Jeremy S. Weinstein

For his record of outstanding accomplishments as an engineering leader and top manufacturing executive in a premier American company, the Schools of Engineering are proud to present the Distinguished Engineering Alumnus Award to Jeremy S. Weinstein.

Vice President
Refrigeration and Room Air Control
Manufacturing and Technology
Whirlpool Corporation
MSIE '68, PhD '71

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On being a student

I came to Purdue for graduate school in the mid-sixties. There was a lot going on in the world and in our country, and although there wasn't much time to get involved in demonstrations, it was almost impossible not to be involved in discussions, listening to speakers, and so on. Vietnam and civil rights were the burning issues of the time. Nobody could escape that. It added an overall excitement and flavor to my four years at Purdue.

I did research in the basement of the old Michael Golden Laboratories. Many nights I worked and studied there by myself. Not many people came down there! It was pretty primitive, not at all like a modern research institution. The first time I took my wife there, she said it looked like a dungeon.

My major professor was Moshe Barash. He was born in Eastern Europe, went to school in England and Israel, and traveled all over the world. He is an interesting, independent, far-ranging thinker. He got me thinking of the world in ways I never had before. He has very high standards for research and scholarship, and I've always looked up to him.

 

The greatest thing I learned at Purdue was to examine issues and situations independently and to address complex problems in an orderly, systematic way. I learned to pursue independent paths wherever they led. I received a basic grounding in critical evaluation-in getting the facts right and in getting answers to questions-that has stood me in good stead all my life.

On career and family

I grew up in New York City and went to undergraduate school in that area. I never had much contact with folks from Fortune 100 companies, and I never saw myself having a long-term career with a big company, let alone being a vice president for a big company. I always thought I would work for a small company or do research. So my career with Whirlpool-which is about as great a company as there is-is very different from anything I ever knew or grew up with.

My family is precious, and they are more important than any business achievements of mine. I've raised three daughters, who are all in college now. And I've been married 25 years-these days that's quite an accomplishment!

On the role of universities

Throughout my career, especially in the last 10 to 15 years, I've been associated with advisory committees to different universities. I feel the links between companies like Whirlpool and universities are very important. We can help each other in ways we don't even know. The stronger we make those links, the more nourishment we can draw from each other.

Universities play a vital role in American competitiveness. The only way we can participate in a world economy is with people who have world-class skills. Purdue has been at the leading edge in teaching students these things. It's constantly open to rest of world and should never let up on that.

 

1993:

Named vice president of refrigeration and room air control manufacturing and technology.

1992:

Named Whirlpool's vice president of refrigeration manufacturing and technology. Responsible for profitability of North American refrigeration business totaling more than $1 billion.

1989:

Named vice president for operations and planning. Initiated "total quality management" effort and developed industry-leading "Quality Express" distribution system. Helped reorganize Whirlpool's manufacturing facilities to consolidate production of one product family at one location.

1988-89:

Group director of manufacturing services. Planned manufacturing operations for entire North American Appliance Group. Started up Whirlpool's first "Maquiladora" subassembly plant in Mexico. Developed Whirlpool's "North American manufacturing strategy."

1982:

Named division director of manufacturing engineering at Findlay, Ohio, division, with 2,200 employees. Supervised $100 million product/process redesign project and oversaw development of New Generation dishwasher facility.

1979:

Named manager of process and industrial engineering at Marion, Ohio, division. Instituted successful cost-reduction and productivity-improvement efforts.

1976:

Appointed manager of production, scheduling, and management information systems at Marion division. Introduced new control techniques to reduce in-process inventory at the 2,000-employee, $500 million operation.

1972-76:

Manager of business planning for Whirlpool's Laundry Group.

1970-72:

Research engineer for Whirlpool's Research and Engineering Center. Developed first computer-based testing systems for quality control of refrigerators and air conditioners.

BSME '66, City College of New York; MSIE '68, PhD '71, Purdue.