Sealed Air plant manager honored with 2015 STEP Ahead Award

Sealed Air Corporation has recognized Pam Nielsen, plant manager at its Holyoke, Mass., facility, as a recipient of the Women in Manufacturing STEP (Science, Technology, Engineering and Production) Ahead Awards.

The Manufacturing Institute, an arm of the National Association of Manufacturers, a U.S.-based business advocacy organization, gave the award, which honors women at all manufacturing levels who have demonstrated leadership and excellence in their careers.

As plant manager, Nielsen has managed a volume growth of more than 35% over the last five years while also leading successful plant projects, including the PakNatural global product launch and a new equipment installation. In addition, Nielsen has supply chain leadership responsibilities for the Jiffylite mailer product line in North America. As part of her responsibilities for this product line, she coordinates production and stocking programs across 15 manufacturing sites and warehouses to meet service requirements for several large e-commerce customers.

Within Sealed Air, Nielsen has distinguished herself as a successful contributor to the business. Prior to her current assignment, she was responsible for developing Sealed Air’s Lean Six Sigma program. She was lead developer of the Green Belt and Black Belt training programs as well as the ensuing certification program. Utilizing her problem solving skills, Nielsen improved several segments of the order-to-delivery process – the non-standard product quotation process and the alternative business-shipping process—reducing quote delivery from three days to 16 hours. She also took on a project to address the alternative business shipping process resulting in customer order delivery four days faster than prior to the improvement.

“It is an honor to be recognized by the Manufacturing Institute’s STEP Ahead initiative for my work in manufacturing,” Nielsen said. “I am fortunate to have had such a long and successful career with Sealed Air, and I am delighted to be able to share my story with other women and encourage them to consider an exciting and fulfilling career in manufacturing.”

“Every day, Pam embodies the four values of Sealed Air,” said Emile Chammas, senior vice president and chief supply chain officer for Sealed Air. “Her dedication to manufacturing made her an ideal nomination for the STEP Ahead Awards and we are pleased that her efforts are being nationally recognized.”

The STEP Ahead Awards are part of the larger STEP Ahead initiative, launched to examine and promote the role of women in the manufacturing industry through recognition, research, and leadership for attracting, advancing, and retaining strong female talent. Honorees were nominated by their peers, company officials, or professional service firms. More than 500 nominations were submitted, with 130 honorees chosen from over 100 companies, representing all levels of manufacturing and exemplifying diversity in the manufacturing careers.

“These women are the faces of exciting careers in manufacturing,” said Jennifer McNelly, executive director, The Manufacturing Institute. “We chose to honor these women because they each made significant achievements in manufacturing through positive impact on their company and the industry as a whole.”

Honors will confer on April 21, at a reception in Washington, D.C.