As a consultant to PCA’s clients, Dan engages both management and personnel in an array of efforts, from assessments of facilities and their workers, to mentoring teams on work management, to training operators how to use and inspect equipment in a way that improves its reliability and performance. Dan also trains facility teams to embrace ongoing, total productive maintenance (TPM; regular cleaning, inspection and maintenance.)

“It’s not just about giving people the knowhow. I often work with client personnel on our engagements to train them, and help them understand the ‘Why’ for the various reliability activities, which is really important to keep facilities running at peak performance,” Dan says. “When I see people get it, and get excited about their work, it really gratifies me, as well. They understand why the training is important. It makes them a better employee and a stronger, more skilled person.”

The Road to PCA

Dan held a variety of progressively responsible positions on his journey to PCA, building his expertise, layer by layer, until he was a perfect candidate for his current position. His career began in the early 1980’s with International Paper, where Dan progressed to the position of Maintenance Engineering Manager (1988). In the 1990s, Dan began studying and implementing the growing practice of applying proven reliability techniques to maintenance. He then went on to earn a master’s degree in Maintenance and Reliability Engineering.

Dan later worked in varied maintenance leadership roles at Bowater’s Calhoun Mill and also served as a corporate reliability manager. When asked for a work related “teaching moment,” he responded, “I worked extensively with a plant manager on change management initiatives at a site. The site previously looked at work as ‘Operations runs it; maintenance fixes it.’”

“He was a big runner, and I mentioned that I ran,” Dan continues. “We started trail running together, and we had philosophical discussions—but with a strategic focus. Over a period of months, I changed his mindset. He finally understood that operations and maintenance are in partnership. They must work in tandem to succeed.”

Asked about his most fulfilling experience in maintenance and reliability management, Dan doesn’t hesitate. “I was working for a firm that produced newsprint in a declining market. I was tasked with visiting plants that were potentially candidates to be shut down. Because of our work helping streamline maintenance, the plants could continue to run longer and more people kept their jobs for a longer period. That felt great.”