Lean Bronze Certification
Fuels Teamwide Momentum at Plastikos

When Molly Miller completed NWIRC’s Manufacturing Excellence Professional Development course and earned her SME Lean Bronze Certification in late 2024, she returned to Plastikos energized—but not alone. Her enthusiasm helped spark a wave of continuous improvement, but it was the company’s collaborative culture that turned ideas into action.

As Continuous Improvement Quality Engineer at Plastikos, a precision injection molding company in Erie PA, Molly works across departments to support efficiency and quality. After completing the Lean Bronze course, she helped formalize Plastikos’ 5S efforts, but credits the success to broad buy-in from managers, supervisors, and frontline staff.

Molly’s Lean Bronze journey began with a recommendation from Plastikos’ molding managers who saw her potential to lead improvement initiatives. With a background in plastics engineering from Penn State Behrend and prior experience at Honda’s Marysville Ohio plant, she was no stranger to lean concepts. But the certification course, led by NWIRC’s Operational Excellence Specialist Shane Cantrell, helped her connect the dots and drive change.

“We’ve always had a mindset of cleaning and organizing,” she said. “But now we’re aligning around visual cues, standardization, and shared language. It’s not just about having a stapler at every desk—it’s about making work easier and more efficient. The class gave me the tools to not just have things make sense in my head, but to also teach others,” she explained. “It expanded my comfort zone and gave me the confidence to lead lean projects across departments—not just in quality.”

One of Plastikos’ first initiatives was launching a 5S champion and implementation team, with each area of both plants represented. Together, they conducted Gemba walks, identified inefficiencies, and implemented improvements. Projects ranged from reorganizing operator tables with visual tape indicators to shadow boxes for gauges and tools. “Our gauge cabinet had items all over the place,” Molly recalled. “We worked with our automation team to 3D print shadow boxes for each gauge and fixture.”

Molly noted that they focus on three areas at a time and once an area reached a 5S score of three or above, the team moves on to a new area. “It’s taken time, but the results are visible—and contagious,” she said. Other departments began prepping their areas before the 5S team even arrived, inspired by early successes and internal training. “We’ve done both internal and external 5S training sessions,” Molly said. “And the mindset shift is huge.”

That shift is evident in how managers now approach problems. “We’ve started saying ‘go to Gemba’ in meetings,” she said. “Instead of guessing, we go to the spot, talk to the people doing the work. They’re the experts. It makes them feel valued—and it leads to better solutions.”

One major initiative involved restructuring the quality department. By applying lean tools like operator balance calculations and spaghetti diagrams, the team optimized staffing and reduced wasted motion. “We added measurement equipment at points of use,” she said. “It eliminated extra steps and helped set employees up for success.” The restructuring also introduced a new data analyst role—now a key contributor for scrap tracking and vision equipment.

While Molly’s Lean Bronze training gave her new tools and confidence, she emphasizes that the real impact comes from shared ownership. “The class helped me articulate ideas and guide others,” she said. “But it’s the team that makes it work. Once one person gets excited, it builds momentum.”

That sentiment is echoed by Shane, “Molly did a phenomenal job when she went through the Manufacturing Excellence cohort. She hit the ground running and continues to lead multiple lean and continuous improvement efforts including 5S Kaizen events, using the skills that she sharpened going through the SME Lean Bronze certification program.”

Plastikos continues to expand its lean efforts, with team meetings showcasing before-and-after photos and celebrating progress. “We’re building a culture,” Molly said. “And the more people we involve, the stronger it gets.”

For anyone considering the Manufacturing Excellence course and achieving SME Lean Bronze Certification, Molly shares this reflection: “You get to see theory and practice. It pushes you out of your comfort zone—and then expands it. You learn how to ask the right questions, guide others, and show the benefits of change. And, last but not least, you make connections that last well-beyond the course – even with the instructor to lean on as a resource moving forward.”

Photo: The Plastikos’ automation team created puzzle-like inserts for each gage and fixture, so it’s easier to locate what’s needed and obvious when one is missing.