When a Plexus representative came to the Purdue campus in 2023, he was looking for more, and that's what he got. For over a year, Engineers at Plexus have been partnering with Purdue in their sustainability endeavors.

Who is Plexus?

Since 1979, Plexus has been partnering with companies to create the products that build a better world. Headquartered in Wisconsin, Plexus is dedicated to providing Design and Development, Supply Chain Solutions, New Product Introduction, Manufacturing and Sustaining Services. Its 20,000 dedicated team members around the world deliver customer service excellence to leading companies by providing innovative, comprehensive solutions throughout a product’s lifecycle.

Rachael Barker, Plexus’ Global Manager of Sustainability Solutions, worked directly with Purdue EEE in organizing the partnership.

“There is growing interest worldwide to figure out what sustainability means from a product development standpoint. There is a lot of information out there, but what do we do with it?” Barker says. “We needed to know what we could do and the best way to do it. We contacted Purdue to help answer questions like this.”

Purdue EEE Steps In

Through the subsequent partnership, Purdue EEE professors consulted, taught, and empowered a team of Plexus’ engineers. Professor Inez Hua headed the project along with EEE professors Fu Zhao, John Howarter, and  John W. Sutherland.

“Before doing anything concrete, we had several scoping sessions. We determined that the first step was to teach them more about the science of sustainability.” Hua says.

They decided to host a series of virtual courses for a select group of 25 to 30 Plexus Engineers taught by the four professors. Each brought their expertise in areas such as biodiversity, water, the global carbon cycle, bio-based materials, life-cycle assessment, and industrial sustainability.

“The professors did a great job making the content engaging. At the end of the courses, we had a follow up Q&A where we tied it all together and were able to ask questions relating to what we are doing here at Plexus. That discussion was really encouraging and validating,” Barker shares.

Moving Forward

A year later, the partnership is far from over. Hua shares her hope that “the curriculum was a foundation for a longer-term partnership.”

“This partnership is very exciting. Helping businesses, even those whose core mission is not necessarily sustainability, do things that are good for the planet is so important. We have a lot to offer corporations in terms of curriculum and research project partnerships,” Hua shares.

EEE currently partners with over a dozen local and global companies each year through Senior Design. Every EEE undergraduate student completes a senior design project researching a topic or issue requested by a corporate sponsor. Hua and the Purdue team have suggested continuing the partnership through research opportunities like these.

“Inez introduced various funding opportunities to us, encouraging us to identify ongoing activities that could be developed into projects for proposal submissions. She is helping us see clear steps toward building a more sustainable company,” Barker says.

Building a Better World

As a link between customers, vendors, and sub-contractors, Plexus has an opportunity to make small drops that create big ripples. And that is its vision: to “help create the products that build a better world.”

It’s not just Plexus, a better world is also what Purdue Environmental and Ecological Engineering has in mind. By bringing academia and industry together, the partnership focused on moving both parties toward that mission.

Barker summarized the success of the partnership well when she said, “We feel enabled to figure out what we can do better. We have a solid groundwork to expand on and to continue integrating sustainability into the organization. From a product impact standpoint, I’m confident that what we do moving forward at Plexus will make a big difference for our customers, people and the planet.”