National Engineer Week: Engineering with Purpose and Real-World Impact at Kuraray America - Shelly Womack

Faced with a sudden accessibility need in her family, Shelly Womack stepped in, designing and building a wheelchair ramp so no one would miss the holidays. That mindset: practical, proactive, solutions-focused, is the same one she brings to her role as a chemical engineer every day.

This EngineersWeek, as we celebrate the theme #TransformYourFuture, Shelly Womack, Chemical Engineer at Kuraray America, Inc.’s Washington Works Plant, shows what it means to engineer with purpose.

Where It Started 
For Shelly, engineering has always been personal. “I like to solve problems, especially when it helps someone,” she says. As a kid, that meant fixing broken toys for friends. That same drive later led her to petroleum engineering at Marietta College, at the time, the most demanding program available. She was one of four women in her class. “My classmates definitely helped me get through the tough times,” she says. “I didn’t want to stop just because it was hard.”

Boots on the Ground 
At Kuraray America, Inc.’s Washington Works site in West Virginia, Shelly supports the production of polyvinyl butryal (PVB)interlayer for laminated glass, the critical material inside windshields and architectural glass that holds together on impact, protecting the people behind it. Her work goes far beyond a single task, spanning process monitoring, hazard analysis, and cross-functional collaboration across engineering disciplines. “It’s never just one piece,” she says. “You have to look at how everything works together.”

Behind the Scenes 
Beyond product safety, Shelly also helps drive sustainability efforts at the site, from closed-loop water recycling to cross-functional Kaizen events focused on reduce, reuse, recycle for water, waste, and utilities. It’s hands-on, collaborative work that directly supports Kuraray’s operational sustainability goals. “It’s always exciting to take a deep dive into a process, take it apart to see how it works, and then try to put it back together better.”

Investing in the Next Generation 
Outside the plant, Shelly coaches high school rowing and mentors engineering interns each year.

Her advice to anyone curious about the field: “Engineering touches every bit of every product and process, every part of your life.”

It’s the same mindset she carries into the future. As Kuraray approaches its centennial in June 2026, she puts it simply: “Engineering is about what’s next. In 100 years, we will still be inventing better ways forward.”