Brewer, ME – Nick Carter, CADD Design Manager at Troy Industrial Solutions’ Brewer, Maine facility, recently completed his training and earned his Lean Six-Sigma Black Belt certification. Beginning in April of 2023, and over the next 32 weeks, Nick achieved certificates in general Lean Six-Sigma studies, Lean Six-Sigma Green Belt certification, and the Lean Six-Sigma Blackbelt certification. This involved over 480 hours of study, projects, and classroom instruction. In December of 2023, Nick passed his certification exam, and he is now certified by Villanova University in Lean Six-Siga Black Belt methodologies. This allows Nick to be a facilitator and mentor on the enterprise level through direct individual Lean and/or Six Sigma applications. Nick has been involved with Lean Six-Sigma and other similar process improvement methodologies since 2000. Those were short, focused programs based on a specific need at the time. This was the first cohesive and all-inclusive training with which Nick has been involved.
Lean Six Sigma is a set of process improvement methodologies and management tools designed to help organizations identify areas that need improvement, implement solutions, standardize, and maintain these improvements. Lean principles are based on the following categories: Define Value, Map the Value Stream (process flow), Create Flow, Establish Pull, and Pursue Perfection. These principles help identify value and waste within a process or system. Each principle has tools that allow the users to collect data to make the process or system more efficient and add more value based on the customer’s requirements. Six-Sigma principles use the following process: Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control. These principles are broken down into different steps called “tollgates”. Six-Sigma is driven by statistical analysis of data to eliminate defects in products and reduce variation.
The overall improvement methodology process is similar between both Lean and Six-Sigma. That is what makes them work well together. Tools developed over the past 175 years are suited to specific solutions whether we are trying to add value, reduce waste, improve efficiency, eliminate defects, reduce variation, or make the process more effective.
Nick has been a member of the Troy Industrial Solutions (TIS) family for over two years, just recently celebrating his work anniversary. He is a valued member of the TIS team, and we look forward to having Nick share his knowledge and process improvement methods with the rest of us at TIS.
About Troy Industrial Solutions:
Headquartered in the Capital Region of New York, with operations in ME, NH and CT, the Troy Industrial Solutions family of companies services manufacturing, aggregate, agricultural, power generation, municipal and industrial clients of all types and sizes throughout the Northeast.
“We Keep Industry Running” ~ Troy Industrial Solutions
