Executive Committee

Paige is a senior from Athens, Georgia, studying Mechanical Engineering with a minor in Law and Society. She is the current President of PMEA, and has previously served as Treasurer and Professional Development Committee Head. This past summer, Paige worked as a Capital Equipment Valuation Intern at EY where she combined and applied engineering and corporate finance concepts to value and strategically advise on clients' machinery and equipment assets. Previously, Paige worked at Caterpillar as a Corporate Engineering Intern in the Turbocharger Applications Team of the Large Power Systems Division where she gained experience in new product development, cost reduction, capacity improvements, and product improvement. Outside of PMEA, Paige instructs ME 199: How Stuff Works, mentors FYE students in the Mentors and Mentees Program for the Women in Engineering Program, is a member of Kappa Alpha Theta Fraternity, is a member of Pi Tau Sigma, and volunteers with the Outreach Committee of Society of Women Engineers. In her free time, Paige enjoys fly fishing, baking, running, hiking, playing piano, visiting national parks, and water skiing. After graduation, Paige will be attending University of Georgia’s School of Law to become an intellectual property attorney.

Akshay Kakkkad is a Junior from Austin, TX majoring in Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University with a minor in Intellectual Property Law. At Purdue, he is a member of the Purdue Electric Racing Vehicle Dynamics team where he works with a team to create a suspension and steering system for optimal lap timing. Last summer, he interned with Audi as a Engineering Intern for the launch of the Audi Q5. He’ll be interning this summer with Procter&Gamble R&D. He also is a part of Alpha Tau Omega, a nationally recognized leadership development fraternity. Akshay is the Vice President for Purdue Mechanical Engineering Ambassadors. As well, he is a part of Purdue Old Masters, where he is on the central committee. In his free time, he enjoys pickleball, basketball, golf, and spending time with friends and family.

Tanuj Basu is a junior from Anaheim Hills, California, majoring in Mechanical Engineering and minoring in Economics. This past summer, Tanuj worked at Rolls-Royce as a Manufacturing Engineering intern in their Turbines department. He worked with electrical discharge machining to create film-cooling holes and seal slots for high-pressure turbine blades and vanes. Previously, Tanuj was a Research & Development intern at T45 Labs, creating fixtures to test innovative IVUS catheter beam accuracy and pulse echo signal. Tanuj is the treasurer for PMEA, as well as one of the course coordinators and instructors for ME 199: “How Stuff Works”. This semester, he will be conducting research at Zucrow Laboratories under Dr. Terrence Meyer, working in advanced propulsion with a focus on rotation detonation engines. Previously, Tanuj served as the Aerodynamics Design Co-Lead for Purdue Formula SAE, using CFD to analyze aerodynamic performance and create iterative designs. In his free time, Tanuj enjoys playing and watching sports, hiking, traveling, drawing, and spending time with friends and family.

Anuva Borgaonkar is a Junior from the Twin Cities, Minnesota, majoring in Mechanical Engineering with a minor in Business Economics. This past summer, Anuva was a Project Management intern at Burns & McDonnell. She worked on major power distribution projects for Xcel Energy. She helped create a Power BI dashboard for financial reporting to help start up the Distribution Project Management Office.

Previously, Anuva was a Manufacturing Engineering intern at Medtronic. At Medtronic, she was a part of the Pharmaceutical Operations division and the Surgical Technology portfolio. On the Pharmaceutical Operations side, Anuva created new KPI trackers for daily, weekly, and monthly manufacturing goals. She also led time studies to find and reduce lead times for a campus-wide cost-saving event. She created and updated installation qualifications for two lung catheter lines in the Surgical Technology portfolio. At Purdue, Anuva is an undergraduate researcher at Kenttamaa Labs, a chemistry research lab focused on mass spectrometry. She is also an active member of Delta Delta Delta sorority as the Director of Member Finances, a member of the Women in Mechanical Engineering club, and is an ME290 mentor. In her free time, Anuva enjoys baking, working out, finding new restaurants, and playing Block Blast.