Jill Howe Email & Phone Number

As a girl growing up in Minster, Ohio, I spent most of my free time shadowing my father, watching him take apart and put appliances back together. My dad recognized my innate talent and believed I’d one day become an engineer. By the time I was in 6th grade, my dad enrolled me in mechanical drafting classes where, I was the only girl in the class.My professional success story has a humble start – a teenage wife and mom working as a part-time detailer at Minster Machine Company. I worked evenings converting pencil drawings into a state-of-the-art CAD AM system. During the day, I worked towards earning a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering at Wright State University. Upon graduation, I was offered a full-time position there as a Mechanical Design Engineer. Once again, I found myself as the only female engineer.One of my proudest accomplishments was in 2002 when my father, Dan Keller, (who had served a multi-decade-and-counting career with Minster Machine) and I were granted a US patent for devising a means to detect the failure of a slide guiding system.The years that followed brought several promotions and new responsibilities. Predominantly, I worked with the Packaging Engineering Department designing presses with the required specifications for a variety of familiar products –beverage and food cans, car filters, batteries, etc. Minster Machine Company was acquired in 2012 by the Nidec Corporation headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. The acquisition opened resources and opportunities for Nidec Minster, its consumers, and, ultimately, me.In 2016, I seized an opportunity to live and work in Logron͂o, Spain, for two years at Nidec Minster’s sister company, Nidec ARIS. That same year, I received the prestigious Women of Excellence Award by The Precision Metalforming Association and Women in Manufacturing.Before leaving Spain, the Director of Operations in Ohio, approached me to bring the manufacturing engineering department to fruition. My upward progression continued as I became the Manager, Manufacturing Engineering, making me the first woman engineer in a leadership position.In my current leadership role, I work to be both a teacher and a student by upskilling and documenting the assembly process (and more) to help fill the knowledge gaps of older generations. I’m committed equally to developing new generations and never to stop learning, myself. Currently, I’m enrolled in the Vistage program designed to prepare leaders to lead in a highly technical, global environment

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  Wright State University

  Mechanical Engineering