ISO 14001, ISO 9000, TS 16949, and NADCAP. One of only 63 Plants certified

by MIOSHA's VPP program for Safety. Eliminated EHS non-conformances from

over 90 audit findings to zero, optimized plant floor flow, and waste

elimination.

EXPERIENCE

Mead Johnson, Evansville, IN

2011-Present

Operations Manager Providing leadership for the entire high volume Powder

and Pre-Mix Operation. Manage the manufacture of specialty formulas which

include critical hygiene zones in a FDA regulated environment. Leading

Evansville Supply Chain in cost reductions and OEE improvements.

. Implemented Powder Plant Key Measures. Data driven actions at all

levels to focus the Plant on the biggest opportunities.

. Mentored Continuous Improvement and Reliability Engineers in the

application of Lean and Six Sigma.

. Improved process flow and OEE by 19% in less than a year utilizing TPM

tools.

. Utilized Pareto approach to improve yields in excess of $1.1 million

annually.

Pittsburg Glass Company, Automotive- Evansville, IN

2010-2011

Operations Manager Providing leadership to over 600 employees (Engineering,

Maintenance, Quality and Production) that manufacture automotive

windshields and tempered glass for Mercedes Benz, Toyota, Ford, Chrysler,

GM and Audi.

. Key part of Leadership Team that successfully implemented 4 crew 24/

Plant Operation.

. Implemented structured Total Productive Maintenance system for a

continuous operation.

. Trend, Pareto and focused actions for Operation's key indicators.

. Utilized Six Sigma and Lean tools to drive positive change and address

corrective actions.

Stewart Warner-Aerospace-Troy, Indiana

2006-2009

Operations Manager (One of dozens of positions eliminated due to economic

down turn) Provided leadership to 150 technical personnel, including

Engineering and Maintenance, in this high volume aerospace manufacturing

supplier including goal setting, driving teams to achieve goals, and

creating business plans to meet marketing projections. Managed a $15

million operating and a multi-million dollar capital budget involving rates

of return on new projects. Hired, trained, evaluated, and supervised the

leadership team of seven direct reports.

. Reduced headcount and cost-per-unit, shortened process lead time (from 43

to 7 days) and reduced scrap, improved quality and on-time delivery

(moving from 63% to 100%).

. Re-organized manufacturing into customer focused single piece flow value

streams.

. Successfully pursued certifications in ISO 14001, ISO 9000, and NADCAP.

. In EHS reduced non-conformance findings from >100 to zero, reduced water

usage by 7 million gallons/yr, saving $15K/yr and lowered electrical use

by 26% for an annual savings of $90K.

. Developed and led the team that re-designed the plant floor to optimize

flow, eliminate waste and free-up over 40,000 square feet for new product

lines.

Federal Mogul, Bearing Manufacturing- St. Johns, Michigan

2003 - 2006

Plant Manager Led a team of nine direct reports (HR, controller, and

managers of quality, engineering, lean, IT, materials and two in

production) 510 UAW employees in a tier one and two plant. Maintained and

improved all plant operations, quality, maintenance, P&L, and accounting,

for $80 million in annual sales and $3 million in capital. Led Six Sigma

initiative, hired two Black Belts and trained 16 Green Belts.

. Implemented Toyota Production System methods to reduce dependency on

inspection.

. Reduced Customer Quality PPM's from 47 to less than one in 18 months, and

past due orders from $350k to zero while improving OEM shipping

performance to 100%. Implemented ISO 14001

. Part of team that successfully negotiated a concessionary agreement with

the UAW and State of Michigan to get a tax law passed. Total savings of

$4.5 million over four years.

Demmer Corporation, Automotive-Lansing, Michigan

2002 - 2003

Director of Engineering (Part of division staff that was eliminated due to

financial in-stability)

Led maintenance for five plants, engineers, safety and quality director, in

taking customer designs and developed project plans, manufacturing process

and control plans. Monitored quality and completion of major milestones,

along with process improvements, to meet or exceed customer expectations

for 5 plants.

. Saved over $400,000 in first five months by successfully facilitating

Kaizen teams.

. Saved over $600,000 from projects completed by the training of Six Sigma

Green Belts.

TRW Automotive and Steering Division; Portland, Michigan

1998 - 2002

Lean Manufacturing Engineering Manager

Drove Lean Manufacturing, including single piece flow and value stream

mapping, throughout the plant using a structured approach and facilitating

26 Kaizen events in just one year. Managed Maintenance, Environmental,

Safety, Tool Room and Engineering Departments while achieving both ISO14001

and TS16949 certifications Hired and supervised a team including a safety

coordinator and the following engineers: tool room industrial,

manufacturing, environmental, lean, and tooling.

. Coordinated training and projects for 2 Six Sigma Black Belts and 49

Green Belts.

. Completed $1,100,000 in cost reductions in 2001 by leading Kaizen and Six

Sigma.

. Reduced salaried and indirect personnel by 14 in 1999 saving over

$800,000 annually.

EDUCATION

Bachelor's in Organizational Leadership, with honors

Purdue University, Lafayette, IN



Contact this candidate