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Benjamin Kowalewski
Buffalo,NY
Summary
Team Lead and High-Output Individual Contributor with over 15 years of progressive engineering experience at Moog Inc. across manufacturing execution systems (MES), product engineering, and global operations. A collaborative leader specializing in navigating enterprise complexity to break down architectural silos, align cross-functional teams, and maintain a fast pace of feature delivery. Expert at balancing software design integrity with calculated business ROI, successfully modernizing legacy frameworks and leading digital transformation initiatives for high-stakes aerospace programs without disrupting production stability.
Overview
18
18
years of professional experience
Work History
MES Platform Lead
MOOG Inc.
Buffalo, NY
10.2021 - Current
- Leading a global team of 3–6 developers in delivering a robust, scalable, and continuously evolving Manufacturing Execution System (MES) platform integrated with ERP (SAP S4) and PLM systems. Support 20+ environments and 4,000+ users worldwide, driving digital transformation through agile practices, traceable development, and sustainable collaboration frameworks.
- AI-Forward: Leading the initiative to implement Codex into our enterprise MES develop/sustain pipeline.
- Platform Leadership: Spearheaded configuration and delivery of iBase-t Solumina MES at global-enterprise scale.
- Collaboration & Culture: Acted as Product Owner for MES solutions; overseeing cross-functional collaboration activities including intake, requirements gathering, backlog refinement and prioritization.
- DevOps Oversight: Overseeing development of CI/CD pipelines and custom delivery solutions. Managed end-to-end software delivery processes including packaging, deployment, configuration management and stakeholder communications.
- System Integration & Innovation: Overseeing the construction of a full-stack local environment for iSeries Solumina to enable development of bespoke microservices.
- Thought Leadership: Presented at the 2025 iBase-t Excelerate Conference, showcasing Moog’s value-driven MES transformation and strategies for managing technical debt.
Product Engineering System Analyst & Global MES Administrator
MOOG Inc.
03.2018 - 10.2021
- Oversaw the global performance, development, and support of a custom-built Manufacturing Execution System (MES) and connected web applications. Acted as the technical project lead for enhancements, deployments, and user support across a multi-site, international environment.
- Global System Ownership: Designed and maintained a distributed MES using a bespoke SQL replication solution across eight web servers and four SQL servers, supporting thousands of users and ensuring high availability and performance.
- Technical Leadership: Translated business needs into technical specifications, led development efforts, and coordinated with local administrators to enforce best practices.
- Data & Reporting: Maintained dozens of SSRS reports, optimized performance and standardized location filtering systems.
- Documentation & Training: Revamped internal SharePoint site with over 130 wiki articles and simplified user experience, creating a comprehensive training and documentation hub.
- Application Development: Led the transition of a critical high-traffic production-floor web application from in-house to a vendor solution.
- Process Innovation: Designed and implemented key MES tools, including:
- Integrated Release Workflow for work instructions with approval logic and automation hooks.
- Experience-Based Training System to replace manual tracking of on-the-job / specialized operator training.
- Part Cross-Reference Tool for geo-tagging production data, enabling globally standardized report filtering.
- User Support & Governance: Provided hands-on support, managed ServiceNow tickets, and contributed to global MES governance as a steering committee member.
Commercial Aircraft MES Admin
MOOG Inc.
01.2015 - 01.2018
- Key contributor to MES and QMS deployment in the Philippines.
- Championed remote access infrastructure and formalized engineering instructions for global adoption.
(Sr.) Product Engineer
MOOG Inc.
01.2012 - 01.2018
- Led the development of acceptance test requirements and procedures for Airbus Primary Flight Control family of products, driving improvements in quality assurance and cost efficiency. Held MRB Authority for nine product models (2014–2018). Spearheaded cross-functional initiatives to modernize engineering workflows and test processes.
- Process & Tooling Innovation: Championed department-wide adoption of JIRA for work management and cross-site collaboration; established enduring systems still in use today.
- Test Procedure Modernization: Led the development of Acceptance Test Procedures (ATP) and related software, collaborating with offshore teams and implementing tools like SVN and QDAS for automation and data integrity.
- Technical Leadership: Developed and refined ATP requirements for complex actuator systems, improving test yield, reducing test time, and enhancing product reliability.
- System Modeling & Analysis: Created innovative test models for positioning accuracy, damping orifice design, overload protection, and hydraulic stack-up, directly impacting manufacturability and performance.
- Customer & Internal Collaboration: Acted as primary liaison for requirement negotiations, ensuring alignment across engineering, manufacturing, and customer teams.
- Results: Achieved >90% First Pass Yield post-production transfer; significantly contributed to an exceptional ETOPS rating through test optimization and quality improvements.
Intern in Qualification Test Engineering
MOOG Inc.
01.2009 - 01.2010
Education
BS Mechanical Engineering -
University At Buffalo
SUNY06-2011
Skills
- Full-Stack Software Development
- AI-Forward: Actively learning how to build and maintain software with Codex Databricks Genie space exposure
- Database: SQL Server & PostgreSQL administrator & developer
- Front-end: Experience designing and maintaining web applications JavaScript, HTML/CSS, Vuejs
- Server/Backend: Build experience in Supabase, NodeJS, Python, java Maintain experience with Kubernetes/Docker Azure PaaS / IaaS and on-prem infrastructure
- Integration: API (REST & GraphQL), Event-Driven (ActiveMQ), SQL/RPC driven ETL, Data Warehousing & Reporting (SSRS, PowerBI)
- Enterprise Software: iBase-t Solumina (MES), Siemens Teamcenter & NX (PLM), TipQA & QDAS (Quality Management)
- Productivity/Collaboration: git-SCM with GitHub and Azure DevOps, JIRA, Subversion, Confluence, Sharepoint, ServiceNow
- Engineering: Extensive background in Flight Control Actuator product lines, supporting final assembly and quality assurance testing
- Other Skills: SAFe Scrum and PO/PM, SPC, STE, GD&T, MRB, Azure Fundamentals & DevOps, Leadership - Art of Giving Feedback & Leading and Coaching People
Interests
My Preferred Working Style
- Prefer speed over perfection – the “velocity catalyst”
- Prefer collaboration over autonomy – the “team aligner”
- Balance of novelty and stability – the “calculated innovator”
- Balance of pragmatism and dogmatism – the “ROI refactorer”
- Balance of depth and breadth – the “T-shaped generalist”
Company Travel Experience
- Travel to Philippines
- 12 weeks total – Offshore Production line implementation and audits, MES implementations
- Travel to California (USA)
- 4 weeks total –MES implementations, Digital Thread case study, iBase-t Excelerate conference (x2)
- Travel to England
- 4 weeks total – Simplified Technical English training, MES implementations and admin training events
Timeline
MES Platform Lead
MOOG Inc.
10.2021 - Current
Product Engineering System Analyst & Global MES Administrator
MOOG Inc.
03.2018 - 10.2021
Commercial Aircraft MES Admin
MOOG Inc.
01.2015 - 01.2018
(Sr.) Product Engineer
MOOG Inc.
01.2012 - 01.2018
Intern in Qualification Test Engineering
MOOG Inc.
01.2009 - 01.2010
BS Mechanical Engineering -
University At Buffalo