Eric DeWilde 5048 Acorn Drive, Milton, Wisconsin 53563 Cell (714) 262-0934 – Home (608) 868-1193 eric@1060westaddison.com – www.1060westaddison.com Program Management / Engineering Management / Product Engineering Driving Product Development Programs to Completion, On-Time and On-Budget Aggressive Cost Reduction of Existing Product Lines Using Experience and Technology Developing and Implementing New Procedures to Improve Company Performance Leadership of Engineering and Project Teams with Budget and Management Responsibilities My success as a program manager, engineering manager and product engineer is attributable to my ability to seize opportunities and capitalize on resources to develop new products and direct company processes. My background in multiple technologies and market segments allow me to bring new tools and processes to bear on corporate challenges. Decisive leader in the areas of product development, program management, organizational development including staff development, strategic planning and procedure development. Past experience includes positions as design and product engineer; engineering manager; chief engineer and director of research and development with increasing responsibility. Willing to relocate for the right position. Program Management The key to program management is the vision to see a product from concept to completion. I have been fortunate to bring a number of programs through this process, on time and on budget. From meeting with customers to develop product specifications; developing the budget and project schedule; assembling the project team; there is great joy in seeing that first piece move off the end of the production line, knowing that you were able to marshal all the resources necessary to make that event happen. The greatest impact from my MBA has been to improve my ability to communicate and work with all functional areas within a company. Assembling the resources required for program success depends on being able to speak to each functional area in their own language. Engineering Management Managing groups of engineers is certainly a challenge not often covered in MBA programs. Personalities, work styles, budgeting and setting personal and professional goals in an engineering environment require a specific set of skills. Because of my background, I have been able to work with all my engineer associates, challenging and teaching them to meet and exceed, not only company expectations, but also their own. Product Engineering Making significant improvements in existing products and procedures is often a matter of looking from a different perspective. I have been able to use knowledge earned in one industry to improve products and procedures in a different one. When all you have is a hammer, all problems look like nails. My time in a wide assortment of industries and company sizes and styles has given me a fuller tool kit, allowing me to bring the appropriate tool to bear as problems present themselves. Education MBA – University of LaVerne; BS Physics – Cal Poly, Pomona Selected Achievements and Skills New Product Development Based on current sales volumes, design and cost analysis, selected automotive sensor product line to convert from purchase to manufacturing. Established budget, schedule and milestones. Lead design effort, coordinated among four divisions in both the US and Mexico, to create new production area and introduce numerous new processes. Responsible for the design and production of high-volume, low-cost industrial accelerometer. Implemented first Continuous Flow manufacturing line in company history. Directed transfer of production to an offshore assembly plant in the US Virgin Islands. Introduced the “Team” concept of product design, bringing Quality and Manufacturing Engineering, Marketing, as well as outside vendors into the design process, reducing parts cost up to 50%. Problem Solving Took over trailer lighting project from outside consultant, driving project from CAD models to product launch in six months. When product failed to meet customer expectations, created recovery plan to use existing tooling and engineering work to change the basic technology used in the product in six months. Automotive customer needed a significant increase in the accuracy and repeatability of engine speed sensor performance. Developed unique signal processing system (patented) which allowed the sensor to automatically correct for very small changes in the sensing environment. Improvement in sensor accuracy required development of new test system that was accurate enough to evaluate this new class of sensors. New test system improved accuracy and repeatability of results 100 fold. Converted configuration system for highly customizable Vibration Monitoring System from paper-based system to one using Excel to generate acceptance test values from sales configuration sheets. Introduced electronic work order system, replacing cumbersome paper-based system. Implemented standardized formats and procedures for the generation of paperwork for work orders. Reduced time required to generate work order paperwork from 5 days to 2. Cost savings for existing product lines Re-engineered existing line of temperature sensors. New design using common design elements and DFMA principles across the product line reduced parts cost by 28%. Design change included reducing sensitivity to part-to-part variation, reducing scrap rates by 45%. Effort included transferring production to Mexico. Skills Exceptionally strong written and verbal communication skills (Dale Carnegie and Public Relations training, including press conferences, interviews and large-scale sales presentations). Proficient in solving problems and implementing solutions under tight deadlines using 8D tools. Extensive knowledge and training in APQP, FMEA, SPC and DVP&R; certified QS9000 auditor. Excellent computer skills with strong knowledge of Microsoft Project and building tools in Excel and Access. Career Synopsis Director of Research and Development for manufacturer of electrical and air-handling equipment for the Heavy Truck and Trailer market. Technical supervisor of 10 engineers in two different divisions in a matrix management structure. Head of department responsible for design, development and sustaining engineering for wheel speed, engine speed, ultrasonic level sensing and pressure sensing for the Marine and Recreational markets. Supervised eight engineers, set and maintained engineering budget, set departmental goals and tracked progress toward those goals. Head of department responsible for the design and manufacturing engineering of Vibration Monitoring Systems for gas turbine engines. Supervised three engineers, set and maintained engineering budget, set departmental goals and tracked progress toward those goals. Responsible for new product development for advanced automotive speed sensing technologies using InSb magnetoresistors to replace variable reluctance speed sensors. Responsible for developing test procedures, writing data sheets and press releases. Responsible for designing and constructing customer sample units, developing production cost estimates, designing production lines and analyzing product flow. Responsible for development, design, and sustaining engineering for contacting and non-contacting rotary and linear position sensors for the automotive and heavy equipment markets. Responsible for manufacturing engineering of existing production lines in the United States and Mexico. Responsible for development, design and sustaining engineering of aftermarket automotive sensors, including speed, position and temperature sensors. Responsible for evaluation of purchased sensors and developing test procedures for both purchased and manufactured sensors. Responsible for development, design and sustaining engineering of piezo-electric accelerometers for aerospace, industrial and laboratory markets. Performed testing, calibration and failure analysis of sensors returned by customers. Responsible for design engineering of acoustic sensors used for terminal guidance of munitions for US Army. Includes developing modeling software for acoustic sensor performance and creating test protocols to evaluate prototype performance. Responsible for design engineering of piezo-electric transducers for sonar systems for the US Navy, including modeling of transducer performance and developing software to evaluate sonar system performance. Professional memberships Society of Automotive Engineers, Technology and Maintenance Council of the American Trucking Association, Mensa, Sigma Pi Sigma Inventor US Patent 6,211,670: Magnetic Sensing Device for Outputting a Digital Signal as a Dynamic Representation of an Analog Signal. US Patent 6,545,593: AC Filter for Truck Tractor Cable Circuitry. US Patent 7,106,182: Simplified truck tractor socket wiring. Author SAE Paper 2001-01-2788: Improving PLC Performance With An Integral Filtering Module.