Manager Plant

Steve Swartout

*** ******** *****, ******* ***, CA 91765 **********@*****.*** 714-***-****

Summary

Results-driven leader, agent of positive culture change with extensive experience. Professional skills include technology expertise; leadership ability, including developing, implementing and teaching continuous improvement strategies to lead and empower all levels of operations; familiarity with Cal/OSHA safety and state/local environmental requirements; and capability to represent a business before government agencies in these areas.

Professional Goal

Obtain a challenging and high impact leadership position in a manufacturing or fulfillment organization with growth potential. Seize the opportunity to achieve quantifiable results for customers, the organization, management team, employees, vendors, and all shareholders.

Professional Experience

Manufacturing Manager Valassis Communications Commerce CA 7/28/16 – current

Manage second shift operation in a two-shift plant. 120 direct associates + 40 indirect. 20 AlphaLiner high-speed inserting lines. 270,000 sq ft plant. Package130 – 170 million inserts into 8.5 million RedPlum wraps each week. Responsible for unit costs, hiring, training, associate development, HR/ER issues, and safety. Improved communication of client and organizational requirements, housekeeping, safety, and employee morale. Continue to identify and act on opportunities.

Assistant Plant Manager O’Neil Data Systems Los Angeles 3/31/16 – 7/15/16

Manage second shift production, 30 employees, 200,000 sq ft plant. Includes safety, maintenance and repairs. Production consists of HP digital presses, CMC inserting machines, Goss presses, Ibis stitchers, and miscellaneous auxiliary bindery equipment. Production is primarily medical records printing and billing, in a secure HIPPA environment.

Already implemented shut down procedures (there were none for the plant), and greatly improved housekeeping and organization of the plant. Also improved morale on the 2nd shift through respect for the individual and constant clear meaningful communication.

Consultant for Plant Closure Ashby and Geddes (Wilmington DE) Brea CA May 2015 – October 2015

Assisted the PennySaver bankruptcy law firm with closing the business. Responsible for proper shutdown of three Southern California plants: vendor notification and reconciliation, removal of all material, proper disposal of remaining material, arranging crews for clean up, assisting property mangers with walkthroughs for future tenants, identifying and preparing equipment for final auction. Basically “feet on the street” so the Delaware firm did not need to place one of their associates in the plant for a proper shut down.

Vice President of Operations PennySaver Brea CA / 2013 – 2015

Responsible for all of Operations and the facilities in three Southern California plants: Brea, Mira Loma, and Vista. Managed Printing, Inserting, Distribution, Warehouse, Newsprint and Ink Inventory, Safety and Environmental Compliance. Successfully consolidated Vista production into Brea and Mira Loma six weeks prior to the closure. PennySaver was purchased by OpenGate Capital and was shut down fourteen months after purchase.

Plant Manager PennySaver Brea CA / 2009 - 2013

Responsible for Brea Operations, including all aspects of production and distribution of 3.5 million weekly publications. Managed a team of 150 employees. Responsible for hiring, training, and scheduling. Prepared annual budgets to VP of Operations, and provided variance explanations for monthly budget reviews. Chairperson of the company-wide safety and environmental management team, directing compliance at four California plants.

Major Accomplishments:

Improved print quality by implementing standard operating procedures for maintenance and press make-readies.

Improved warehouse accuracy by standardizing skid flags and increasing font size so information was very easy to see.

Reduced newsprint waste 3% by controlling overruns to only the necessary minimum.

Improved morale by recognizing efforts, acknowledging and incentivizing employees at all levels of production, and spending a great deal of time on the production floor.

Managed environmental compliance and safety program (IIPP), and led the corporate-wide efforts in these areas, including a substantial reduction in hazardous waste generation, implementation of a storm water pollution prevention program, achieved lower injury rates than industry averages, and no notices of violation from environmental regulators.

Managed integration of Northern California production into Brea, a 25% increase in production.

Reduced inserting costs by 10% through optimized scheduling and overtime reduction.

Right-sized the business when necessary for contraction and expansion.

Maintained a network of highly-qualified support professionals to call on as needed.

Improved overall Operations performance through cross training, job-sharing, and eliminating old perceptions of my job/your job Everyone helped out for the good of the organization.

Prepress Director PennySaver Multi-Site: Brea, Mira Loma, Rancho Cordova and Vista 1997 - 2009

Managed Composing/Prepress for four plants with responsibility for all of the company’s advertisements, and supported Territory and National Sales graphic arts/composing needs.

Major Accomplishments:

Successful standardization of ad building techniques for content and printability.

Standardized Graphic Subscription services across four plants, reducing expense by 20%.

Integrated new digital technology between Sales and Prepress; digital layouts, real-time proofs, and ad mark-up ability.

Improved deadlines for ad submission by Sales, creating a competitive advantage in the market.

Represented Prepress in Environmental and Safety meetings

Transitioned from film to computer-to-plate technology.

Produced 6,000+ weekly ads

Prepress Manager PennySaver Mira Loma 1993-1997

Managed the 60-employee Composing/Prepress staff at the PennySaver Mira Loma facility.

Major Accomplishments:

Set up formalized basic composing training for all shifts.

Improved relationships between Sales and Prepress by hosting monthly meetings to review concerns from both perspectives.

Joined Sales on customer calls to stay current with expectations.

Provided annual budgets for local payroll, composing stations, subscription services and imaging equipment.

Produced 2,000+ weekly ads

Press Manager PennySaver Brea 1989 - 1993

Responsible for weekly printing of 2 million advertising circulars. Managed a staff of 30 employees.

Major Accomplishments:

Set up a formal employee-training program with press manufacturers and Graphic Arts Technical Foundation.

Increased the quality and consistency of the publication through the training program.

Implemented weekly meetings between maintenance and production to optimize the function and repair of the machines, and to improve relationships between the two departments.

Purchased Newsprint and Job Paper

Education and Certifications

B.A. Business Administration with concentration in Operations Management Cal State Fullerton 1996

Lean Thinking:

MIT 16.660J Introduction to Lean Six Sigma Methods, IAP 2012

Audited complete 16 session 10-hr MIT opencourseware program Q4 2016, on-line.

Cal/OSHA Management and Accident Prevention Training

Environmental Regulation Crash Course Training

Civil Treatment for Managers

Zenger Miller Leadership Training

Anti-Harassment Training

IIPP Training and Implementation

Computer Software

MS Office: Excel, Word, and PowerPoint. Outlook.

Personal interest

Having fun with the family! Lifetime learner, live music, trying to fix things I shouldn’t really try by watching YouTube videos.

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