I am a seasoned entrepreneur and manufacturing executive with 30+ years of operations, engineering, and continuous improvement leadership, including 8+ years as President (owner) of Sunkote Coatings, a specialized industrial coatings company serving aerospace, automotive, medical, military, consumer…
I am a seasoned entrepreneur and manufacturing executive with 30+ years of operations, engineering, and continuous improvement leadership, including 8+ years as President (owner) of Sunkote Coatings, a specialized industrial coatings company serving aerospace, automotive, medical, military, consumer, and industrial markets.
Throughout my career, I have led complex manufacturing environments across metal forming, welding, powder coating, assembly, and industrial finishing operations, with deep experience in Lean Manufacturing, Kaizen, waste reduction, and plant performance transformation. I have a proven track record managing multi-million-dollar capital budgets, leading major facility expansions, launching new product lines, and executing high-impact operational initiatives that improve throughput, quality, safety, and profitability.
Previously, I spent over 6 years at Whirlpool Corporation, including as Continuous Improvement Leader and Manufacturing Services Manager, where I helped lead organizational restructuring, predictive maintenance programs, and long-range plant master planning—including work supporting a major manufacturing facility build-out in Cleveland, TN.
Earlier in my career, I spent over 12 years at Steelcase in progressive leadership roles including Engineering Manager, Facilities & Maintenance Manager, Operations Manager, and Senior Project Engineer, leading major product launches, facility transfers, supplier development initiatives, and Lean transformations that delivered measurable efficiency gains and cost reductions.
I am now seeking to acquire a lower middle market manufacturing or industrial business where I can apply my hands-on operational leadership and continuous improvement mindset to build long-term value. I am particularly interested in stable companies with strong fundamentals where ownership transition, operational optimization, and disciplined execution can accelerate growth and profitability while preserving company culture and employee success.
Core strengths include: Lean / Kaizen / Continuous Improvement, manufacturing and operations leadership, capital project execution, engineering management, plant layout and process design, predictive maintenance, facilities management, product development, and industrial coating and fabrication operations.
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