Summer 2009 Newsletter
Q & A with Ila Sharma, M.S., M.B.A.
This issue’s featured expert is Ila Sharma. Ila has been with Chemir for 8 years. She is currently one of our Directors of Technology, working with clients to define and design their projects. We sat down with Ila to discuss her experiences at Chemir and her world travels.
Q. What did you do before coming to Chemir?
A. After earning my masters degree in analytical chemistry from Purdue University, in West Lafayette, Indiana, I worked for Industrial Testing Laboratories in St. Louis, MO. With ITL, I held various job responsibilities such as Project Manager, Quality Assurance Manager and Client Services Manager. When Chemir purchased ITL in 2001, I continued managing projects and eventually became a Director.
Q. What are your favorite types of projects and why?
A. I really love the bizarre ones. I enjoy the difficult challenge in coming up with a sound project design that will provide solutions to the client’s unusual problem.
Q. What are some memorable projects that you have worked on?
There are quite a few projects that are memorable. There was one project where we had to deformulate a dye-release system for anti-theft devices in banks. We had to take it apart and figure out how the complex system worked.
Another one I remember involved the identification of a contaminant in a medical device mold, causing discoloration. We identified the contaminant and provided a toxicological risk assessment report to the client.
Q. What do you like best about working at Chemir?
A. Every project is challenging and it takes a team to put that smile on a clients face when we succeed – gratification of the hard work!
Q. I know you enjoy traveling around the world. What are some of your favorite places to go?
I have so many favorites!
- The peaks of Kilimanjaro – Nairobi, Kenya
- Luangwa Valley National Park, Zambia
- The streams and hills of Kashmir
- The gold markets of Kuwait
- The St. Peters Dome (from the inside) in Italy
- Loews Wharf in Maryland
- The Arch in St. Louis