Rico Ruffino is a lead instructor and researcher in sustainable design methodologies and instructional faculty for Principles of Sustainable Product Development, Product Visualization, and the Sustainable Product Development Capstone.

His research and applied efforts concentrate on low-impact material integration and resource-efficient product life cycles. Ruffino founded the Sustainable Design and Testing Service Center, an interdisciplinary hub providing corporate partners with technical analysis, performance testing, and sustainable product development protocols.

Currently, he leads the development and commissioning of an advanced renewable-materials technology design lab at the Hodges Wood Products Facility. This experimental research and fabrication facility incorporates cutting-edge prototyping technologies to evaluate eco-friendly, human-centered product designs, optimize digital fabrication workflows, and minimize resource waste during prototyping.

His professional affiliations include active participation in the Industrial Design Society of America (IDSA) and the Sustainable Furnishings Council (SFC), where he collaborates with industry-partnered working groups to examine, measure, and deploy innovations in renewable materials across the furnishings sector.
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• SMT 109 Introduction to Sustainable Packaging
• SMT 207 Principles of Sustainable Product Development Lecture
• SMT 217 Principles of Sustainable Product Development Laboratory
• SMT 307 Product Visualization
• SMT 407 Sustainable Product Development Capstone

• Rico Ruffino (Co-PI): “Valorization of Ligno-Nanocellulose in Packaging (VaLiNa Pack).” McIntire Stennis, NC State University; 2020-2024 – $10,000.
• Rico Ruffino (PI): “Augmented Reality Sustainable Process.” Virtual Tours DELTA Express Grant, NC State University; 2023-2024 – $2,000.
• Rico Ruffino (Co-PI): “Unraveling the value tensions of sustainability with EML.” EUFD National Workshop 2024 – $36,000.
• Rico Ruffino (PI): “Expeditious Container Project.” Civil-Military Innovation Institute Inc. (CMI2) – United States Department of Defense (USDOD); 2023-2024 – $255,870.
• Internal Funding – DELTA Exploratory Grant – “Illuminate Circularity: Innovative 3D Video Scanning for Design Narratives in Forest Ecosystems.” Immersive Learn, NC State University; Rico Ruffino (Lead PI) – $8,000
• Rico Ruffino (PI): “40 mm Counter-UAS Material Optimization.” Civil-Military Innovation Institute Inc. (CMI2) – United States Department of Defense (USDOD); 2026-2027 – $399,598.