Recognising the amazing work that women engineers around the world are doing to support lives and livelihoods every day, LotusWorks is showing support this International Women in Engineering Day.
International Women in Engineering Day is an international awareness campaign to raise the profile of women in engineering and focus attention on the amazing career opportunities available to females in this exciting industry. It celebrates the outstanding achievements of women engineers throughout the world.
Commenting on Women in Engineering, Roisin, an Engineer with LotusWorks based on-site on a Lithium-Ion project in Texas, and who is one of two women working on the entire Process Design Team said “I don’t find it intimating working within a male-dominated industry the hardest thing for me was to get my colleagues to see me as a LotusWorks expert and not just a young woman.
Roisin began her career studying Civil Engineering at the University of Essex and after two years she decided to pursue a career working in design work for Price & Myers in London. In 2017, Roisin had her first encounter with LotusWorks and after a really impressive interview on a Friday evening, she was asked ‘can you design pipes here on Monday?’ after which, Roisin handed in her notice and began planning her relocation to Reno Nevada, all in the space of two weeks.
According to the Women in Engineering society as reported in March 2022, women make up 16.5% of all engineers, compared to 10.5% reported in 2010. The slight shift in statistics is showing that progress is being made within the industry, but more work yet to do. Roisin always had a keen interest in choosing engineering as her profession and her career journey to date has been busy and encompassed a lot of learning throughout her time working in major manufacturing facilities.
“I worked on the Process Design Team on-site for 18 months after which I was asked by the client to take on the role of the Main Designer on the team. From here I moved to a position as BIM Coordinator on-site for a semiconductor client after the project had come to an end, here’s when I faced a dilemma, said Roisin.
Roisin had made such an impression within the LotusWorks team with the Lithium-Ion client during her two years on the project, that the client asked LotusWorks to facilitate a move to bring her back on the team as a Process Designer. “The dilemma was almost like a double-edged sword for me. One client site was looking for me to go back to their team and progress my career and the other semiconductor client also wanted me to continue working with them as part of the LotusWorks team. I loved the fast-paced pressure at the Lithium-Ion facility, and I really wanted to get back into problem-solving and working on multiple projects with a quick turnaround, so I decided to re-join the LotusWorks team back on the Lithium project as a Process Designer.
In 2021, Roisin progressed into her current role with LotusWorks as Associate Manager of Improvement Projects, leading a team of two engineers and six designers where she is responsible for every process design project in the biggest car manufacturing facility in the world. “My team and I could be working on 30+ projects at any given time with new problems arising every day which is one of the reasons I came back to the Lithium-Ion facility.
Discussing the benefits of a career in engineering, Roisin said: “Opportunity within this industry knows no limits. It’s exciting, fast-paced, and hard work. Disregard the stigma around being a female in an engineering discipline. You can absolutely be viewed as an expert in your field and reap the rewards if you’re willing to work hard. We need more women in STEM roles. Go for it.”
