My roots in manufacturing and engineering run deep, woven into the fabric of my life from an early age. My family owned and operated a small automotive machine shop in St. Louis County. The lessons I learned there are the foundation of my career. The first thing my uncle taught me to do in a machine shop was sweep the floor. 20+ years into my career and I’m still learning. More importantly, I have never forgotten how to sweep the floor. My career started in mechanical design, but I quickly also found that I have a passion for software development. I had a need. Bought a book. Never looked back. My focus throughout my career has been in manufacturing with concentrations in software engineering, mechanical design, quality and reliability management, and the application of lean in both manufacturing and product development. I have led teams that have developed commercial appliances and industrial automated equipment and have been named inventor on both software and mechanical patents.Currently, I work for Clemco Industries as Vice President of Engineering and Operations. My role at Clemco is to develop world class Engineering and Manufacturing teams while simultaneously aligning their efforts. My responsibility is to be a good steward of our culture and to deliver the value that we promise our customers. My mission is to ensure double digit productivity improvements year over year while simultaneously releasing new products each year to support profitable and sustainable growth.Topics that I am passionate about: New Product Development | Innovation & Transformation strategies | LEAN Product & Process Development | Lifecycle Management | Product & Technology Roadmaps | Mechanical Design | Software Development | Quality & Reliability Engineering | Design for Manufacturing & Assembly | Lean Manufacturing| IOT & Industry 4.0