Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Timeline
Additional Information
Generic

Nicholos Rakestraw

Greenfield,TN

Summary

Determined leader eager to leverage knowledge in engineering principles and concepts. Skilled in implementing manufacturing processes, developing production systems and analyzing product designs. Smart and dedicated to cost-saving initiatives and process improvements. High-performing professional with extensive experience designing and improving manufacturing systems. Skilled in reviewing technical specifications, creating manufacturing instructions and developing tools. Strong analytical skills and committed to improving efficiency and effectiveness. Detail-oriented team player with strong organizational skills. Ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously with a high degree of accuracy. Organized and dependable candidate successful at managing multiple priorities with a positive attitude. Willingness to take on added responsibilities to meet team goals.

Overview

10
10
years of professional experience

Work History

Manufacturing Engineer

MIA Seating
08.2023 - Current
    • Designing and developing manufacturing procedures, tooling, and fixtures that result in sufficient capacity to meet customer demand while also promoting product quality, process efficiency, and operator safety
    • Providing production support including, by implementing process improvements, troubleshooting equipment, and addressing operator inquiries
    • Generating and modifying manufacturing process documentation and assuring that manufacturing processes and related documentation follow established policies and procedures
    • Generating and modify component and assembly drawings using Solid Works.
    • Used lean manufacturing principles to develop, evaluate and improve [Type] manufacturing methods.
    • Identified problems and specific resolutions to fix defective, damaged or malfunctioning parts, assemblies, equipment and systems.
    • Selected manufacturing methods, fabrication and operations to develop and coordinate production.
    • Served as technical liaison between customer, manufacturing, quality assurance and vendor and supplier personnel to resolve technical and quality issues.
    • Performed concurrent design and manufacturing engineering and other functions to reduce time required to bring product to market.
    • Designed documents and statements of proposals, lead times, technical costs and budgets and statements of work to manage supplier development efforts.
    • Designed and built process tooling, insert molds and arbor press tooling.
    • Performed daily department Layered Process Audits to maintain proactive control over automobile manufacturing process.
    • Managed supplier development efforts by creating statements of work and procedures, proposal preparation, projecting lead times, technical costs and budgets for engineering and parts production.
    • Promoted Design for Manufacturability philosophy.
    • Managed manufacturing projects and program services to handle engineering and project metrics.
    • Researched and tested design feasibility and operation of equipment, components and systems.
    • Swapped out materials and finishes in product line to alleviate performance issues and reduce corrosion.
    • Applied project management metrics and tools in oversight of engineering and manufacturing projects and program services.
    • Automated enabling technologies to identify and match potential suppliers for procurement and processing of hard to find parts.
    • Calculated overall production costs by evaluating material, labor and other expenditures.
    • Mitigated supplier risk through investigation and sourcing of qualified suppliers and on-site evaluations of processes and capacities.
    • Resolved technical and quality issues by collaborating with customer, manufacturing, quality assurance, vendors and supplier personnel.

Plant Manager

Aldelano Solar Cold Chain Solutions
01.2020 - 08.2023
  • Led, trained and coached plant staff to facilitate high levels of productivity and quality.
  • Reduced costs by eliminating materials waste and unnecessary labor hours.
  • Maximized plant safety through proactive strategies and well-structured training.
  • Directed employees and related programs to maximize team productivity and facility output.
  • Created plant policies and procedures for safe and productive operations.
  • Monitored and evaluated plant performance to identify areas for improvement and take corrective measures.
  • Identified and resolved process and equipment issues to minimize production downtime.
  • Managed direction and planning for plant with focus on optimization of daily functions, exceeding customer expectations, and achieving KPIs.
  • Established positive relationships with suppliers to obtain timely deliveries of materials and products.
  • Promoted collaborative work environment to motivate and engage staff to achieve company objectives.
  • Maintained quality of product with robust inspections and assessment team.
  • Implemented useful inventory management and tracking systems to reduce costs and improve operations.
  • Created and oversaw production schedules and adjusted as needed to meet deadlines.
  • Monitored inventory levels and restocking schedules to avoid production delays from unavailable materials.
  • Evaluated employee performance and provided feedback and training as needed.
  • Oversaw routine maintenance programs and scheduled service to keep equipment functioning at peak levels.
  • Identified and implemented viable strategies for continuous improvement.

Plant Engineer

Aldelano Solar Cold Chain Solutions
08.2018 - 01.2020
    • Created standardized set-ups for staff workstations and tools to streamline opening and closing operations.
    • Organized and managed maintenance staff to fulfill requirements via scheduling and delegation.
    • Drafted preventive maintenance schedules around avoiding service disruptions and equipment breakdowns.
    • Remained abreast of new and emerging industry regulations and guidelines for plant operations.
    • Audited and trained maintenance personnel to verify presence of necessary skills and competencies.
    • Maintained open communication channels to verify prescribed operational levels for equipment and tasks.
    • Served as point of contact during plant emergencies, overseeing disaster recovery and expediting restoration efforts.
    • Prepared performance appraisals of plan personnel, highlighting exceptional performances and illustrating remedial requirements.
    • Complied with applicable mechanical and electrical regulatory standards for plant operation.
    • Designed and enforced best-practice methodologies.
    • Resolved technical and quality issues by collaborating with customer, manufacturing, quality assurance, vendors and supplier personnel.
    • Managed design and manufacturing teams to build proprietary process equipment within aggressive cost and time constraints.
    • Mitigated supplier risk through investigation and sourcing of qualified suppliers and on-site evaluations of processes and capacities.

Project Engineer

Aldelano Solar Cold Chain Solutions
03.2015 - 08.2018
  • Aid in the research and development for new product designs
  • Manage resources to ensure project meets strict deadlines
  • Developed written procedures and software to ensure a proper inventory control system
  • Established written standard operating procedures for the manufacturing of the products
  • Responsible for the repair, logging, and monitoring of different prototype models
  • Responsible for creating detailed electrical schematic and CAD models for the different product models.
  • Maintained records for each project and engineering discipline.
  • Monitored installation of materials and equipment for compliance with drawings and specifications.
  • Completed construction tasks while providing safe working conditions, staying on budget and meeting project deadlines.
  • Identified technical risks within managed projects.
  • Recommended improvements for design, construction means and materials based on field or changing conditions.
  • Assisted with cost proposal development and customer presentations.
  • Evaluated change order requests in response to out-of-scope work activities.
  • Determined and scheduled priorities as required to progress engineering work.
  • Implemented automated systems to improve accuracy and efficiency of engineering processes.
  • Conducted research to identify and evaluate new technologies and concepts.
  • Performed complex calculations to analyze and optimize engineering processes.
  • Developed high-quality engineering designs and plans to meet industry standards.
  • Analyzed and interpreted customer requirements to develop engineering solutions.
  • Delivered concise instructions to technical team to maintain quality control.

Engineer and Research Specialist Independent Contractor

Aldelano Solar Cold Chain Solutions
08.2014 - 03.2015
  • Perform cost analysis on products in development
  • Verify that the current project meets state and federal regulations
  • Research new technology to allow the project to be more beneficial to the end user while keeping the cost down.

Mechanical Engineering Associate

McGrath Solutions
06.2014 - 09.2014
  • Create highly complex 3D models of mechanical objects for conceptual construction
  • Create 3D animations of conceptual devices to represent human-robot interaction by applying principles of body movement, physical mechanics, fluid dynamics, and forward and inverse kinematics
  • Create textures and image maps for 3D models
  • Digitally draw illustrations for use in technical manuals and audiovisual presentations that explain and illustrate subject content
  • Created new analytical tools to assess ongoing process controls and expose weaknesses for remediation

Education

Mechanical Engineering

University of Tennessee

Master of Science - Applied Biomedical Engineering

Johns Hopkins University

Skills

  • Passed Fundamental of Engineering Exam
  • Proficient in the use of
  • AutoCAD 2009, Solidworks, and Matlab
  • Skilled in Autodesk Inventor, Autodesk MultiPhysics Simulation, Autodesk 3ds Max Design
  • Skilled in use of Microsoft Excel and other Microsoft products
  • Skilled in C, Java, and Visual Basics
  • Waste Reduction
  • Staff Supervision
  • CNC Mastercam
  • Circuit Design
  • Industrial Engineering
  • Quality Control Analysis
  • Manufacturing Activities Planning
  • Creo Parametric
  • Technology Design
  • Engineering Documentation
  • Complex Problem-Solving
  • Microsoft Visual Basic
  • ANSYS Workbench
  • Fixing Malfunctions

Timeline

Manufacturing Engineer

MIA Seating
08.2023 - Current

Plant Manager

Aldelano Solar Cold Chain Solutions
01.2020 - 08.2023

Plant Engineer

Aldelano Solar Cold Chain Solutions
08.2018 - 01.2020

Project Engineer

Aldelano Solar Cold Chain Solutions
03.2015 - 08.2018

Engineer and Research Specialist Independent Contractor

Aldelano Solar Cold Chain Solutions
08.2014 - 03.2015

Mechanical Engineering Associate

McGrath Solutions
06.2014 - 09.2014

Mechanical Engineering

University of Tennessee

Master of Science - Applied Biomedical Engineering

Johns Hopkins University

Additional Information

· Passed Fundamental of Engineering Exam

· Proficient in the use of AutoCAD 2009, Solidworks, and Matlab

· Skilled in Autodesk Inventor, Autodesk MultiPhysics Simulation, Autodesk 3ds Max Design

· Skilled in use of Microsoft Excel and other Microsoft products

· Skilled in C++, Java, and Visual Basics

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Nicholos Rakestraw