General Manager - Operations Leader in Turnaround and Growth

ChrISTIAN Sage

616-***-**** ǀ LinkedIn.com/IN/Chris-Sage ǀ ******@******.***

GENERAL MANAGER ǀ DIRECTOR ǀ VICE PRESIDENT

Collaborative, decisive senior manager with expertise in leading both turnaround and high growth manufacturing facilities. Customer centric mindset with a focus on business improvements and the elimination of nonstandard costs. Leverage my experience at large companies with lean manufacturing system maturity to be a change agent at all levels of small to medium size organizations. Cross-functional engineering and leadership background in manufacturing allows me to quickly assess the strengths and weaknesses of a business and develop a business plan and strategy to increase profitability.

Profit and Loss Budgeting Cost Analysis

Nonstandard Cost Reduction Capital Planning Plant Expansions

VAVE/PPV Continuous Improvement Six Sigma

Team Building and Leadership Culture Transformation Policy Deployment

Key Performance Indicators Business Development Restructuring

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Advantage Plastics/WorkFar Robotics 9/23 – 9/25

GENERAL MANGER / CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER

Dual role as the integrator of a turnaround plastics plant and a start-up robotics company. Responsible for all facets of both businesses with full financial and strategic obligations. Present monthly results and direction to private equity ownership group. A total of five management reports along with tooling and robotic engineers.

Key Contributions:

Within two months, repaired and strengthened our customers’ satisfaction by eliminating legacy quality issues and backorders. Leveraged open capacity in both injection molding and tooling departments to improve robotic build target dates. Recruited and developed high level team of managers and engineers capable of exceeding an aggressive timeline for our AI robotic launch.

Acquired SBA loan to purchase new equipment to replace 75% percent of poorly functioning machines. Utilized scientific molding experience to specify and select thirteen injection molding machines along with auxiliary equipment. Uptime improved from 42% to 85% in three months after acquiring equipment and gross margin doubled in the same time period. Overall ROI is projected to be 10 months.

The lowering of scrap and improvements in uptime led to the reduction of labor by 42% resulting in an increase in revenue generating $2.5MM over the previous year. Month over month increase in revenue forecasting 2024 to be the first year of profitability allowing for increased investments on the robotic side.

Program management of all part and mold builds along with outsourcing and improving overall supply chain lead times and project timelines by 33%.

Garrison Dental Solutions, Spring Lake, MI 5/22 – 9/23

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Brought to Garrison to lead their manufacturing and distribution operations during a growth and transition to vertical integration of manufactured products for the dental industry with an annual revenue of $38MM. Responsible for implementing world class strategies and procedures for this family-owned business. This included acquiring new two shot injection molding equipment for in-house manufacture of proprietary dental products.

Twelve direct reports in operations, engineering, tooling, maintenance, materials, and purchasing. Key Contributions:

Implemented production reporting methods in distribution and manufacturing to establish twelve key performance indicators within my first month at Garrison. Improved attendance in the first two months from 87% to 98% through team-building exercises and SOP training initiatives. Achieved an average of 98% employee attendance for 10 straight months and had zero turnover from Q4 2022 to Q2 2023 which included temporary staffing. During this time customer complaints were reduced by 75% through team stability and root cause corrective actions.

Obtained team RJG Liquid Silicone training along with in-house material supplier consultation of best practices which lead to an overall reduction of scrap by 80%. Eliminated a decade process of hand trimming flash from dental rings by implementing a cryogenic deflashing process for an annual cost reduction of $120k.

Selected and implemented computerized maintenance management software to replace manual recording methods along with establishing a work order system by scanning asset tag QR codes with a smart phone. Utilized software to improve machine uptime, PM deliverables, and an increase of visibility for improvement opportunities.

Lakeland Monroe Group, Grand Rapids, MI 2/21 – 5/22

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Returned to LMG to lead the injection molding and assembly plants through a significant growth and plant expansion. Oversee P&L, budgeting, and capital planning expenditures for an automotive supplier with

$30MM in annual revenue. Nine direct reporting managers in production, engineering, quality, materials, automation, maintenance, tooling, and continuous improvement with a plant total of 220 employees.

Key Contributions:

Successfully launched eight programs and over 100 injection molds in less than six months which required the purchase of $4.5MM in capital equipment and the expansion of two plants including the relocation of the warehouse to an offsite location. This expansion included the addition of multiple crane bays, additional infrastructure, and automated injection molding cells.

Implemented new ERP system across multiple facilities that included the purchasing, fabrication, and installation of more than 60 independent work centers. Direct a cross functional team in leveraging new system for advanced reporting, real-time data analysis, and plant floor visual management.

Lead all three plants at the morning staff meeting along with weekly nonstandard cost and KPI report meetings. Budget planning and approval of all plant expenses. Direct continuous improvement activities at all three plants with the automation, fabrication, and continuous improvement teams. This included the in- house fabrication of $1.5MM in work cell vision systems and press side assembly fixtures to reduce quoted labor by 66%.

West Michigan Molding, Grand Haven, MI 3/19 – 2/21

Vice President of Operations

Hired as the Continuous Improvement Manager and was promoted to VP of Operations after six months.

Direct all departments at their custom molding operation that generates $29MM in annual revenue. Responsible for streamlining the operation and returning the company back to profitability.

Key Contributions:

Restructured hourly and salaried workforce to align labor costs with projected sales. Reduced dependency on temporary workforce from 45% to 3% and production overtime by 68%. Overall labor costs as a percentage of production lowered from 25% to 17% for a cost savings of $2MM in 2020.

Inherited a facility that was not only dependent on temporaries but had an hourly turnover rate of 210% in 2018. At the beginning of 2019, I started a plant wide culture transformation. I created the company vision, mission, and values, which centered on teamwork and individual growth. Our team thoughtfully changed every element of the onboarding process and plant experience so that our external branding and recruiting matched our internal brand and employee experience. Attendance improved from 87% to 95% in the first year and our turnover reduced to 26% annually.

At the end of 2019, I implemented a VMOSA room process that focused the entire plant on six key areas of profit loss that totaled $6MM. The team objective was to reduce cost by 50% in 2020. By the end of Q3, we exceeded our goal and had our most profitable quarter in over a decade. One key area was COPQ where we were able to reduce from 6.3% to 2.9% for a cost avoidance of $980K. Achieved this by reducing parts on GP-12 by 90%, inspection labor by 73%, and 3rd party sorting by 85%.

Lakeland Monroe Group, Grand Rapids, MI 2/17 – 3/19

Operations Manager

Part of the new management staff brought in to return company to profitability. Acting Operations Manager during a merger and acquisition that shifted management’s focus to the new plant. Responsible for leading molding, assembly, and paint operation of 250 salaried and hourly team members.

Key Contributions:

Implemented Obeya and KPI boards to visualize company metrics and engage team in driving a reduction in scrap and labor. Month over month reduction of nonstandard costs in manufacturing departments. In first year, reduced scrap and labor costs by 64% and 55%, respectively.

Leveraged machine capacity through cycle time reductions to bring back outsourced business and eliminate weekend work. Improved OEE from 73% to 93% and Asset Utilization from 78% to 94% resulting in a reduction of overtime by 85% in the first six months.

Purchased $1.2MM in automation equipment in FY18 to replace obsolescent technology for an overall ROI of nine months through a reduction in labor, scrap, and overtime. Led VAVE/PPV initiative teams for an overall cost savings of $750K in 2018 and was on track for $1.1MM in 2019.

Flex-N-Gate, Fowlerville, MI 3/16 – 2/17

Manufacturing Manager

Injection molding Business Unit Manager responsible for leading a department of 120 employees including Production Supervisors, Process Technicians, Manufacturing Engineers, and Tooling Journeyman. Lead daily continuous improvement and Six Sigma defect reduction activities.

Key Contributions:

Established operational reporting methods to drive improvements in quality, delivery, and cost. Engaged shop floor leadership through the implementation of scrap and downtime reduction teams improving OEE from 82% to 89% in first three months.

Received Shainin Red X Six Sigma training and was selected as champion of two Green Belt projects resulting in a yearly savings of 650K. Worked on a Black Belt project with an estimated cost reduction of 1.5MM.for 2017.

Planned the installation of seven six-axis automated work cells to eliminate secondary processes performed by operators. On-boarded automation engineer and secured automation training for six process technicians.

American Autocoat, Hudsonville, MI 9/14 – 3/16

Manufacturing Manager

Direct manufacturing groups in producing injection molded parts and value-added decorative plastics for consumable and transportation industries.

Key Contributions:

Responsible for production and capacity planning for manufacturing departments. Opened machine capacity for new business by 25% through cycle time and change-over time reduction activities.

Instrumental in planning of six program launches and the development of 38 new injection molds during BY2015. Implemented process validation and DOE for the launching of new injection molding tools which resulted in a reduction of time and scrap by 75%. Implemented Nautilus Process Validation and DOE software.

Participate in all phases of product realization from feasibilities and RFQ through to the purchasing of equipment and the development of work cells. Quoted potential manufacturing business, resource and capacity planning, and capital investments.

Tokai-Rika, Battle Creek, MI 9/06 – 9/14

Section Manager

Manage production operations of 110 employees producing injection molding, metal stamping, pad printing, and paint and laser etch products for the automotive industry.

Key Contributions:

Coordinate and lead the department’s continuous improvement activities to meet deployment strategy. Prepare month end analysis of production metrics and corrective action plan. Lead new hire training for injection molding and decorative processes. Coordinate the auditing and corrective action plans for associate performance.

Lead person and/or mentor on sixteen continuous improvement projects which achieved recognition in scrap and labor reduction, as well as improvements in safety, quality, and productivity.

Achieved 1st Place on four continuous improvement projects and chosen to present my improvement activities at the 2009 Global Injection Molding initiative in Oguchi, Japan. Certified as a Master Molder by RJG in 2012.

EDUCATION

Bachelor of Arts, Political Science

Western Michigan University

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