Kayleigh Hogan

2020 STEP Ahead Emerging Leader

ECUI Mechanical Asset Engineer
Covestro LLC

Manufacturing requires the balancing of operational goals with technical and practical solutions in a safe and productive environment.  The challenge to consistently achieve all of these aspects while working as part of a team makes manufacturing endlessly challenging but extremely rewarding.

After quickly proving her technical expertise during her first Covestro assignments, Kayleigh was recruited to join the site’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC), a voluntary role she unhesitatingly took on in addition to her day-to-day responsibilities. Kayleigh is one of the youngest members of the EOC and yet promptly became the group’s go-to expert for dispersion modeling, a highly valued skill that allows the EOC team to accurately assess chemical release scenarios, helping first responders prepare to safely manage possible incidents.

In 2018, Kayleigh transitioned to her current position as an asset engineer in the site’s Environmental Control, Utilities and Infrastructure unit. There, she manages a $14+ million maintenance budget and leads important capital projects. Kayleigh’s innovative approach to problem-solving has been very helpful in situations like the recent inspection of two essential underwater culverts. A traditional inspection would have forced a closing of both lines, disrupting operations and incurring high costs. But Kayleigh relentlessly researched inspection companies until she found one able to complete the inspection while the culverts were active, using an innovative sonar device.

Kayleigh has informally mentored several less-experienced female engineers during her time at Covestro. Today, she mentors more engineers as part of a two-year job rotation program there, giving her plenty of opportunities to teach and learn from them.

Kayleigh also shares her mentorship skills with the community by teaching fifth-graders at the local wetlands center. Her own interest in science was inspired and nurtured by her parents early on, who both led successful careers in STEM. In their honor, she now ignites that same spark for the next generation, helping students discover the joy of science through hands-on learning. An introvert herself, Kayleigh finds it especially rewarding when she is able to engage the quieter kids, getting them to open up and ask questions.