Di inspires school girls to fly high in industry

Citation

(2009), "Di inspires school girls to fly high in industry", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 81 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.2009.12781cab.028

Di inspires school girls to fly high in industry

Article Type: University and research news From: Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology: An International Journal, Volume 81, Issue 3

Di Carter, a Materials Development Engineer at Cheshire-based Senior Aerospace BWT, is encouraging other females to pursue high-flying careers in industry.

She told schoolgirls that modern industry is not just about jobs for the boys when she addressed the recent Challenging Stereotypes event in Manchester, UK.

Di joined other women who are excelling in the world of science, manufacturing, engineering, and construction to show 300 schoolgirls the exciting career opportunities available in sectors traditionally dominated by males.

“Why should boys have all the fun?” said Di. “Engineering is a great career for both males and females, especially if you are nosey and like investigating things and figuring out how stuff works. In my current role, I’m a lone female engineer in an office with 18 male engineers and that’s fairly typical. It’s a great shame that girls are shunning engineering as a career option and turning their backs on what is a really interesting and rewarding job.”

Di told the 11-12 year old girls that they too can make their way in industry and talked to them about her role which involves carrying out quality and environmental tests on many different components used in aircraft. She showed them a manifold (pictured) for a next generation helicopter. This helps create low-air pressure conditions in the helicopter cabin and is one of the products she helps develop.

“Engineers tend to work for businesses which trade internationally so the opportunities for foreign travel are excellent,” added Di. “I have travelled extensively with work to France, Holland, Canada, USA, and have a trip to Florida lined up next month. I can honestly say that in my job every day’s different and I always look forward to going to work each morning.”

The Challenging Stereotypes event at North Manchester High School for Girls was designed to raise the aspirations of the girls by introducing them to positive female role models from a variety of industrial careers. It was run by The Manufacturing Institute, a charity dedicated to promoting manufacturing excellence, and Education Business Solutions.

It forms part of the Manufacturing Institute’s Make It in Manufacturing Campaign (www.makeit.org.uk) which aims to promote manufacturing as an exciting and rewarding career destination and recruit the new talent into the sector.

Nicola Eagleton-Crowther, Make It campaign Manager for The Manufacturing Institute, said: “Our speakers demonstrated the fantastic opportunities available to women in modern industry – not just on the technical side, but in business support areas such as marketing, sales and design. The government has recently stated that the UK’s top future jobs will come from a renaissance in manufacturing and the expansion of knowledge-based industries, such as engineering, so we want girls to have an equal opportunity to access the best jobs.”