1. What has been your career journey up to becoming Plant Manager at El Salto?
I started my professional career as a process engineer at IBM for five years. I developed as a process and project development manager at Hitachi for another five years. I worked as a process improvement consultant for eight years and took the position of General Product for a digital animation and video game development company for two years.
I joined a factory of hand tools and hardware products as Manager of Process Improvement and Product Development, during which time I was promoted to Manager of Manufacturing of five plants. I then joined Molycop in September 2023.
2. What has been the most significant learning experience while at Molycop?
Being able to collaborate with a group of people committed to a new production process have been full of challenges and opportunities for me. I’ve been able to work on several fronts at the same time, both on the project and improving the operation of the production lines.
3. What factors prompted the upgrade of the forge machine, quench drum, and transfer table at El Salto?
It was an obsolete machine that constantly presented failures. The performance was poor and with continuous delays in production. The forging machine was replaced by a practically new one. The transfer table and the quenching drum were also replaced with new equipment.
The forging machine has a larger forging capacity, and the transfer table and the quenching drum are new equipment that allow better and more reliable performance.
4. How have these upgrades enhanced the plant's operational efficiency and production capabilities?
We are still in the start-up period, but even so, we have obtained OEE values in the 80% for several days. There are still adjustments to the process, but we are attending to them to correct and adjust.
5. How do you see these changes contributing to the plant's performance and output?
Without a doubt, they will provide us with better reliability in performance because with this the main causes of delays that resulted in poor performance of this line have been eliminated.
6. How will these improvements benefit Molycop’s customers?
By improving the efficiency of our production process, we respond more quickly to the requirements of our customers and possible urgent needs they may have. Once the process has been stabilised, we will have a quality product, more repeatable and with better delivery times.
7. With these upgrades completed, what are your next priorities for the El Salto plant?
First, to stabilise the NG process during commissioning, and second, to improve the small ball roll former manufacturing process.
By having a reliable NG process, we can not only serve the national market, but be an option for all Molycop units in case of any contingency that would not allow them to provide large ball from 4.0" to 5.5" to their customers, and thus, we become a supply option.
8. What message would you like to share about the future of the El Salto plant?
Despite the tariff challenges we face in Mexico for steel, we are prepared to face the challenges that allow us to position ourselves as one of the best production plants for Molycop. We are in times of positive changes in terms of safety, productivity and quality, which must be reflected in the cost.
