CSECO President and CEO Tony Harris, manufacturer of the Buster and other contraband detection equipment, was recently honored by Purdue University with an Honorary Doctorate in Engineering.
Recognizing his exceptional accomplishments in the field of engineering, Purdue University conferred a special Honorary Doctorate on Anthony “Tony” Harris at the May 11 graduation. The Honorary Ph.D is the ultimate degree given by the university to an alumnus. Harris is President and CEO of Campbell/Harris Security Equipment Co. (CSECO); manufacturer of the Buster, a contraband detection tool used by US Customs and Border Patrol agents around the country.
Harris’s Honorary Doctorate is the culmination of a lifetime of engineering achievement that began at Purdue with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 1975. He was one of the six original founding members of the Society of Black Engineers while there, and was personally responsible for turning the SBE into the national organization that it is now. He remains faithful to his engineering roots and to training and supporting young engineers. He still works with the NSBE closely, and is in fact chairman of its National Advisory Board.
Along with his two degrees from Purdue, he also graduated from Harvard Business School with an MBA in 1979. This combination engineering and business background has helped him to be a successful business man all his life, including leading CSECO, which among other detection technology also has the premier contraband detection systems in the world.
Harris has held several other high level leadership positions before purchasing CSECO, which Patrick J. Campbell founded in 1984. He was a Calpine Corporation vice president. Before Calpine, he filled two offices at Pacific Gas and Electric Energy Services (PG&E): vice president of national account services and western region sales, and vice president of marketing and sales. He was also president of Standard Pacific Gas Line, Inc.
Harris has an entrepreneurial spirit, and has been in other business ventures. He was president and CEO of StyleChoice.com, a Silicon Valley start-up, and Sonoma Ford/Lincoln Mercury.
He is proud to be an active member of his local community. He serves on the board of directors for San Francisco JAZZ Center Foundation as well as the One Pacific Coast Bank Advisory Board. When he relaxes from running the leading contraband detection equipment company, he appreciates jazz, modern art, and California wine and winemaking.
