People of McMaster celebrates the incredible people who help make McMaster a great place to work, learn, teach and conduct research. Click here for the rest of the series.
Since it became operational in 1959, McMaster’s nuclear reactor has carried a promise inside its walls. Built not just for the research of its time, but for discoveries still decades away, the reactor was designed with room to grow.
“When the reactor was built, they had a vision for future research,” explains Facility Services construction project manager Sindhuja Iyer. “And right now, I’m supporting a project at the reactor that will allow for new research.”
In many ways, this project mirrors the project manager herself.
Iyer would never claim the comparison, but her own life has been defined by that same belief that there is always more she can do.
With every degree earned after her son went to bed, every industry explored and every new role taken on for the challenge, Iyer continues to make new connections and discover what’s possible.
Your career path has been incredible. How did you find your way into construction?
I didn’t want to settle into one industry without exploring others. My first job in Canada was as a front desk agent at a hotel in Toronto. I loved hospitality — the glamour, the people — but after a few years, I tried banking, accounting, even IT.
I hated IT, but that’s where I learned about construction via supporting industry software. My dad worked in construction, so it was always in the family. I reached out to everyone I could, took a job as a project coordinator just to get experience, and worked my way up through residential and commercial projects before eventually landing at McMaster.
Tell us about your role at McMaster.
I’m a construction projects manager in Facility Services, overseeing capital projects across campus. Right now, I’m managing a major project at the nuclear reactor, and my job is to procure the consultants and contractors needed for the work and ensure everything runs smoothly.
We’re going to do this work while the reactor is operational. So, this is not a very standard project where we operate on our own schedule because we have to work within the nuclear operation schedule as well. We’re working with their regular shutdowns, so I expect the total lifespan of the project to take two years.
From what I understand, you’re very experienced with long-term projects, including recently finishing a master’s degree while working full-time and raising a child. How did you manage that?
It was a two-and-a-half-year program in Engineering and Public Policy, but that timeline didn’t work for me. All my classes were after 6 p.m., I depended on my family to care for my son, some nights I didn’t see him at all. It was challenging, but I pushed through and completed the entire program in less than 2 years.
Where does that determination come from?
My mom. Nothing was ever good enough for her, if I got an A, she’d ask why not an A+. That drive stuck with me. Even now, if I told her I got into a PhD program, she’d say, “Let’s talk when you finish.”
Speaking of a PhD, you’re doing one right now?
Yes, in the Faculty of Science. My research focuses on therapeutic landscapes, how retirement homes can be designed to feel familiar and improve mental health outcomes. Older adults often struggle in these spaces because so little about them feels like home. I want to change that. I don’t want my work to sit on a shelf, I want it to make a real meaningful impact.
What do you enjoy most about working at McMaster?
The collaboration. Even on the reactor project, I’m the only woman on the team, and everyone else is a PhD or postdoc. Never once have they made me feel small. Plus, the university invests in employees — education, time off and skill development. It’s amazing.
If you could swap roles with anyone at McMaster for a day?
President Susan Tighe. I’d love to see how she manages everything: teaching, leadership, all of it.
Sounds like you already manage very well. What do you do with all that free time you have outside of working full-time, being a parent and pursuing your PhD?
I build furniture. Everything in my house is handmade. I love renovating, painting and recently started sewing, though that’s not going well yet!
Do you ever relax?
Relaxing has never come naturally to me. If I try to sit still for even 10 minutes, I jump into a new project and keep myself moving.