Ethan Taccardi Email & Phone Number

Danbury, Connecticut

Managing the Surface Preparation and Integration (SPI) Alpha manufacturing pilot plant, producing experimental formulations of up to 120 gallons. Responsible for all scale-up steps, including blending of chemistries and shipping of final formulations.Leading a team of process technicians to meet production challenges, drive continuous improvement activities and optimize efficiency. Implementing improved standard operating procedures and planning methods with a hands-on approach.Enhancing scale-up processes to ensure manufacturability and meet customer requirements, including filtration and material handling. Establishing new processes to maximize quality and throughput.Interfacing with Formulations lab, Analytical, Beta and HVM Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Logistics personnel, including international sites. Working with Technical leads to develop initial specifications for products and with supply chain to source appropriate raw materials and with project/product managers to drive new products through the New Product Introduction (NPI) funnel.Maintaining customer-based trackers with key quality and delivery metrics. Responsible for all Alpha pilot assets, including maintenance and CAPEX procurement.

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Area

Planned and executed process improvement testing on ceiling tile fabrication lines. Conducted lamination and paint application experiments, to identify potential chemical and mechanical process improvements. In addition, supported coating, drying, mixing and cutting processes. Established test and standard operating procedures and submitted maintenance work orders. Contributed to daily GEMBA walks and 5S assessments.Responsible for the process engineering start-up of a new manufacturing line. Transferred existing products from current lines and interfaced directly with the corporate organization for handoff of newly-developed products. Significant experience with troubleshooting and resolution of production issues.Served as relief supervisor for an extended period, with direct responsibility for the quality and safety of the manufacturing line and the team of ten operators.Achieved compliance for a California chemical emissions standard on a line of products. Determined the root cause through lab testing, identified a material substitution and validated acceptability through pilot and full-scale testing.Optimized pre-production “health of process” tests, standardizing settings such as dryer temperatures, pump pressures and vacuum setpoints, to improve throughput and minimize scrap. Defined calculations to auto-produce manufacturing specifications, enabling production of custom products, using an in-house specification management tool.Participated in customer visits to resolve product quality issues. Worked with external vendors on a visual inspection system, and for selection of lamination scrim materials.

Rochester, New York Area

Responsible for evaluating the replacement test apparatus for the legacy Xerox Barbetta Box, used to measure triboelectric charge and toner concentration of Xerographic materials. Developed new techniques and provided characterization consultation to mitigate delivery schedule delays.Produced a thousand piece dataset to enable improvements to the new apparatus’ hardware and software. These enhancements yielded reduced measurement variability, as analyzed through SPC control charting. Identified software bugs and contributed to modifying the user interface in LabVIEW, to simplify operation for new users.Collaborated to resolve a mean shift concern, observed with a particular type of toner, between the new and legacy test devices. Methodically worked to determine root cause of the measurements that were outside of the lower control limit. Successfully implemented improvements and confirmed acceptability.

Rochester, New York Area

Conducted size and shape analyses with multiple techniques, including dynamic light scattering, for toner and components. Maintained equipment control using six sigma methods and aided in new equipment qualification.Assisted in resolution of customer issues through simulation of field methods, benchmarking and development of new test metrics. Summarized observations and suggested recommendations for procedure modifications.Developed standardized procedures for characterizing new additives, including sample preparation and optimized sizing methodologies.

Rochester, New York Area

Chemical engineering internship in nanoparticle research and characterization

Bachelor’S Degree, Chemical Engineering

Activities and Societies: Phi Sigma PiPhi Sigma Pi, 2013-2016 Alumni Co-Chair in University of Connecticut’s co-ed honor fraternity.

Education record

Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor Track (2008-2012) • Captain and Ideal Teammate Award, Cross Country (2011) • Counties and Sectionals.