Purdue MEM Students work with Egyptian diagnostics startup Reme-D to build scalable customer support system
A team of students in Purdue University’s Master of Engineering Management (MEM) program partnered with Egyptian diagnostics startup Reme-D to develop a customer feedback and support system designed to improve communication, streamline issue resolution and support the company's continued growth across the Middle East and Africa.
Reme-D provides laboratory solutions and PCR testing kits to clinical laboratories throughout the region. As the company expanded rapidly, its customer service processes struggled to keep pace, relying heavily on manual communication and relationship-based issue tracking. Purdue MEM students developed a structured solution that transformed how customer concerns are collected, prioritized and resolved.
The project team included Pranav Singh, who led market research and analysis; Venonshya Sunder, a recent graduate who managed the project; and Nader Almaskeen, who led operations and research.
“Our students demonstrated exactly what engineering management is about, combining technical expertise with business strategy to solve complex, real-world challenges,” said Eric VandeVoorde, senior director of MEM. “By helping Reme-D build scalable systems instead of simply addressing immediate problems, they created a solution that positions the company for sustainable growth while giving our students invaluable international consulting experience.”
The team designed a customer feedback platform and an internal dashboard that routes customer inquiries based on priority. Their solution introduced a Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 classification framework with clearly defined service-level agreements (SLAs), reducing response times and eliminating uncertainty around issue ownership.
In addition to improving customer support, the system converts unstructured customer complaints into a searchable dataset that provides Reme-D’s research and development team with valuable field intelligence. The new process also establishes the operational accountability needed to support the company's expansion into additional markets.
One of the team’s greatest challenges was encouraging adoption among laboratory technicians who traditionally reported issues by telephone.
“We recognized early that changing customer behavior would be one of the biggest hurdles,” Singh said. “To reduce friction, we distributed the reporting system through simple web links and designed the pilot around customers submitting issues they had already experienced. That approach made the transition much more natural.”
The project also operated under significant budget constraints. Rather than relying on expensive software, the students developed an initial prototype using Google Forms and created a stage-gated implementation roadmap in which each phase of development could be funded through efficiency gains generated by earlier improvements.
For Singh, the project reflected why he chose Purdue’s MEM program.
“I chose Purdue because it offers the ideal blend of engineering expertise and business strategy, bridging my technical background with my managerial aspirations,” he said. “The curriculum has expanded my understanding of data management and strategic decision-making through specialized coursework and industry-connected experiences. This project gave me the opportunity to apply those skills in a meaningful way while preparing for a career in healthcare and pharmaceutical consulting.”
Singh said he plans to begin his career as a data analyst and business consultant, with long-term ambitions of gaining experience at a global consulting firm before launching his own consultancy focused on technology, healthcare and sustainability.
Almaskeen said the project reinforced the value of engineering management in solving business challenges.
“After working on the NEOM City project in Saudi Arabia, I realized that technical expertise alone is not enough to make large-scale projects successful,” he said. “Strong leadership and management are equally important, which is why Purdue’s MEM program was the right fit for me.”
Although he considered engineering management programs at several universities, including Penn State, Rice University and the University of Tennessee, Almaskeen said Purdue stood out because of its flexible curriculum, emphasis on professional development and supportive faculty.
“Working with Reme-D has been one of the most valuable experiences in the program,” Almaskeen said. “It allowed me to apply what I’ve learned in operations, process improvement and research to a real company facing real challenges. Collaborating with an international startup strengthened my teamwork, communication and problem-solving skills while demonstrating how engineering management can create meaningful business impact.”
The collaboration illustrates Purdue MEM's emphasis on experiential learning by connecting students with industry partners to solve operational challenges while delivering measurable business value. For Reme-D, the project provides a scalable customer support framework that improves service quality today while laying the foundation for continued international growth.