Plastic Injection Molding Associate Consultant
Rick Wilson

Plastic Injection Molding Expert Rick Wilson

Rick has over 40 years of Sales, Manufacturing, and Engineering experience in the Materials Development, Technical Sales, Product Development, and Plastics Processing fields.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

PolyVisions Inc., Manchester PA: Sales Engineer Manager
1/2014 - 4/2025

• Service existing customers and assist in new applications
  
• Develop new customers to utilize PolyVisions compounding abilities.
  
• Assist customers in applications development to utilize the DuraPET line of materials efficiently and properly.
  
• Assist customers to ensure they were able to properly process PolyVisions supplied materials.
  

Berry Plastics Incorporated, Baltimore MD: Senior Plastics Engineer
3/2012 - 2/2013

• Develop processes to ensure high level of efficiency and quality.
  
• Evaluate tooling and make recommendations for changes to improve overall output and efficiency.
  
• Evaluate part design and make recommendations for change to improve overall function and quality of products.
  
• Develop and implement training to ensure that employees are able to perform at their highest level.
  

Integrity Plastics Incorporated, Denver PA: General Manager
11/2002 - 12/2011

• Primary responsibility of the company operations that include injection molding, secondary operations and tooling manufacturing including budgets and P/L..
  
• Responsible for the hire of employees.
  
• Implemented a training program to ensure that employees were continually achieving company goals.
  
• Implemented GSPC as one of four injection molders in PA to pilot program.
  
• Instrumental in the increase of sales and production from $4.5MM to $10MM within the first 3 years.
  
• Increased profitability from 6% to 14% in the first 4 years and continual profit through 2010.
  
• Increased automation by 50% and reduced costs by 10%.
  
• Implemented manufacturing principles based on scientific molding and GMP.
  
• Designed and implemented a manufacturing area for the increased sales to include material handling and mechanicals.
  
• Achieved ISO 9000-2008 certification;
  
• Achieved ISO 13485 Compliancy.
  
• Designed and implemented certified ISO 8 clean room manufacturing.
  
• Developed bar code label system for increased traceability of product.
  
• Developed and Implemented SolarSoft mVP ERP system to enable better process flow and inventory control.
  

True Precision Plastics, Lancaster PA: Operations Manager
1/2002 - 8/2002

• Responsible for molding and assembly manufacturing.
  
• Managed all supervisors.
  
• Responsible for operational budget.
  
• Direct involvement in ISO 9000 certification.
  

Tyco Electronics (AMP Incorporated), Harrisburg PA: Plastics Manufacturing Engineering Manager, US Manufacturing
1995 - 2001

• Supervised Manufacturing Engineering team that included Plastic Engineers, Mold Design Engineers, and Senior Toolmakers.
  
• Responsible for all technical aspects of molding facility.
  
• Responsible for all new job quoting.
  
• Responsibility for new tool designs of highly complex and closely tolerance tooling in the electronics field.
  
• Responsible for expanding facility from a 32 machine operation into a 70 machine operation, while reducing manpower from over 300 associates to 215.
  
• Responsible for specifying and implementing new materials. These material changes had a result of $250M in annual savings.
  
• Implemented manufacturing changes to increase productivity and lower manufacturing costs.
  
• Manufacturing costs were lowered from $39.00/ hour to $21.00/hour. Shrewsbury had lowest cost manufacturing in US.
  
• Responsible for productivity of $60MM of sales annually.
  

Tyco Electronics (AMP Incorporated), Harrisburg PA: Senior Plastics Manufacturing Engineer, Shrewsbury Molding
1995 - 2001

• Responsible for the implementation of new product and processes in the Shrewsbury Injection molding facility.
  
• Developed Hot Runner ability and expanded their use. This allowed a reduction in cycle time by an average of 20%.
  
• Monitored daily production rates and implemented changes to increase these rates. Some rates where increased by as much as 50% by the implementation of new technologies such as pulse cooling.
  
• Overall outputs where increased by 25-35% through use of good processing techniques.
  

Pennsylvania State University, York PA: Instructor, PSU York Campus
1999 - 2002

• The developer and primary instructor for PSU plastics programs. This program is a two-year associates program and includes classes and labs in all processes in the plastics industry. Program currently has over 60 students.
  

The West Company, Montgomery PA: Senior Technical Director, Plastics Division
1985 - 1995

• Supervisory responsibility for all associates involved with the technical aspects of the business.
  
• Manufacturing processes included Injection-Molding and Blow Molding.
  
• Managed all technical aspects of $43MM custom molding business.
  
• Responsible for implementing Prohelp 1000 process monitoring and Statistical Process Control techniques.
  
• Redesigned swing plate molding machine and remanufactured existing machine from this design. Achieved savings of $200M per machine for 12 machines.
  
• Redesigned unscrewing extractors to eliminate mold damage. This redesign resulted in a 20% increase in productivity and a manufacturing cost reduction of $5MM.
  
• Took business from an 11% profit to a 27% profit through the implementation of proper skilled associates and specifying correct equipment necessary for high productivity.
  

The West Company, Montgomery PA: Process/Product Development Engineer, Plastics Division
1985 - 1995

• Responsible for the development of a product or a group of products from conception to prototype through to production.
  
• Worked with customers to commercialize their ideas.
  
• Managed the finances of these projects.
  
• Managed multiple projects at the same time with emphasis on cost and process implementation.
  

The West Company, Montgomery PA: Process Engineer Supervisor, Medical Plastics Division
1985 - 1995

• Developed Process-Engineering group. Group was put together to clearly define processes and implement them into production.
  
• Worked with existing Processes and new processes.
  
• Supervised Process Engineers and Process Technicians.
  
• Supervised associates in materials testing lab.
  

The West Company, Montgomery PA: Process Engineer, Medical Plastics Division
1985 - 1995

• Responsible for trouble shooting of existing processes and implementing process solutions.
  
• Used empirical and scientific methods to evolve processes and the process window.
  
• Used tool coatings to improve tool life and reduce necessary lubricants. Increased productivity by 25%
  

EDUCATION 

Bachelor of Science, Plastics Engineering

• University of Lowell, Lowell MA (1985)
  

TECHNICAL EXPERTISE

Plastic Materials

• Knowledge of commodity and engineering materials from a properties and processing aspect.
  
• Experience in materials development
  
• Experience in Reactive Extrusion and compounding
  
• Testing lab supervisory experience.
  

Tooling

• Tool room supervisory experience.
  
• Extensive knowledge of tool making and tool design. Have been involved with the design of close tolerance molds in the electrical/electronics and the medical fields.
  
• Experience in the design of injection blow-mold tooling and extrusion blow- molding tooling.
  
• Experience with Mold Flow analysis.
  
• Extensive hot runner knowledge.
  

ACTIVITIES

Society of Plastics Engineers

• 1989-1992, Board of Directors.
  
• 1992-1993, Section President Elect.
  
• 1993-1994, Section President.
  
• 1999-2004, National Councilor.
  
• 2000-2004, Treasurer Susquehanna section
  
• 2001-2004 Chair of the Committee of the Whole, International SPE
  
• 2004-2007 Executive Vice President, SPE International
  
• 2007- 2020 Board of Directors Susquehanna SPE
  

South Central PA Plastics Education Consortium
1998 - 2004

• One of the founders of this organization.
  
• Served as chairman of several committees.
  
• Made several recommendations to help support plastic education both, k-12 and secondary, in the South Central Pa. Area.
  

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