It took one year for Ray Mentzer to build the experimental apparatus central to his PhD research at Purdue. It took him two more years to get it to work. Undiscouraged, Mentzer relied on the dedication and strong work ethic imbued in the ethos of Purdue engineers to steadfastly pursue a goal despite challenges and setbacks. Now, as a Professor of Engineering Practice at Purdue, Mentzer inspires his students to do the same.

 

Mentzer’s journey back to campus came after a 28-year career with ExxonMobil where he held more than a dozen assignments with the multinational oil and gas corporation, including posts in Houston, New Orleans and London, and responsibilities across the globe. He retired in 2008 as ExxonMobil’s Safety, Health, Environment and Security Manager, having managed a team of 150 who provided safety, environmental and security support for 16 international upstream projects, each costing more than $1 billion. He then spent seven years lecturing on process safety at Texas A&M University, where he was also deeply engaged in the Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center, where he oversaw many graduate student

research projects.

 

“Executive positions require good communication, persuasion and teamwork skills as well as reliance on others when delegating,” Mentzer says. “Understanding the 80-20 rule is imperative.”

 

He joined the Purdue faculty in 2016 where he teaches the required senior-level chemical process safety course to ~170 students. He is also the Executive Director of the Purdue Process Safety and Assurance Center, one of the few centers of expertise in the country dedicated to preparing students to prevent potential disasters and equipping them for success upon entering industry. The Center has over twenty industrial sponsors and typically conducts 25 research projects a year.