Shawn Lucas
Ampacet Coporation, Manager, Analytical Services
Chemistry B.S., 1990
Chemistry M.S., Indiana State University, 1994
MBA, Indiana State University, 2000
My first job out of Indiana State University in 1990 was with Great
Lakes Chemical Corporation, West Lafayette, IN. They have since been
merged to form a larger chemical company called Chemtura. I worked
exclusively on the chemical process to produce the artifical sweetener
Splenda, and spent 3 months on a plant start-up.
I left after one year and relocated back to Terre Haute and began my
current career in plastics with Tredegar Film Products. Tregedar
produces polyethylene sheeting used for diaper backsheet, agriculture
films and other types of packaging. Plastics incorporate a wide range
of finer chemicals used to produce physical and chemical properties
desirable to the end-use application. My primary responsibility was
testing the properties through physical and analytical means. While at
Tredegar I began working on my Master's degree in Chemistry with Indiana
State, graduating in 1994.
I began working with Ampacet Corporation that same year. Ampacet is a
supplier to Tredegar and as such we do formulation development work for
plastics property enhancement. This also includes many pigment
additions to add vibrant colors to plastics. I have since completed my
MBA with Indiana State University, graduating in 2000. While I still
maintain a discipline in the sciences by managing our analytical lab, I
am also doing more work with downstream customers in the form of
marketing, technical service, and technical sales.
I think the unique and competitive advantage to a degree in chemistry is
that employers perceive you as a problem solver. The very nature of
choosing this major is that you will analyze data and arrive at the most
logical conclusion given the information at hand. If you have time to
perform experiments to gather more data, you will be trained how best to
utilize the time/materials. This makes us perfectly suited for ANY
job...not just in the sciences.
|
