Erlan Martinez

Operational Excellence and Lean Transformation leader with 15+ years of experience driving enterprise continuous improvement, Lean Six Sigma, quality, and manufacturing optimization across biologics, pharmaceutical, medical device, textile, and industrial environments. Proven success building multi-year transformation roadmaps, coaching leaders, and improving flow, quality, cost, and process stability across global operations. Delivered multimillion-dollar financial impact through defect reduction, waste elimination, process optimization, and operational modernization.

Product Integrity Director at Fanatics (2026-04 – 2026-07)

Directed product integrity, quality improvement, risk mitigation, and Lean capability initiatives across high-risk production operations and international Product Integrity teams.

• Reduced product defects by 5% through rapid deployment of standard work confirmation and visual management across high-risk screen-printing production areas.
• Improved customer complaint resolution time by 5% by introducing structured RCA using 5 Why methodology and standardizing feedback loops across Operations, Art, and Product Development.
• Increased first-pass quality and reduced downstream corrective actions by launching a cross-functional Quality at the Source initiative connecting Product Integrity teams across Asia and Latin America.
• Strengthened audit readiness, compliance, and product traceability by improving SOPs, documentation accuracy, and quality control practices.
• Improved proactive product risk management through FMEA and SPC monitoring designed to identify process variation and prevent quality escapes.
• Strengthened operational discipline by coaching supervisors and managers in Lean habits, structured problem solving, performance management, and leadership practices.

Operational Excellence Program Associate Manager at Lonza (2025-04 – 2026-04)

Lead Operational Excellence initiatives across MSAT, Supply Chain, Quality Labs, and biologics operations, strengthening Lean maturity, process flow, and organizational capability.

• Established a long-term Operational Excellence direction by leading Lean maturity assessments across MSAT and Supply Chain and co-developing a 5-year transformation roadmap.
• Improved process visibility and operating discipline by establishing structured gemba systems across MSAT, Supply Chain, and Quality Laboratories.
• Supported a $5MM facility layout redesign by leading end-to-end business process mapping for receiving, shipping, and Pilot Lab operations.
• Reduced contamination risk and generated approximately $20K in savings through improved standards, tooling, and process controls.
• Strengthened Quality performance by leading RCA workshops addressing increases in QC STAT testing and developing actionable mitigation plans.
• Expanded site Lean capability as Local Process Champion for NEO, White Belt, Yellow Belt, and 5S training.
• Contributed to global biologics optimization through the Daiichi Sankyo monoclonal antibody Value Stream Mapping Kaizen in Vigo, Spain, identifying waste, flow constraints, and improvement opportunities across the end-to-end process.
• Contribute to broader Operational Excellence strategy and innovation as a member of the Bioscience LBMS / Innovation Council.

Sr. Ops Excellence Lean Six Sigma Coach, Associate Director Business Partner at AstraZeneca (2023-05 – 2025-03)

Partnered with Upstream Manufacturing, Quality, and MS&T leaders to improve biologics manufacturing performance, Lean maturity, process stability, and organizational problem-solving capability.

• Reduced manufacturing changeover time from 7 days to 4.5 days through Kaizen while improving planning and scheduling practices supporting 3.5-day run rates.
• Strengthened biological process stability by coaching Lean Six Sigma projects addressing titer variability, virus filtration yield, manufacturing flow, and process performance.
• Coached 10+ Green Belt and Black Belt projects and delivered DMAIC Yellow Belt and Green Belt training to strengthen site-wide continuous improvement capability.
• Expanded Lean Leadership maturity by training managers and senior leaders in kata coaching, scientific thinking, gemba practices, tier reviews, and structured problem solving.
• Improved labor utilization and production flow through work-balancing Kaizen within Upstream manufacturing operations.
• Supported TPM deployment and trained approximately 150 operators in Autonomous Maintenance and Preventive Maintenance methodology.
• Delivered Lean maturity assessments across Upstream Manufacturing, Quality, and MS&T to identify capability gaps and prioritize transformation opportunities.
• Contributed globally to Six Sigma program standardization across APAC, Europe, and the Americas.
• Generated approximately $20K in soft savings through contamination reduction standards and tooling improvements.

Operational Excellence & Engineering Director at Guardian Booth (2022-09 – 2023-02)

Directed Operational Excellence, engineering improvement, quality systems, and Lean capability development across manufacturing operations in the United States, Mexico, and India.

• Reduced manufacturing defects by 50% across U.S. and Mexico operations through SOP development, Quality Daily Management, structured RCA, and Lean practices.
• Reduced engineering documentation rework by 60% by improving quality manuals, stamped drawings, documentation standards, and engineering processes.
• Strengthened organizational quality systems by initiating ISO 9001 deployment and improving compliance documentation and operational controls.
• Improved engineering and operational consistency through Lean maturity reviews and Kaizen events focused on product design, BOM creation, and 5S workplace transformation.
• Built global leadership capability by delivering Lean, workplace culture, and leadership training across the United States, Mexico, and India.

Lean Implementation Director at Universal Fibers (2018-06 – 2022-09)

Led enterprise Lean transformation, strategy deployment, process improvement, quality optimization, and leadership development across global manufacturing operations.

• Reduced automotive extrusion defects by 40%, generating approximately $400K in savings, through Jidoka, FMEA, RCA, and structured process improvement.
• Reduced production tail-outs and package shortages by 25% through business process mapping, root cause analysis, and improvements to manufacturing flow.
• Generated approximately $40K in hard savings through an SMED Kaizen focused on spinning color-change operations.
• Established a 5-year Lean transformation roadmap and deployed purposeful gemba, visual management, and continuous improvement systems across operations.
• Improved make-to-order flow by implementing Kanban following demand segmentation of production SKUs.
• Reduced safety incidents by 70% through implementation of a Job Safety Analysis program.
• Strengthened ISO 9001 and ISO 14000 recertification efforts by updating SOPs to improve process efficiency and reduce variation.
• Built global Lean capability by training 20+ leaders across the United States, Poland, and China and leading 5S deployment across sites.
• Co-led global New Product Introduction harmonization to strengthen alignment across manufacturing operations.

Project Manager at Crown Laboratories (2017-11 – 2018-06)

Managed pharmaceutical and medical device product development initiatives spanning project execution, risk management, quality, and regulatory compliance.

• Supported approximately $15MM in revenue impact by implementing Design for Six Sigma for a new pharmaceutical product.
• Managed execution of four pharmaceutical product initiatives using Gantt-based project planning and cross-functional coordination.
• Strengthened project risk management through structured identification, mitigation planning, and cross-functional execution.
• Supported ISO 13485 certification activities for medical device operations.

QC / Environmental / Lean Six Sigma Manager at Seaman Corporation (2015-05 – 2017-11)

Led quality, environmental, Lean Six Sigma, and continuous improvement programs across manufacturing operations.

• Generated more than $1MM in hard savings through 12 Kaizen events and eight additional business improvement initiatives targeting quality, waste, and process performance.
• Reduced coating-line defects by 45% and mixing department defects by 40% through RCA, Kaizen, SPC, and structured Lean problem solving.
• Strengthened organizational Lean Six Sigma capability by training 30 managers and supervisors as the company's first Green Belt cohort.

Process Improvement & Quality Assurance Manager at Delta Apparel (2011-10 – 2015-05)

Led process improvement, quality assurance, Lean Six Sigma, laboratory quality, and