Benjamin Suarez Email & Phone Number

Racine, WI, US

Execute strategy and supplier relationship management with 50+ chemical and ingredient suppliers. Develop and implement supply chain resiliency plans.

Blackfriars, London, GB

• Managed quality risks to delivery of approximately 25 product innovation projects annually for Condiments, Dry Savory, and Tea categories via risk assessments, launch monitoring plans, and post-launch evaluations.
• Coordinated efforts among R&D, Marketing, Manufacturing, Procurement, and Regulatory, addressing project risks and ensuring agreement on risk priorities.
• Guided internal and external manufacturers through validation and maintenance of new food product claims on products, such as vegan and organic claims, supporting sustainability and brand goals.
• Assessed new production sites and lines for suitability for proposed innovation items at partner manufacturing locations.
• Tracked project waste and losses for Innovation Quality team and devised preventive actions against future losses.

Blackfriars, London, GB

• Oversaw 100 hair care and styling items to attain high customer service, low waste, and target inventory levels for North America supply chain.
• Led monthly Hair Styling run strategy meetings between multiple planning and manufacturing teams, achieving goals of customer service, network responsiveness, and lowest-cost production.
• Constructed material buffering strategy in partnership with internal SAP specialists, increasing manufacturing flexibility and reducing on-hand finished goods inventory.
• Guided planning team through divestiture of 2 multicultural brands, including production scheduling, inventory transfer, and material depletion, meeting cost goals.

Blackfriars, London, GB

• Coordinated production strategy for the personal care liquids production network (shampoos, conditioners, lotions, and body washes) across 3 internal and 7 external manufacturing locations.
• Steered monthly run strategy meetings with stakeholders, supporting goals of customer service, network responsiveness, and lowest-cost production.
• Developed long-term investment recommendations to create in-house capacity and unlock multi-million dollar savings by producing items in-house instead of at third party locations.
• Managed customer service, inventory, and costs as an assistant supply planner for portfolio of over 50 hair styling, shampoo, and conditioner items in addition to primary capacity planning responsibilities.

Blackfriars, London, GB

• Supervised and trained 60-night shift employees and seasonal associates in new factory. Supported commissioning of 5 new production lines in 12 months.
• Created production and testing program to achieve approval from State of Tennessee on 72-hour dairy production on frozen dessert lines (where previous limit had been 24 hours), enhancing production capacity and.
• Spearheaded the production and quality plan for sale samples on new manufacturing line vital to the success of new brand launch in 2013.
• Refined sanitation and CIP procedures through line changeover improvement exercises and Lean manufacturing practices, decreasing cleaning times.

Blackfriars, London, GB

• Supervised over 100 evening shift union employees on 16 frozen dessert manufacturing lines.
• Maintained safety, product quality, and line performance in plant to be closed in July 2012 by working alongside employees and building rapport.
• Implemented Near Miss safety reporting program, boosting employee engagement in safety and prevent accidents.
• Increased safety and efficiency through developing redesign plans on 3 manufacturing lines to improve ergonomics and reduce waste.

US

- Scheduled shift-by-shift production of solid dose OTC pharmaceuticals- Tracked daily production vs. plan and used information to modify upcoming schedules to better meet customer demand- Monitored finished goods inventory to prevent overproduction- Developed comprehensive Excel database of all solid dose OTC products to be used as a planning tool for.

Mba

B.S., Mechanical Engineering