The Newark Group forms new group

May 09, 2012. /Lesprom Network/. The Newark Group has formalized its Operational Excellence team and that its OpEx focus is already yielding improvements in both operations and cost efficiency. The new group, headed by Vice President, Jeff Masciadrelli and team members Tim Benningfield and Tracy Willis, operates under the direction of Newark senior management, as the Group said in a press release received by Lesprom Network. According to Frank Papa, President and CEO of The Newark Group, "The speed at which this team has already been operating bodes exceptionally well for the future of our efforts and of our company." Masciadrelli joined The Newark Group in February 2012 and previously was Director of the Global Enterprise Lean Sigma program at Avery-Dennison Corp. Benningfield joined in March with experience in plant management, LEAN, TPS and Akebono Production System implementations with companies such as Fruit of the Loom, Toyota Tsusho, Akebono, and Tomkins Building Products. Willis, the most recent hire, is a certified LSS Master Black Belt with experience in Process Excellence, Quality Systems, and Production Management. Before joining The Newark Group, Willis operated his own consulting group focusing on Six Sigma, LEAN and Apollo Root Cause Analysis, and was a National Examiner for both the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the Shingo Prize for Manufacturing Excellence. "This is the right team, and this is the right time," commented Papa. "If the small but significant gains we have already seen are any indication, this team has the ability to transform our Company and our effectiveness on just about every level." The Newark Group has been an industry leader in the recovery and recycling of secondary fibers and the manufacturing and converting of 100% recycled paperboard.