Meet Our Team

Each member of the FASTLANE team has a background in manufacturing.

Together we cover a variety of functions, including multiple engineering disciplines, to help accelerate your manufacturing success.

Phil Ratermann

Phil Ratermann is the Director of FASTLANE.  Prior to launching FASTLANE 5 years ago, Phil spent more than 25 years in industry at ITW – Hobart Corporation, a global commercial food equipment manufacturer.  He spent 17 years in new product development, from which he holds 6 patents, and then served as the vice president and general manager for his last 12 years, with profit and loss responsibility for 3 brands and 5 factories across North America.  It is Phil’s experience with developing teams and individuals who deliver business growth, which allows him to relate quickly with client companies.  Phil has a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and a MBA from the University of Dayton.

Skills & Expertise:

• Strategic planning & execution
• Business development
• P&L management
• Continuous improvement
• New product innovation
• Culture/People development
• Worlds best boss

Mary R. Miller

Mary R. Miller is a Manufacturing Growth Specialist at FASTLANE- MEP.  Mary acts as unbiased adviser helping manufacturers to be more competitive.  She moves quickly to find solutions through leveraging the right resources and removing barriers to deliver results.

Mary has more than 20 years of experience in a variety of industries including component and capital equipment manufacturing, professional engineering services, operations management and contracting. She has held positions ranging from application engineer to chief operating officer, allowing her to work with all levels of an organization. Mary has a Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering from GMI/Kettering University, an MBA and a Small Business Coaching Certification. Mary has won $325,000 in Advanced Manufacturing Program Grant Awards (2015 and 2016) and has helped a number of local manufacturers with a multitude of projects.

Skills & Expertise:

• Problem solving consulting & training (i.e. RCCA, DOE, FMEA)
• Internal auditor  – ISO9100:2015, AS9100 Rev D and ISO17025
• Assessments (i.e. organizational, leveraging technical capabilities for growth)
• Maintenance, metrology and service management
• ERP systems/process improvement
• Leadership advising
• Team cheerleader

Todd Brown

Todd Brown is a Sr. Program Manager and Manufacturing Growth Specialist with FASTLANE at the University of Dayton Research Institute. He has over 20 years of experience in manufacturing with a proven record in multi-site operations including profit and loss responsibility, continuous improvement, project management, engineering and team development. Todd has organizational expertise in operations management, technical management, strategy development, safety, quality, product management, and employee relations. Todd has a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering and a MBA with Project Management focus from Wright State University; he also holds 2 patents and a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certification.

Skills & Expertise:

• Business strategy
• Operations improvement
• Project management
• Safety
• Product management
• Employee relations

Robert Gillen

Robert Gillen, PE is an electrical engineer with over 15 years of experience in research and industry. He specializes in project management and electrical engineering consulting for FASTLANE. Throughout his career, Rob has worked in sensor characterization, integrated circuit design, data processing, and information security. He has managed projects within academia, government, and industry. Rob has a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in electrical engineering from Wright State University and is currently working on his PhD in electrical engineering at the University of Dayton.

Skills & Expertise:

• Digital design
• Electrical engineering
• Program management
• Proposal writing
• Sensors

Matt Hoyng

Matt Hoyng is a Lean Facilitator and Productivity Improvement Specialist with FASTLANE at the University of Dayton Research Institute.  He has over 15 years of experience in manufacturing with a proven record of managing site operations focusing on continuous improvement and the implementation of Lean.  As site manager, he witnessed firsthand the improvements lean manufacturing offers. Now, he enjoys sharing that knowledge to help companies succeed by improving their process and culture through lean methodologies. Matt has a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Technology with a minor in Business from Ohio University.

Skills & Expertise:

• Lean Six Sigma facilitation
• Process improvements
• Project management
• Additive manufacturing
• Team encourager

Judy Stauble

Judy Stauble is the administrative associate for FASTLANE.  Her mission is to help the FASTLANE team by taking care of the behind-the-scenes activities such as budgeting, reporting, setting up contracts and other various program activities.  Judy worked in manufacturing for more than twenty years. She received her associate’s degree from Sinclair Community College and her bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Wright State University.

Skills & Expertise:

• Event planning and coordination
• Budget management
• Reporting
• Contract management
• Making everyone feel loved

Tamara Wamsley

Tamara Wamsley is the marketing and business strategist for FASTLANE. Her passion is in helping businesses to overcome marketing and communication obstacles. Her strategic brain loves tackling business problems and devising innovative solutions that help improve the bottom line. Tamara manages the marketing and communications for FASTLANE and contributes to the business strategies discussed with clients. She is known for her problem solving skills, the natural ability to explain complex concepts in a way that everyone can understand and for her ability to find the right words to communicate in any situation. She also manages the FASTLANE website, blog and event planning and coordination. Tamara has more than twenty years of experience in customer service, sales and marketing, nine of those years were in manufacturing. She received her bachelor’s degree in Economics from Wright State University, where she focused on consumer insight.

Skills & Expertise:

• Marketing strategy
• Strategic communications
• Customer service and sales strategy
• Problem solving
• Wordsmith

Priscila McCarty

Priscila McCarty is a Manufacturing Growth Specialist at FASTLANE- MEP.  She joins the team with over 10 years of both domestic and global manufacturing experience—all with Fortune 500 companies.  From front-end innovation through validation and rollout, Priscila has led groups in all phases of manufacturing.  She also has Department of Defense acquisitions experience, making her backgrounds in manufacturing and defense a great fit for the Miami Valley and Southwest Ohio.  Priscila received her bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Skills & Expertise:

• Process engineering
• Product development
• Project Management – schedule, cost, performance, risk
• Problem solving

To date the FASTLANE team has achieved economic impacts resulting in the creation of more than 100 jobs, over $40M in increased sales, more than $29M in increased growth investments and nearly $22M in cost avoidance between the years 2013 and 2016.