Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Timeline
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Heather Ritchie

Sanford,NC

Summary

Reactive Quality Team Lead with a strong background in training staff, documenting defects, and coordinating with production and repair teams. Skilled in paint inspection, yard audits, and hands-on repairs, with a focus on improving processes, reducing defects, and supporting smooth daily operations.

Overview

17
17
years of professional experience

Work History

Reactive Quality Team Lead

Sherwin-Williams/Caterpillar
Sanford, North Carolina
01.2022 - Current
  • Train team members on inspection steps and quality standards.
  • Reviewed current processes to identify and implement improvements in quality standards.
  • Collaborated with other departments to enhance overall product quality through shared insights and solutions.
  • Respond promptly to radio calls for production support to identify, troubleshoot and resolve paint quality related defects.
  • Recorded defects and audit findings, escalating issues to supervisors and production staff for resolution.
  • Supported paint repair efforts to maintain efficient workflow in repairs.
  • Utilize taps to recondition threaded holes, removing debris
  • Utilize grinders to clean painted surfaces, removing layers of paint and debris
  • Coordinate the sorting and staging of parts according to production requirements ensuring materials are routed to the proper departments.
  • Maintain and organize work area using 5S principles to ensure a safe, efficient, and productive workspace.
  • Ensure team compliance with PPE and safety regulations.
  • Experience in Microsoft Office, Excel, Word, and PowerPoint.

Reactive Quality Technician

Sherwin-Williams
Sanford, North Carolina
06.2017 - 12.2021
  • Developed and implemented best practices for defect prevention and continuous improvement.
  • Resolved defects through sanding, painting, or hand tapping to maintain product quality.
  • Performed cure tests, ensured gloss and thickness met quality standards on finished parts.
  • Ensured accurate temperature data by uploading recordings from Datapaq oven tracker.
  • Conducted yard audits to identify paint-related defects on incoming parts.
  • Documented defects and audit findings, communicated issues to supervisors and production staff for timely resolution.
  • Responded to radio calls and promptly arrived to bay which required attention.
  • Designed and implemented a custom hand-made masking solution that improved workflow efficiency.

Masker

Valspar/Sherwin-Williams
Sanford, North Carolina
08.2009 - 05.2017
  • Coordinated with painters and production staff to align masking requirements with project timelines
  • Prepped parts with proper masking
  • Inspected masked areas for coverage before release
  • Followed quality standards for surface protection
  • Trained new employees on data entry, masking techniques, and safe loading/unloading of parts to enhance operational efficiency
  • Tested new masking materials to determine suitability for parts.
  • Collaborated with other team members on special projects related to mask making processes such as when the War Hammer model was introduced and I had to custom make the bore hole masking out of what we had until measurements were taken by our masking supplier ECHO.

Education

High School Diploma -

Harnett Central High School
Angier, NC
05-2002

Skills

  • Quality control
  • Defect prevention
  • Paint inspection
  • Paint repair
  • Process optimization
  • Production assistance
  • Documentation reporting
  • Attention to detail
  • Safety enhancement
  • Customer support

Timeline

Reactive Quality Team Lead

Sherwin-Williams/Caterpillar
01.2022 - Current

Reactive Quality Technician

Sherwin-Williams
06.2017 - 12.2021

Masker

Valspar/Sherwin-Williams
08.2009 - 05.2017

High School Diploma -

Harnett Central High School
Heather Ritchie