Kaizen Technician

Position Summary

The Kaizen Technician supports manufacturing operations through development and maintenance of standard work, process documentation, training materials, and continuous improvement activities. This role works closely with Production, Quality, Manufacturing Engineering, and Continuous Improvement to improve process consistency, support problem solving, and sustain operational excellence. The position serves as a key resource for documenting processes, analyzing workflows, supporting Kaizen events, and helping implement improvements throughout the facility.

Essential Functions

• Maintains Kaizen event calendar for the department in accordance with KPO.
• Captures and coordinates all department Kaizen activities, team member selection, preparation, etc.
• Provides facilitation & coaching throughout each Kaizen activity.
• Maintains lean tracking metrics for the department such as standard work completion.
• Promotes lean methodology daily and is a source of information to all levels of the department.
• Creates a departmental culture that promotes a high level of 5S display and organization.
• Establishes an audit practice with department supervisors to sustain Kaizen results and identify future Kaizen needs.
• Author all sequence standard work and ensure up-to-date documentation is posted at each work area accordingly.
• Affords assistance in developing a strategy to create, implement & sustain a department with TPM Program.
• Provides lean training for all department Kaizen activities.
• Affords support to new employees with general understanding of lean and provides support during on-the-job training exercises.
• Affords support to employees when lean improvements warrant new learning such as updates to work content and work cell rebalancing.
• Ensures employees performing rework understand appropriate methods & procedures.
• Ability to fill in for Assembly supervisors and leads as needed.
• Captures and maintains the timely flow of rework.
• Maintains the various department supply cabinets in a clean & orderly fashion.
• Creates and maintains production reports, data and documentation.

Qualifications

• Must possess basic PC skills (Word, Excel, etc.) to produce Sequence standard work, write report, gather and interpret data.
• Must be able to communicate effectively before groups at all levels of the organization.
• Excellent organizational skills are required to promote our vision of 5S.
• Mathematical skills are critical for performing time studies and work cell rebalancing.
• Must be able to read and interpret documents such as safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions and procedure manuals.
• Ability to write routine reports and correspondence as well as speak effectively before groups of customers.
• Associate degree and a minimum of 5 years’ experience in manufacturing and continuous improvement and/or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Secondary education consisting of courses in Operations Management, 6-Sigma, process improvement and/or project management a plus.

Work Environment

While performing the duties of this job, the employee frequently works near machinery with moving mechanical parts. The noise level is usually moderate. Eye protection and safety glasses are necessary for plant floor work.