Klaus M. Blache—PhD, MBA, CPE, RMIC—has more than 30 years of experience in various areas of manufacturing and continuous improvement (processes and people): lean implementation, benchmarking, R&M, competitive analysis, continuous improvement tools & techniques, new facility planning and implementation, industrial engineering, ergonomics, and change management. He has written and lectured globally in numerous technical and management areas. Klaus is currently at the University of Tennessee as the director of the Reliability and Maintainability Center and is a research professor at the College of Engineering. Before that, his most recent corporate jobs/assignments were manufacturing engineering director (Cadillac); engineering launch manager (new assembly plants); and global manager of manufacturing reliability & maintenance and corporate manager, industrial engineering (General Motors). Klaus is currently involved in several global benchmarking studies such as “World Class Reliability & Maintainability.” He has taught more than 200 courses regarding all aspects of operational improvement and performance. His global experiences include plant assessments and R&M improvements, and implementing effective cultures and processes. Klaus is also a past chairman of the Society of Maintenance & Reliability Professionals.