Faculty

David S. Veech became Executive Director of the Institute for Lean Systems after serving as a Lecturer and the Manager of the University of Kentucky’s Lean Systems Certification Programs.  Mr. Veech and his colleagues built the University of Kentucky program into a globally recognized program which the Society of Manufacturing Engineers dubbed “the model for manufacturing engineering education in the US.”  As the manager of certification programs, Mr. Veech oversaw the growth of that program to a $2.5 million per year revenue generator for the University of Kentucky.   Not only did Mr. Veech manage the program, he was also responsible for developing and teaching certification courses as well as executive courses and academic courses.  He continues to develop teach courses and topics related to suggestion systems, employee involvement, team building, and creating satisfying workplaces. 

Prior to joining the University, Mr. Veech served as a career officer in the United States Army, first as an Infantry officer from 1981 to 1991, then, from 1992 to 1998, as a systems acquisition officer in the Army Acquisition Corps contracting for and managing multi-billion dollar weapon systems development and production programs.  During this time, Mr. Veech worked daily with defense contractors who were trying to put lean to work.  He served as Operations Officer for the Defense Contract Management Command’s offices at Lockheed Martin Vought Systems, where he oversaw the development and production of the missile systems they built for the government.  From 1998 to his retirement in 2001, Mr. Veech taught Production and Quality Management for the Defense Acquisition University where he introduced an entire lean curriculum to the basic and intermediate level courses in this career field.

Mr. Veech earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from Western Kentucky University, and a Master of Science degree in Industrial Management from Clemson University.  He is currently a Ph.D. candidate studying Educational and Industrial/Organizational Psychology at Capella University.