Portfolio · Updated October 2026
Krishna Madupalli
Mechanical engineer. Production, Lean and cutting tools.
5+ years in manufacturing: CNC turning, production planning, cutting tools and finding the real cause of rejects.
Available from 12 January 2027
Full name: Madupalli Venkata Krishna Rao
01About
Hello, I am Krishna.
I learned manufacturing the practical way: on CNC turning machines, in shift planning, in audits and on improvement projects. Along the way I saw that most quality problems start in the process, not at final inspection. That is why I like Lean and root-cause work, and why my MSc dissertation asks whether machine data can stop scrap before it happens.
I am finishing my MSc at the University of East London, and I am looking for a role where I can keep that practical view and take on more responsibility.
- Based in
- London, UK
- Studying
- MSc Mechanical Engineering, University of East London
- Open to roles
- Across manufacturing and engineering, such as production, process, quality, planning, project coordination and cutting-tools application engineering
02Results
What I have delivered
- 15%shorter cycle times
I matched cutting tools to the customer's material, machine and job.
PV Enterprises · 2024–25 - 30%lower tooling costs
The same work, with a better choice of tool.
PV Enterprises · 2024–25 - 36%more output per shift
110 to 150 units a shift once the bottlenecks were mapped and fixed.
Kusalava · 2021 - 90%equipment audit score
A critical honing machine that used to keep breaking down.
Kusalava · 2021
03Experience
Where I have worked
Four roles in manufacturing, from the shop floor to cutting-tool applications. Open one for the short version of what I did.
2025–nowUniversity of East London
MSc Mechanical Engineering · 2025 to present
Back to study, with two real industry projects.
Read more
I am doing my MSc with an industrial placement year. The placements gave me a freezer capacity model at Velocity Composites and a technology landscape study for the Digital Property Market Steering Group. Both are further down this page.
2024–25PV Enterprises
Cutting Tools Application Engineer · Jan 2024 to Jan 2025
Helped customers cut faster for less: 15% shorter cycle times, 30% lower tooling costs.
Read more
I advised customers on cutting tools for CNC turning centres (Jyoti and ACE machines, Fanuc and Siemens controls), matching the tool to the material, the spindle power and the geometry of the job. That included titanium, stainless steel and cast iron. When a job showed chatter, tool wear or a poor finish, I traced the cause and followed up with SPC. I also tested new cutting-tool technology with vendors and handled customers' technical enquiries.
2022–23T&AS Design Tech Services
Associate Engineer, outsourced to Assa Abloy Curries · Jun 2022 to Nov 2023
Turned drawings into accurate orders: 100% scheduling accuracy over 18 months.
Read more
I turned engineering drawings into production orders for hollow-metal frames, reading tolerances, fabrication specifications and GD&T so the production data stayed audit-ready. When the same non-conformance kept coming back, I used 5 Whys and worked with the customer to fix it for good. I delivered 75 to 100% of monthly productivity targets.
2021–22NCL Industries
Assistant Engineer · Dec 2021 to May 2022
Kept the line moving at 95% throughput or better.
Read more
I watched output through the shift, adjusted schedules and cleared bottlenecks as they appeared. I worked closely with Quality Assurance, Maintenance and Stores so materials, tooling and equipment were ready, and I wrote the production reports and KPI summaries that management used.
2019–21Kusalava International
Assistant Engineer · May 2019 to Nov 2021
Where I learned the floor: 95% output or better for 2.5 years, plus three improvement projects.
Read more
I started on CNC turning (Jyoti and ACE machines, Fanuc and Siemens controls), then moved into shift planning and production coordination. I investigated rejects above the 2.75% threshold with Pareto, Fishbone and 5 Whys, co-wrote APQP and FMEA documents, supported IATF 16949, ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 audits, and ran the 5S, TPM and VSM projects below.
04Projects
Projects worth a closer look
Each one started with a problem on the floor. Open a project for what I did and how it ended.
01Clearing the floor
1S and 2S standardisation · Kusalava (ACMA Group) · 2020 to 2021
15+ metres of floor space reclaimed.
Open
- What happened
- I led a plant-wide rollout of Sort and Set in Order, the first two steps of 5S, across 10+ production, quality and stores areas. I defined standard maintenance routines to keep it in place.
- How it ended
- 15+ metres of usable floor space came back, and a monthly scrap-clearing schedule was adopted across the plant.
02A machine that kept stopping
Equipment Step 123 (TPM) · Kusalava (ACMA Group) · 2021
Breakdowns stopped; 90% audit score.
Open
- What happened
- A critical honing machine kept breaking down. I worked through 53 equipment abnormalities using the CLIT method (clean, lubricate, inspect, tighten) and removed hazards such as oil leaks, loose wiring and blocked access.
- How it ended
- The recurring breakdowns were eliminated and the machine scored 90% in the audit.
03Finding the bottleneck
Value stream mapping · Kusalava (ACMA Group) · 2021
Output up 36%; cycle time down about 40%.
Open
- What happened
- I mapped a multi-stage production line against the seven wastes, recording the full process flow with the maintenance, CNC programming and operations teams.
- How it ended
- Output rose from 110 to 150 units a shift and cycle time fell by about 40%.
04Planning freezer space
Velocity Composites plc, Burnley · Jul to Sep 2026 · University placement
A forecasting model, checked against real data.
Open
- What happened
- I built a model that links customer demand, supplier lead times and production use to forecast freezer capacity for aerospace composite raw materials, and checked it against real monitoring data with the Logistics team. A site visit showed that the storage location we had assumed was not the one actually in use, so I corrected the project scope.
- How it ended
- The model held up against the monitoring data, and I proposed an EOQ-based way to size purchases as a standard for the business.
05Mapping technology in property In progress
Digital Property Market Steering Group (HM Land Registry programme) · Oct 2026 to now
Finding where information is duplicated.
Open
- What is happening
- I am mapping the technology used across property transactions for estate agents, conveyancers and mortgage lenders, and looking at where information is duplicated or handled by hand. The work feeds a final report and recommendations.
05Research
My dissertation
Can machine data stop scrap before it happens?
Integrating Lean Six Sigma Principles with Industry 4.0 Technologies for Quantifiable Quality Management and Process Control. MSc dissertation, University of East London, submitted May 2026. Simulation study
I started from a problem I had met in production work: manual inspection catches drift too late. The university offered no route to on-site research, so I built the study on synthetic data modelled on a CNC turning process (a Jyoti 350 with a Fanuc 0i-F Plus controller).
The data pointed to spindle thermal expansion as the main cause of drift. I designed a 7-part trend logic that sends corrections to the controller through the Fanuc FOCAS interface, and tested it in a discrete-event simulation (Siemens Tecnomatix Plant Simulation) of 135,000 units. The work is aligned with IATF 16949 and ALCOA+ data-integrity requirements.
These are simulated results, not measured on a production line. The simulation assumes a stable environment and a Fanuc controller, so a real factory would see less.
06Skills
What I work with
- On the machineCNC turning on Fanuc and Siemens controls (Jyoti and ACE machines), choosing turning and milling tools, feeds and speeds, workholding. Materials: titanium, stainless steel and cast iron.
- QualitySupporting IATF 16949, ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 audits. Working with APQP, FMEA, PPAP, MSA and SPC. Finding root causes with Pareto, Fishbone and 5 Whys, and following through with NCR and CAPA. Reading GD&T.
- Lean5S, Kaizen, value stream mapping, TPM (CLIT) and visual management, aimed at shorter cycle times and lower cost.
- PlanningProduction planning and scheduling, capacity forecasting, EOQ stock sizing, risk assessment, health and safety, and writing SOPs.
- SoftwareAutoCAD, Excel, Word and PowerPoint, Zoho and MTTL CRM, and Siemens Tecnomatix Plant Simulation (used in my dissertation).
- LanguagesEnglish and Telugu (native).
07Education
Where I studied
| Qualification | Institution | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| MSc Mechanical Engineering with Industrial Placement YearAutomation and Robotics, Smart Industries and Digital Manufacturing, Structural Dynamics and Stability. | University of East London | Jan 2025 – Jan 2027 |
| BTech Mechanical EngineeringMetal Cutting and Machine Tools, Production Technology, Production Planning and Control. Final-year project: energy harvesting with piezoelectric transducers. | NRI Institute of Technology, Agiripalli, India | 2015 – Apr 2018 |
- Six Sigma (Learn Tube assessment)
- Design for Manufacturing Fundamentals (Geomiq Academy)
- Industrial Connections and Professional Development (LinkedIn Learning)
08Enquiry
Hiring, or just want to talk?
Tell me about the role and I will reply by email. You can also use the details at the bottom of the page.
How I use your details
I am Madupalli Venkata Krishna Rao, and I will use the details you enter here only to reply to your enquiry. They are sent to me by email and stored in my form inbox with Netlify, which hosts this site and may process data outside the UK. I will not add you to a mailing list or share your details with anyone else. I will delete your enquiry once the conversation is finished, or sooner if you ask. To ask about, correct or delete your details, email vkrmadupalli@gmail.com.