DEVELOPMENT OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT RESEARCH STRATEGIC PLAN | RESEARCH AND SCHOLARSHIP
Purolator’s partnership with McMaster University will advance sustainable supply chain research
February 13, 2026 ·
Contributed by: DeGroote School of Business
Pictured at today’s launch: Khaled Hassanein, Dean, DeGroote School of Business; Claire Raposo, DeGroote MBA Student; Ricardo Costa, SVP & Chief Technology Officer, Purolator; Susan Tighe, President and Vice-Chancellor, McMaster University; Elkafi Hassini, Purolator Chair in Sustainable Logistics and Supply Chain Management and Associate Dean, DeGroote School of Business.
Purolator and McMaster University have launched the Purolator Chair in Sustainable Logistics and Supply Chain Management at McMaster’s DeGroote School of Business.
Purolator and McMaster University share a commitment to advancing sustainable logistics, fostering innovation and expanding research opportunities that deliver real‑world impact across Canada.
“This initiative brings together the best of academia and industry to turn leading-edge ideas into practical solutions that strengthen and modernize Canada’s supply chain,” said Ricardo Costa, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Purolator. “The insights from this Chair will support meaningful improvements—from enhancing routing design to reducing greenhouse gas emissions—while giving students valuable opportunities to help shape the future of national and global logistics.”
This agreement builds on a long-standing relationship between McMaster and Purolator that spans more than a decade and marks a significant step forward in experiential learning, logistics and supply chain research.
The Chair will be held by Elkafi Hassini, professor of Operations Management and associate dean of research at the DeGroote School of Business.
“This Chair will accelerate Purolator’s innovative work in sustainable logistics by bringing together industry, academic institutions, students and government to co‑design solutions that benefit communities across Canada,” said Hassini. “As Academic Lead for McMaster’s Planetary Health initiative, I’m excited to align this work with our broader mission to improve human and environmental well‑being through resilient, low‑carbon supply chains.”
Over the next five years, Hassini will lead research at the intersection of AI and data science, automation, decarbonization and workforce safety. Each year, a cohort of students from multiple universities will work directly with Purolator through embedded research projects and innovation events, with results shared through an annual Innovation Showcase.
“Our partnership with Purolator reflects a shared commitment to sustainability, innovation and meaningful collaboration between industry and academia,” said Khaled Hassanein, dean of the DeGroote School of Business. “Tackling real business problems together offers a unique learning opportunity for our students to become the kind of leaders that tomorrow’s economy demands.”
About Purolator’s Research Chair
The Purolator Chair in Sustainable Logistics and Supply Chain Management at McMaster’s DeGroote School of Business is a new partnership that represents a long-term commitment for Purolator. From 2019 to 2024, the late Professor Bernard Gendron at the Université de Montréal was the inaugural chairholder of the Purolator Chair on Data Intelligence for Logistics. Now held at McMaster University, the chair is supported by a collaborative network that includes the Smart Freight Centre. The initiative was developed through Purolator’s Digital Lab—the company’s hub for future-focused innovation—and will create opportunities for additional institutions and partners to pursue government funding and expand research in sustainable supply chain transformation.
About Purolator
Purolator Inc. is a leading integrated freight, package and logistics solutions provider. Delivering its customers’ promises since 1960, Purolator continues to expand its reach, renowned service levels and reliability to more people, more businesses and more places across Canada and around the world, utilizing 200+ facilities across Canada and 30+ branches in the United States. Purolator is committed to contributing to the well-being of the communities it serves and where more than 14,000 of its employees live, work and play.
