In this position, you may be asked to eliminate or cut down on waste and make processes more efficient. Tell me about your background here, and what you might do to achieve this?
Take a laptop and be prepared to show programs you've built to the interviewer. This is especially important if you are being considered for an intern or entry position. Demonstration of your knowledge may even help you score a second interview, or better yet, the job.
"Software proficiency I've mastered in industrial engineering classes and on the job has allowed me to improve and cut out waste within facilities. For instance, programs I've used such as AutoCAD and Arena Simulation show what a layout for a manufacturing floor would look like, and the interrelation among activities for a future floor blueprint, before making it a tangible reality. Just a small tweak such as moving linear processes closer to one another is simple and can save a lot of money because it streamlines unneeded travel, something harder to implement or change once large monuments are physically installed."
