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# Jerry Makedonski — Career Experience

**Location:** Waterloo, Iowa
**Years of Industrial Experience:** 26+
**Industries:** Pork Processing, FDA-Regulated Food Manufacturing, Industrial Coatings, Industrial & Municipal Wastewater Treatment, Independent Consulting
**U.S. States Worked In:** Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, South Carolina (plus international travel to Morocco)
**Capital Project Exposure:** $50M+ facility expansion; multi-site capital upgrades

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## SUMMARY

Industrial maintenance and operations leader with 26+ years of hands-on experience spanning electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, and controls work — and 13+ years of progressive multi-department, multi-site leadership. Strong specialization in PLC / HMI systems (Allen-Bradley / Rockwell, Modicon, PanelView, FactoryTalk), preventative maintenance program design, capital project management, and field commissioning. Currently operating an independent consulting practice while taking selective contract engagements.

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## RAPIDLY EVOLVING TECHNICAL SKILLSET

AI-assisted development has expanded what I can build outside the plant floor: custom websites, internal tools, home and work applications, workflow automations, and practical dashboards for specific problems.

Technologies: PHP | Python | JavaScript | HTML/CSS | PostgreSQL | Docker | n8n | AI-assisted development | Self-hosting

Contact for discussion: [email protected]

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## ROLE 1 — Gramm Solutions LLC (2024 – Present)
**Title:** Contract - Maintenance Systems Specialist
**Location:** Waterloo, IA

### Summary
Business name used for contract maintenance systems work, MRO storeroom setup, PM / CMMS organization, reliability support, and short-term maintenance leadership needs. The work is grounded in practical plant experience: organizing maintenance systems, building usable documentation, cleaning up work management, and turning recurring equipment problems into manageable systems. Core focus: equipment uptime improvement, maintenance organization, preventative maintenance execution, CMMS implementation, controls-adjacent systems work, and maintenance leadership development.

### Services / Capabilities
- Maintenance leadership support for facilities experiencing equipment reliability challenges or gaps in maintenance management.
- Temporary maintenance manager or reliability advisor coverage while organizations recruit or develop internal leadership.
- Maintenance-practice evaluations focused on PM execution, prioritization, and work management.
- Technical guidance and mentorship for maintenance technicians and supervisors.
- Recurring-failure analysis across production operations and support equipment.
- Capital investment opportunity identification to reduce chronic equipment failures.

### Preventative Maintenance Programs
- Develop PM programs for manufacturing and logistics equipment.
- Design standardized PM work order formats and maintenance documentation.
- Create structured maintenance work instructions for repeatable procedures.
- Establish maintenance scheduling and prioritization frameworks.
- Help teams balance reactive demands with proactive PM work.

### CMMS Implementation
- Assist with implementation or restructuring of Computerized Maintenance Management Systems.
- Develop standardized asset structures and maintenance task libraries.
- Create PM schedules and recurring maintenance tasks within CMMS platforms.
- Train maintenance teams and leadership on proper CMMS usage and workflow management.

### Operations & Reliability Improvement
- Perform operational assessments to identify root causes of downtime and maintenance backlog.
- Provide outside perspective on reliability issues often overlooked by internal teams.
- Help organizations prioritize maintenance workload relative to manpower and operational demands.
- Support development of maintenance performance strategies focused on uptime and emergency-repair reduction.

### Key Strengths
Maintenance Leadership · Reliability Improvement · PM Systems · Maintenance Program Development · CMMS Implementation · Operational Troubleshooting · Industrial Equipment Reliability · Maintenance Workforce Training · Manufacturing Operations Support · Maintenance Strategy Development

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## ROLE 2 — Fluidyne Corporation (July 2023 – October 2024)
**Title:** Project Manager — Industrial Wastewater Systems
**Location:** Waterloo, IA (with national and international travel)
**Tenure:** ~12 months

### Summary
Project manager focused on the bridge between mechanical wastewater equipment and a working automated system. Wrote human-readable process sequence documents that served as the functional specification for a contracted controls integrator (the integrator handled the actual PLC programming and HMI development). Led Factory Acceptance Testing remotely, identified deficiencies, verified corrections before panels shipped, then traveled to customer sites for in-person startup and commissioning. Also provided remote and onsite technical support for the existing customer base, including legacy systems installed years to decades earlier, drawing on Fluidyne's OEM documentation archive.

### Process Sequence Development
- Studied each project's equipment package (pumps, blowers, valves, instrumentation, mechanical equipment) and authored human-readable process sequence documents describing how the system should operate.
- Documented normal operating sequences for all major equipment and process steps.
- Documented fault scenarios, alarm conditions, abnormal operating states, and recovery sequences.
- Worked through equipment behavior under high flow, low flow, surge loading, and partial-failure conditions.
- Output served as the functional specification for the contracted controls integrator handling PLC programming and HMI screen development.

### Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT)
- Led FAT with the controls integrator remotely using phone coordination and remote monitoring of the panel-mounted PLC and HMI.
- Walked through the full equipment sequence step-by-step, validating PLC logic and HMI behavior against the documented process sequences across normal, alarm, fault, and abnormal scenarios.
- Identified deficiencies and authored detailed correction lists for the integrator.
- Followed up and verified each correction was implemented before panels shipped to the customer site.

### Field Commissioning & Startup
- Traveled to customer sites for in-person startup and commissioning of the systems I had spec'd and FAT-tested.
- Verified installation and operation of field instrumentation: float level sensors, ORP sensors, pH sensors, dissolved oxygen probes, radar level sensors, pressure-based level transducers, valve position limit switches.
- Conducted full system sequence testing under high flow, low flow, surge loading, and partial-failure conditions.
- Performed clean-water startup before introducing wastewater flow.
- Identified and resolved PLC code or HMI issues discovered after field installation — made corrections onsite directly.
- Delivered operator training and operational handoff to plant personnel after startup.

### International Project (Morocco)
- Traveled internationally to Morocco to commission an industrial wastewater treatment system at a fish processing facility.
- Conducted full startup and sequence testing of pumps, aeration systems, and process control instrumentation.
- Verified control panel wiring, pump connections, and system safety systems prior to commissioning.

### Remote & Legacy System Support
- Fielded calls and emails from existing customers for operational issues and operator training.
- Most support requests came from systems installed prior to my hire — only a handful came from systems I had personally commissioned, given my ~12-month tenure.
- Supported systems ranging from a few years old to several decades old, requiring solid foundational understanding of each customer's process and equipment.
- Researched OEM documentation held in Fluidyne's project archive to come up to speed on unfamiliar legacy equipment.
- Delivered most support remotely via network access (EWON, FactoryTalk remote); traveled onsite when issues required hands-on resolution.
- Diagnosed mechanical, electrical, and control system problems via remote network access.
- Assisted operators with biological treatment troubleshooting including aeration and process control adjustments.

### Project Coordination
- Supported proposals by helping the proposal lead assemble documentation packages — proposal ownership and pricing strategy stayed with the proposal lead, not me.
- Coordinated with engineering, the controls integrator, equipment vendors, and facility operators throughout installation and startup phases.
- Served as customer-facing technical contact during commissioning and early system operation.
- Managed project documentation through commissioning, including mechanical drawings, electrical drawings, equipment documentation, and commissioning records.
- Maintained ongoing technical relationships with facility operators following system startup.

### Controls & Automation Stack
- PLC Systems: Rockwell / Allen-Bradley platforms; sequence validation and FAT-driven logic verification; field-level PLC adjustments during commissioning (integrator handled primary programming).
- HMI Systems: Allen-Bradley PanelView; FactoryTalk software configuration; field-level HMI screen and parameter adjustments during commissioning (integrator handled primary screen development).
- Remote Connectivity: EWON industrial remote connectivity devices; remote PLC/HMI access for FAT, commissioning, and ongoing customer support.

### Process Equipment
- Wastewater Treatment: jet mixing and aeration systems, settling and solids separation, screening systems for solids removal.
- Pumping Systems: large submersible wastewater pumps, pump motor starter and VFD wiring, pump leak detection systems, pump over-temperature protection.
- Blower Systems: regenerative air blowers used for aeration.
- Flow Control: automated valves with position indication, flow control sequencing.

### Business Process Contributions
- Developed a centralized project tracking system organizing drawings, proposals, correspondence, and invoices.
- Created Excel-based dashboards linking directly to project folders and documentation for faster project access.
- Led transition of multiple EWON remote connection devices from individual customer accounts into a centralized parent account managed by the company.
- Reconfigured remote access systems to ensure continued connectivity for PLC and HMI remote diagnostics.

### Key Strengths
Process Sequence Documentation · Factory Acceptance Testing · Field Commissioning & Startup · Industrial Wastewater Systems · Allen-Bradley PLC / PanelView · Field Instrumentation Verification · Integrator Partnership & Spec Handoff · International Field Engineering · Remote Technical Support · Legacy System Troubleshooting · Customer Technical Liaison · Project Coordination

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## ROLE 3 — Metokote / The Crown Group / PPG Coating Services (2009 – ~2022)
**Title:** Facility & Engineering Manager → Multi-Department / Multi-Site Leader
**Location:** Waterloo, IA (with multi-site travel to IA, IL, MI, SC)
**Industry:** Industrial Protective Coatings (electrocoating for agricultural equipment)

### Summary
Career-defining 13-year role at a 70,000 sq ft electrocoating facility supporting 140–220 employees and a $100K–$160K monthly maintenance budget. Started supervising 3 maintenance technicians; grew responsibility to include maintenance, system operations (pretreatment & coating), wastewater treatment, powder coating, purchasing, and accounting support — with a maintenance planner, maintenance supervisor, and accounting manager reporting to me. Also served as multi-site project manager and trainer for sister facilities. Personally rebuilt or redesigned nearly every major control system in the plant.

### Headline Achievements
- Stabilized electrocoating paint solids variation from ±2% to less than ±0.5% via redesigned paint feed control system.
- Rebuilt the air-makeup HVAC system from scratch — eliminated frozen sprinkler pipe failures and large building-temperature swings.
- Rebuilt the wastewater treatment control system entirely while keeping the existing system operational; cutover during a holiday shutdown.
- Eliminated confined-space tank-entry requirement by designing permanent stairways into immersion tanks.
- Built a custom Excel-based budget reporting system reducing financial report time from ~1 day to ~5 minutes; held maintenance spending within 1–2% of monthly budget.
- Implemented multi-site capital project management and trained maintenance leadership at sister facilities in Iowa, Illinois, Detroit, and South Carolina.

### Maintenance Infrastructure Build-Out
- Established individual tool lockers per technician with tracked, standardized inventory.
- Built a central shop toolbox with all standard plus specialty tools.
- Established centralized maintenance supply inventory of common consumables (nuts/bolts, washers, electrical crimp fittings, zip ties, etc.).
- Reorganized 20-foot steel and pipe stock rack with proper shelving and inventory layout.

### Production Process & Equipment Owned
- Overhead Conveyor: 6-inch monorail conveyor approximately 5,000 ft long carrying parts through every finishing stage.
- Pretreatment: immersion tanks and spray chambers; circulating pumps; spray bars applying cleaning chemicals, rinse water, and surface treatment.
- Deionized Water: RO/DI rinse system; resin-tank ion exchange beds regenerated with hydrochloric acid and sodium hydroxide; 17,000-gallon fiberglass storage tank.
- Electrocoating Paint System: DC-voltage submersion bath bonding paint to metal surfaces.
- Cure Oven: ~400°F cure oven with ~40-minute conveyor dwell.
- Burn-Off Oven (rack cleaning): ~1,000°F oven; redesigned downstream rack-wash to use clean high-pressure water rather than recirculated dirty water.

### Major Engineering Projects
1. **Paint Feed Control System Redesign** — Replaced timer-based piston-pump replenishment with limit-switch feedback per stroke, dispensing consistent 2–3 gallon increments. Stabilized paint solids variation from ±2% to less than ±0.5%.
2. **Two-Component PPG Paint System Control** — Designed control system after chemistry change from Sherwin-Williams single-component to PPG two-component (resin + paste). Maintains paint thickness and color consistency by controlling resin-to-paste ratio with fine pigment adjustment based on amp-hours consumed.
3. **Air Makeup HVAC Reconstruction** — Removed bypassed 1995 SLC-500 system entirely. New PLC, PanelView, schematics, sensors, motor starters, and control wiring. Building-center temperature sensors enable automatic burner adjustment. Added a remote PanelView in the mechanical room eliminating a 20-ft ladder climb. Eliminated winter sprinkler pipe failures.
4. **Building Ventilation & Pressure Control** — Integrated roof exhaust fans into the air makeup system via central motor starters and PanelView control. Installed building static pressure sensor maintaining slight positive pressure to prevent dust ingress.
5. **Wastewater Treatment Reconstruction** — Designed an entirely new control architecture rather than troubleshooting the failing early-1990s system (~half of field instruments had been bypassed). Built control system on a backplane while old system kept running; cutover during a holiday shutdown weekend; gradually automated liquid transfer, mixer control, chemical dosing, settling, and effluent discharge through a modulating valve.
6. **Wastewater Chemical Dosing Automation** — Replaced manual carrying of 5-gallon carboys up flights of stairs to the reactor top. Installed ground-level chemical dosing pumps drawing directly from drums; PLC dispenses recipe-based doses in sequence.
7. **Pretreatment System Redesign** — Complete redesign of circulation piping and spray nozzle configurations in immersion and spray stations.
8. **Pump Standardization** — Standardized all pretreatment pumps to a single model, reducing spare parts inventory and simplifying maintenance.
9. **Hot Water Generator Control System** — Designed and installed a PLC-based control system to operate hot water generators with remote monitoring and alarm management.
10. **LED Lighting Retrofit** — Managed full facility LED lighting upgrade with motion-controlled smart lighting.
11. **Variable Frequency Drives** — Installed VFDs on spray system pumps for speed-controlled spray pressure.
12. **Tank Level Monitoring** — Replaced unsafe 120V float switches with bubbler systems and pressure transducers tied to PLC analog inputs.
13. **Zinc Phosphate Sludge Handling System** — Installed automated filter press and precipitate conveyor system with automatic floor sweeping for zinc phosphate removal. Designed fast tank dump and clean-out process reducing downtime from 7 days to 12 hours.
14. **Conveyor Drive Redundancy** — Installed redundant drive systems with permanently mounted spare drives and gearboxes, enabling quick-swap capability in less than 60 minutes to protect conveyor uptime during the 16+ week lead time for replacements.
15. **Multicolor Powder Paint Booth Installation** — Oversaw installation of GEMA brand multicolor powder paint booth at sister facility in Illinois.

### Leadership Growth
- Started supervising 3 maintenance techs (one per shift).
- During Metokote → Crown Group transition, served as project manager for major capital upgrades during an extended Christmas shutdown (wash system pump replacement; RO replacing DI system; two hot water generators replacing a steam boiler; oven air circulation reconfiguration).
- Burn-off oven moved from production to maintenance; expanded team to 3 techs + 3 helpers.
- Argued for and won 3 additional system technicians, expanding system operators from 3 to 6.
- Took ownership of powder coating department (6 employees, 2 per shift).
- Took ownership of purchasing & inventory operations (maintenance supplies, production consumables, PPE, raw materials).
- Convinced upper management to move site accounting manager into my department for combined accounting + admin support.
- Added a maintenance planner role in purchasing and a maintenance supervisor over technicians and system operators.

### Multi-Site Engineering & Project Management
- Beginning ~2015, traveled to other company facilities to assist with capital projects and maintenance program development.
- At one facility being taken over from a competitor: served as project manager for extensive equipment installation and rebuild work — ~50% travel for 6 months while still managing the home plant.
- Continued traveling to train maintenance leadership at sites in Iowa, Illinois, Detroit, and South Carolina.
- Sister plants implemented maintenance programs modeled on the system developed at the home facility.

### Purchasing & Budget Management
- Operated under a cost-plus contract structure — required to spend full maintenance budget without exceeding it.
- Maintenance budget: $100K–$160K per month.
- Corporate financial reporting only ran twice per month, too slow for accurate budget control.
- Built a custom Excel-based system pulling directly from corporate purchasing/inventory data, reducing report time from ~1 day to ~5 minutes.
- Held spending within 1–2% of monthly budget targets.

### Safety & Compliance
- Eliminated confined-space tank entry by installing permanent stairways into immersion tanks.
- Owned compliance for hazardous waste inspections, EPA, Department of Natural Resources, and fire department inspections.
- Conducted periodic capital asset inventories of major equipment.

### Final Org Under My Management
Maintenance technicians · Maintenance helpers · System operators (pretreatment & coating) · Wastewater treatment operators · Powder coating technicians · Tank cleaning crew · Purchasing department · Maintenance planning staff · Accounting support

### Key Strengths
Multi-Department Leadership · Multi-Site Project Management · PLC / PanelView Programming · Capital Project Management · CMMS & Maintenance Program Development · Industrial Coatings Process · Wastewater Treatment Automation · Building HVAC Controls · Cost-Plus Contract Budgeting · Regulatory Compliance Management · Cross-Functional Team Building

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## ROLE 4 — ConAgra Foods (2007 – 2009)
**Title:** Systems Operator — Startup Team
**Location:** Waterloo, IA
**Industry:** FDA-Regulated Food Manufacturing (refrigerated pudding products)

### Summary
Member of the startup team for a $50M facility expansion producing refrigerated pudding products. Responsible for operating, troubleshooting, and optimizing automated production lines (thermoforming, filling, sealing, packaging) during commissioning and early production ramp-up. Identified and implemented two major process improvements yielding estimated $300K+ in annual savings.

### Headline Achievements
- **Production Flexibility Improvement** — Designed and implemented a software-based modification allowing production lines originally designed for layered pudding cups to also run solid-fill cups without requiring full clean-in-place changeovers. Enabled chocolate + vanilla simultaneous, single flavor across both lanes, or mixed configurations. Reduced major changeovers from ~50/year to ~35/year. Eliminated ~50% of full CIP cycles. Estimated annual savings exceeding $300,000.
- **Production Waste Reduction** — Increased product weight monitoring frequency from hourly to 10-minute intervals. Adjusted individual cup weights to balance product drawdown from a shared cone-bottom supply tank feeding dual lanes. Reduced per-run leftover pudding waste from approximately 500 gallons to less than 5 gallons per lane.

### Day-to-Day Responsibilities
- Participated in commissioning and startup of a $50M production expansion in an FDA-regulated facility.
- Worked alongside engineers and equipment vendors during system testing, equipment startup, and ramp-up.
- Operated automated pudding production lines including thermoforming, filling, sealing, and packaging systems.
- Loaded and handled ~5-foot-wide production material rolls using overhead crane systems and threaded thermoforming equipment.
- Monitored production equipment performance and diagnosed operational issues during ramp-up.
- Performed routine quality testing including vacuum testing of sealed pudding cups.
- Collected and documented production and quality data through facility reporting systems.
- Issued quality reject orders and coordinated holds or pullbacks when defects were identified.
- Supported downstream packaging — automated stacking, retail sleeve packaging, and case packing.
- Troubleshot and repaired mechanical, electrical, and control issues during production.
- Replaced and serviced bearings, sensors, gearboxes, and hydraulic components.
- Improved SCADA interface usability and operational workflows from an operator perspective.

### Equipment & Systems
Thermoforming & Filling: plastic thermoforming equipment, multi-lane cup forming systems, automated pudding filling, heat forming and sealing.
Packaging: automated packaging conveyors, retail sleeve packaging, case packing, automated glue delivery.
Controls: SCADA system operation, production control interfaces, operator-level control system troubleshooting.
Mechanical / Electrical / Hydraulic: bearings, gearboxes, conveyors, machine components; RTDs, thermocouples, temperature monitoring, servo motors; hydraulic seals and shaft components; overhead crane systems for large rolls.

### Key Strengths
Production Startup & Commissioning · Food Manufacturing Operations · Process Optimization · Production Waste Reduction · Automation & SCADA Systems · Industrial Troubleshooting · Manufacturing Efficiency · Cross-Functional Work with Engineers & Vendors · Operational Data Analysis

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## ROLE 5 — IBP Inc. (later Tyson Fresh Meats) (2000 – 2006)
**Title:** Industrial Maintenance Technician
**Location:** Waterloo, IA
**Industry:** USDA-Regulated High-Volume Pork Processing

### Summary
First industrial role. Six years of full-spectrum maintenance work — electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, controls, and stainless TIG welding — across a high-volume pork processing facility with washdown areas, refrigerated processing rooms, freezers, and ambient zones. Foundation experience that informs all subsequent roles.

### Responsibilities
- Troubleshot and repaired electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, and control system issues across production equipment.
- Maintained and repaired multiple conveyor systems including Intralox modular plastic belt conveyors.
- Diagnosed electrical issues involving motor controls, start/stop circuits, and emergency stop safety systems.
- Serviced conveyor drive systems including electric motors and hydraulic motor drive assemblies.
- Performed troubleshooting on PLC-controlled equipment including Modicon PLC-based systems.
- Responded quickly to line stoppages and diagnosed root causes of equipment failures.
- Performed preventative maintenance to reduce unplanned downtime.
- Repaired meat packaging and meat skinning machines using both electrical control systems and hydraulic systems.
- Worked extensively in stainless steel fabrication and repair common to sanitary food processing.
- Performed TIG welding and fabrication repairs on stainless steel equipment, structures, and machine components.
- Maintained equipment in freezer, refrigerated, and ambient temperature zones.
- Serviced conveyor systems in wet washdown and dry processing environments.
- Worked closely with production personnel during critical downtime events.
- Troubleshot 480V motor starter circuits and industrial electrical distribution.

### Equipment & Systems
Conveyors: belt conveyor systems; Intralox modular plastic belt conveyors; conveyor drive systems; hydraulic motor conveyor drives.
Electrical: 480V motor starters; industrial motor control circuits; start/stop stations; E-stop safety circuits; industrial electrical troubleshooting.
Automation / Controls: PLC troubleshooting; Modicon PLC systems; basic industrial control system diagnostics.
Mechanical / Hydraulic: conveyor mechanical assemblies; industrial equipment repair; machine component replacement; hydraulic motors and drive systems.
Food Processing: meat packaging machines; meat skinning machines; pork processing line equipment.
Fabrication: stainless steel TIG welding; equipment repair fabrication; sanitary equipment repair.

### Environment
USDA-regulated facility · washdown sanitation environments · refrigerated processing areas · freezer environments · wet and dry equipment zones · continuous production operations.

### Key Strengths
Industrial Maintenance · Production Equipment Troubleshooting · Electrical & Mechanical Diagnostics · Hydraulic System Maintenance · PLC Troubleshooting · Food Processing Equipment Maintenance · Conveyor System Repair · Industrial Welding & Fabrication · Preventative Maintenance · High-Pressure Production Support

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## CROSS-CUTTING STRENGTHS

**Technical**
- PLC: Allen-Bradley / Rockwell, Modicon, SLC-500
- HMI: Allen-Bradley PanelView, FactoryTalk
- Electrical: 480V motor starters, motor controls, E-stop safety circuits, industrial distribution
- Instrumentation: float, ORP, pH, DO, radar level, pressure transducers, RTDs, thermocouples, valve position
- Mechanical: conveyors (incl. Intralox), pumps, gearboxes, bearings, hydraulic systems
- Fabrication: stainless steel TIG welding for sanitary applications
- Process: electrocoating, pretreatment, wastewater treatment, thermoforming, food processing
- Remote: EWON industrial remote, FactoryTalk remote diagnostics

**Leadership & Operations**
- Multi-department, multi-site management
- Capital project management ($50M+ exposure; multi-site capital programs)
- Cost-plus contract budgeting; tight monthly variance control
- Cross-functional collaboration with engineering, accounting, vendors, and contractors
- Maintenance program design (CMMS, PM systems, work instructions)
- Workforce mentoring and training; building org structure

**Domains**
- USDA-regulated food processing
- FDA-regulated food manufacturing
- Industrial protective coatings
- Industrial & municipal wastewater treatment
- Independent consulting

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## CONTACT
- **LinkedIn:** linkedin.com/in/jerry-makedonski
- **GitHub:** github.com/Gramm808
- **Site:** jerrymakedonski.com