Camille Loperfido's interest in the plastics industry came from her father, who was a technical director for a custom injection molder.
Her first step in the industry was joining Tessy Plastics Corp. as a statistical process control analyst. She developed a love for the data analytics side of the business and in nearly 20 years has worked her way up to senior leadership as the director of quality.
In her role as the director of quality, Loperfido handles quality management functions, providing leadership to the quality department, ensuring safety and operational policies are met, working as a liaison with external parties and more.
One career highlight for Loperfido was the design, install and validation of a major consumer health care program of more than 14 injection molds and two high-speed assembly lines.
"The Tessy customer was in a dire situation and our team was able to support an expedited timeline while checking every box along the way," said Judson Vann, vice president of sales at Tessy, a custom injection molder and contract manufacturer based in Skaneateles, N.Y.
Loperfido also helped to transform a 400,000-square-foot medical molding, assembly and technical manufacturing facility during the pandemic. The project would have taken at least two years, but it was completed in less than 18 weeks.
She has an associate degree in mechanical technology and is currently working on a bachelor's degree in data analytics.
"The plastics industry has certain stigmas that Camille has worked hard to overcome and change throughout her career," Vann said. "Being a senior leader in the medical device industry with a company that will not sacrifice the delivery of quality parts on time is a mold that Camille is proud to have broken."
Q: What is your current challenge at work?
Vann, on behalf of Loperfido: Camille has been focusing the majority of her time on building and supporting her team while ensuring they have the proper resources and tools to keep up with the ever-changing environment that we live in. We are facing scope changes and stricter customer requirements on a daily basis, and Camille is developing strategies to ensure that her team, Tessy and our customers are in the best position moving forward. Our quality reputation speaks for itself amongst the industry and the challenge she faces daily is ensuring that we stay ahead of the pack.
Q: Who is your mentor or someone you look up to?
Vann, on behalf of Loperfido: Easily her mother and father. Her father is a primary reason that she is a member of the injection molding industry as he was working as a custom molder for as long as she can remember. More importantly, Camille saw what her mother and father went through to provide the best life possible for her and her siblings. They made a major decision to transition to the U.S. in her younger years and it was amazing to see the lengths her parents went to for their family and to ensure that she and her brother and sister were set up for a good life.
Q: What is the best advice you have ever received?
Vann, on behalf of Loperfido: Camille lives each day telling herself to lead by example. Coming from the lower ranks of the quality organization and spending time in each role along the way has really allowed her to fully understand what impact leadership has on so many different peoples' daily job functions. She uses the motto to keep herself on track and to not forget where she started at Tessy almost 20 years ago.