Wayne Hale Email & Phone Number

Seattle, Wa, Us

Dallas, Texas, Us

Mill Rock Capital Management LP ("Mill Rock"), a growth and operations oriented private investment firm, announced today that its affiliates have made a strategic investment in Venture Metals, LLC and SI Metallics, LLC ("Venture") in partnership with management. In connection with Mill Rock's investment, Venture has acquired Versatile Processing Group, Inc. ("VPG"). The transaction combines two leading U.S. metal recycling solutions providers of comparable size to create a platform with annual revenues in excess of $700 million.

New York, Ny, Us

Lever analytical and industry experience to provide review and due diligence of candidate portfolio companies. With a keen focus on actions to accelerate value creation and a track record of building shareholder value, work closely with portfolio companies to develop strategies and leadership teams, with a specific focus on strategic planning, commercial growth, operational efficiency and financial controls. Closed a deal to add to Grammer Industries, a portfolio company. See the link

Provide consultation and due diligence assistance to Private Equity, VC and other companies in the review of potential investment into and ownership of mining, metals, recycling and construction companies. Assist in improving identified companies via Board Director appointments.

Kent, Washington, Us

Lead the tactical and strategic direction of PSF Mechanical, Inc. In partnership with the Chairman, BOD and Executive Leaders, develop strategies, goals, plans and policies to ensure the continued long term growth and success of the company.

Eagan, Mn, Us

Recruited to increase revenue and production, grow value-add products and reduce costs to improve margins year over year. Responsible for devising and implementing annual tactical plans to attain the organization’s full potential, and execute a five-year strategic plan that included organic and inorganic growth opportunities with an exit in five years’ time• Boosted EBITDA from 2014 by 17%. Shifted sales toward tolling conversion contracts. Eliminated LME exposure, improved plant production and reduced costs.• Improved safety record. Engaged every associate in the process of eliminating risks and injuries.Logged more than 730 days in one plant without a lost time injury (a first). Both plants reduced injuries 25% YOY achieving an OSHA Recordable Rate of 1.5 in 2015, the best ever.• Upgraded environmental performance. Nurtured relationships with the local regulatory agencies and the EPA through regular proactive meetings. As a result, there were no NOVs (notice of violations) at either facility in 2015, a first for the company.• Boosted attendance and cut turnover. Developed a culture of associate engagement through a comprehensive communication and feedback program and quarterly performance reviews• Strengthened the management team. Selectively changed out leadership at corporate and at plants to tighten alignment with the cultural requirements. Developed the corporate and plant leadership teams though “Working Together” courses designed around team leader and membership and cultural change.• Augmented working capital. Added a Value Chain (SIOP) VP to provide agility and connectedness in the production, inventory and sales planning areas. Cut inventories by 30%, rationalized SKUs and improved customer service/satisfaction.

Franklin, Tn, Us

Served as a senior corporate executive and BOD attendee. Led a 1,700-employee, $800M annual revenue business segment with P&L accountability for the safe and cost effective operation of the largest operating bauxite mine in Jamaica, the second largest alumina refinery in the USA and a second quartile cost smelter in Missouri.• Maximized profitability. Added $21M to profit through competitively bidding 3rd party bauxite sales from Jamaica. Delivered productivity improvement through the value chain of $50M in 2012 and$35M in 2013.• Exceeded ambitious goals. Eliminated operational exceptions. Achieved better-than-budget controllable cost performance and EBITDA via grass root goal development, engaging people at all levels, reviewing performance weekly, monthly and quarterly, and holding people to the achievement of the expectation.• Secured outside funds for capital projects. Developed $35 million of customer funded capital equipment in a $45 million project reducing use of cash and improving IRR. Added supplier funded$13 million of investment.• Set safety records. Led the plants to the lowest injury levels in the history of the company setting an expectation of excellence, planning for excellence, celebrating excellence and reviewing/redirecting when excellence was not achieved.• Developed the management team. Engaged and coalesced the team through monthly and quarterly leadership training and alignment sessions.• Selectively hedged natural gas and metal to provide cost savings, risk reduction, market protection and cash flow maintenance.• Won concessions from the labor union. Successfully concluded negotiations with the United Steel Workers at the smelter in Missouri achieving an enabling labor contract improving flexibility, reducing costs and transferring additional medical costs to associates. Developed a strike plan that included replacement workers.

Chicago, Il, Us

Accountable for bottom line P&L and the cost effective operation of all of Century Aluminum facilities and joint venture plants, which included four smelters in various USA locations and Iceland; and an anode manufacturing company in China. Led a team of 12 professionals with 1,800 FTEs across the facilities.• Set production and safety records. Increased metal production at all smelters to record levels year on year by establishing business capability and technical improvements. Reduced injuries in Iceland over the tenure by 54%; all other plants achieved a best ever TCIR (Total Case Incident Rate) safety performance.• Improved management’s competence. Introduced leadership training at all management levels across the organization creating the foundation for the record performance in safety, quality, cost and output.• Controlled expenses. Cut maintenance costs by $10M annually at two smelters through the introduction of reliability excellence (maintenance improvement). Reduced raw specific material costs 10% through the establishment of a joint venture anode manufacturing facility in China (Guanxi province) and an investment of $40m.• Increased cash flow by $20M. Cut inventories within risk tolerance; reduced organizational size by 13% (represented and non-represented) via a voluntary ERIF program, improving productivity and reducing costs. • Optimized capital productivity and return. Implemented a force ranked capital program, ranking all plant capital requests based on weighted criteria. Championed the construction on a $1.4B new smelter capital project in Iceland.• Grew the company through M&A. Successfully sourced a Chinese partner company with whom to build a $40M anode plant to supply raw materials to the Iceland plant, reducing costs by $10M annually.

A senior corporate executive and Board attendee. Led the strategic and tactical operations of two bauxite mines (one underground and hard rock), four bauxite refineries and eight smelters overarching Russia and the Ukraine, producing more than 1M tons of aluminum annually.Directed a team of 20 Russian professionals none of whom were native English speakers. Accountable for the businesses P&L. Set annual business plans and direction as well as EBITDA, cash flow and safety performance goals. Established premium product production marketing and sales, and developed an internationally focused and trained organization .• Maximized productivity and EBITDA. Increased production in each segment (mine, refinery and smelter) year on year (5% total) and reduced unit cash cost (10% total), subsequently improving adjusted EBITDA through setting stretch targets, coaching the leaders on how to achieve and holding people accountable. Improved mined volume by 5% from reduced dilution through the introduction of narrow vein machinery.• Improved safety. Cut injuries by 50% the first year; 25% the second with the assistance of DuPont Safety Systems. Eliminated fatalities in the mine through the redesign of drill, blast and mucking techniques.• Cemented good community relations. Partnered with the local communities around each plant site. Developed service and support programs that local plants could fund and support. Built constructive bridges between the plants and communities.• Realigned and improved the business. Propelled productivity through the introduction of a Performance Improvement Program (PIP). This program delivered an 8% reduction in organizational size by economically spinning off of non-core businesses. Achieved a 5% improvement in selective production output and a 10% increase in domestic metal sales.

Senior corporate executive and Board member with P&L accountability for mine planning, mining, concentrating, smelting, refining, energy services and tailings. Defined strategy, financial objectives, HSE performance goals. Developed electrical power and gas hedging strategies. Directed a team of 14 professionals with 2500 FTEs across eight facilities.• Reduced $75M in costs over two years. Contracted out smelter maintenance and rail services.Introduced 12-hour shifts Cut eight trucks from the mining fleet. Trimmed the number of local unions from 13 to 5. • Logged 2+ million person-hours without a lost time injury. Dropped the Lost Time Incident Frequency Rate (LTIFR) by 50% year-on-year through the introduction of a revised safety program• Led union contract negotiations. Forged a labor agreement with the United Steel Workers that improved flexibility, reduced costs and introduced random impairment checks for drugs and alcohol.• Drove development of an underground mining concept to extend mine life. Included block cave mining techniques and specialized vehicles.• Reengineered the business. Reduced the costs in organization, consumables and contracting by20% through the conceptualizing and leading the operational and service/support leaders through a vision, strategy and tactics process.• Established ISO 14001 and 9001 as standards at all sites.

Franklin, Tn, Us

Corporate President and Board member with strategic and tactical responsibility for leading the corporation’s worldwide primary aluminum production, premium product production, marketing and sales, technology development and engineering/technical asset marketing and sales functions. Directed a team of 15 professionals at five plants with 5,400 FTEs.• Improved business EBITDA by $10M. Established a premium product marketing and sales program. Slashed expenditures by $12M annually by designing and launching a systemic hot metal cost reduction program. Boosted cash flow by $10M by reengineering inventory and purchasing management at all plants.• Maintained operations during a nearly two year strike. Strategically directed and cost effectively operated two facilities totaling 295,000 metric tons of capacity with a USWA strike replacement workforce from 30 September 1998 through August 2000. Logged manpower cost savings of $5M annually across the business unit when strike settled.• Cut plant costs, boosted profits on sales. Formed a technology R&D improvement and sales group that developed and implemented cell room distributed control systems and strategies, cathode design improvements, cell retrofits and bake furnace design improvements. Cut plant costs 20% and returned a profit from sales of $10M annually• Eliminated a 3% cost inflation index in a negotiated five-year power contract, by developing relationships with the Ghanaian government and developing downstream businesses that would use hot metal, creating employment.

Mba, International Business

Bs, Chemistry