Zachary Bloodworth is the voice of the customer at Par 4 Plastics Inc.'s Marion, Ky., manufacturing plant. It's his job to understand customer requirements and implement systems and procedures that result in products being delivered on time to customers.
At Par 4 Plastics, Bloodworth, 32, is the director of quality and program management.
Bloodworth graduated from Mid-Continent University in Mayfield, Ky., with his bachelor's degree in business management. He also has a certificate in employee relations law from the Institute for Applied Management and Law as well as Six Sigma Black Belt certification.
He worked at Ralcorp Holdings Inc., now TreeHouse Foods Inc., as a customer service accounting representative, divisional benefits coordinator and operations group manager. In operations management, he "helped facilitate continuous cost reduction and process improvement efforts at the plant level" and made proposals that "impacted efficiency, throughput, cost reduction, productivity, schedule compliance and quality."
Bloodworth has been with plastics manufacturer Par 4 Plastics since 2012, when he joined as quality manager — his first plastics industry role.
"I was interested in the company because of the strong leadership team in place when I started," he said in his Rising Stars survey.
He led quality control functions and efforts to reach the goal of zero internal defects, maintained up-to-date knowledge of all customer expectations, and completed production part approval process and program management requirements for new projects.
Now that he is director of quality and program management, he is responsible for developing a quality assurance system that promotes customer satisfaction, setting up systems to identify variation within the manufacturing process and conducting customer feedback through surveys and scorecards.
His current challenge is launching 40-plus products or tools for the automotive industry.
Bloodworth's greatest achievement to date has been bringing the team together to buy into its best-in-class, "first-time quality" commitment, which has resulted in world-class quality performance and multiple customer awards, he said.
His mentor is Charles Rothe, director of continuous improvement and lean at Par 4 Plastics.
"He has spent his career in the plastics industry and even owned his own injection molding company," Bloodworth said about Rothe.
Manufacturers Association for Plastics Processors Inc. Membership and Analytics Manager Ashley Turrell Burleson said Bloodworth is someone who instantly draws individuals in and has natural leadership capabilities.
"He is always searching for new and more efficient ways to accomplish his objectives, doesn't shy away from challenges, is able to work with diverse groups of people and strives to make the people around him feel appreciated," said Burrell, who recommended Bloodworth for Rising Stars.
Bloodworth is an avid runner and enjoys participating in 5K races. He and his wife, Heather, a fifth-grade teacher, have two daughters: Kylie, 9, and Korie, 5. Both daughters are active in rodeo and equestrian activities, and Bloodworth likes spending time with the family riding horses on the family farm.
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