Meet Kristine Anderson | Vantage Plastics Team

It is our honor to introduce Kristine Anderson, our new Production Scheduler. As Kristine says about the position, “It is sort of like working with a rubrics cube.” It is indeed a critical hub of activity that is focused on aligning multiple elements from various departments to achieve positive customer experiences and team success. It is somewhat like the conductor of an orchestra or the director of a play bringing everything together to achieve a great performance.  Kristine comes to Vantage Plastics with many years of experience. In 1988, she started her career at a Tier 1 automotive supplier. It supplied parts to Ford, GM, and Chrysler. Her initial position was on the manufacturing floor, running a machine. When a position for inventory control opened, she applied and ended up receiving the position. After an additional period of time, she became involved with scheduling as she worked with a number of functions ranging from packaging, engineering, purchasing, shipping and receiving, and stock handling. She spent around 12 years managing the entire department. She then moved from the Alpena area to the Twinning area and took a job as a scheduler with the Globe Fire Sprinkler Corporation, a manufacturer of fire suppression sprinkler systems located in Standish. After a three-year stay, Globe went through a restructuring plan and decided to close its Standish location. This led Kristine to go back to school to study radiology, after which she took a position at the Ascension Hospital in Standish but found the pace to be a little slow for her liking so she ended up taking another position in scheduling, shipping receiving, and inventory oversight at the Tubular Metal company in Pinconning until it closed.

Kristine has now been at Vantage Plastics for a little over two months. Since she has worked with the PLEX ERP system for several years prior to onboarding with Vantage Plastics, she got up to speed very rapidly as this is the same ERP system currently used within the company. Due to her experience with PLEX she has already been providing usage tips to various members of our team. Kristine says this about scheduling and her time so far at Vantage Plastics; “I really like scheduling as there is never a dull moment. I have to utilize my brain and stay on my toes, and I find that very stimulating. I look forward to helping Vantage Plastics move forward. The company has an open door for me to be involved rather than being isolated in scheduling alone. The people here are just phenomenal. I see the right people on the team here, and I also see the owners every day. I have never seen ownership engagement like this in my thirty-year career. It is very refreshing to see.”

Outside of work, Kristine has been married to her husband Joe for about sixteen years and has a daughter, Heather, who lives in Arkansas and works at The University of Central Arkansas in Conway. Kristine is very proud of her daughter as she is going through the process of becoming a certified plumber with funding provided by the university. While Kristine now lives in Twinning, Michigan, she was born in Hawaii, where her father served in the military. She grew up in Alpena and has two brothers and one sister living, with two brothers and a father who passed on. Her mother lives in Ohio with her sister. Being very family-oriented, Kristine looks forward to the Fourth of July as she has a big family reunion that is held at her place every year. This means she has a house full, along with several planned activities such as kayaking and several family members camping out in her yard.

When it comes to hobbies, Kristine has several. She is passionate about being outdoors. Considering her home to be “my sanctuary,” she had sixty-two pots of flowers in her yard last year in addition to other gardens. As she says, “I can go a little overboard with my yard.” She also enjoys kayaking and took up golfing last year, about which she says, “I became addicted to golfing after I started,” so it is now added to her long slate of activities. She and her husband, Joe, also own Harley-Davidson motorcycles, so they try to fit in as much riding as they can. They actually go with a group to Sturgis every few years and rent an air B&B with friends during the week. During the winter months, she fits in time for cross-country skiing. For her fiftieth birthday, Joe bought her a fiftieth anniversary Camaro that she refers to as; “my baby,” so time is also allocated to keeping it immaculate along with some time on the road.  As you can see, Kristine does not let any moss grow under her feet.

As a relatively new team member, she is already making an impact as we welcome Kristine and look forward to her helping us fulfill the Vantage Plastics’ Mission of Forming Better Lives, Forming Solutions, and Forming Sustainable Futures. 

Experience the thriving work environment at Vantage Plastics, where positivity and professionalism flourish. Our exceptional team is the cornerstone of our success, and we invite you to be a part of it. Don’t miss out—apply today and join the Vantage Plastics team!