Celebrating Women in Engineering

As we celebrate International Women in Engineering Day 2024, we chat to Jen Parkins, our brilliant Production Engineer.

With a strong Mechanical Engineering background, she joined the business exactly one year ago in June 2023. Since then, she has been instrumental in generating routings, drawings, and job packages, all critical components in supporting our production processes. With a great attention to detail and commitment to manufacturing excellence, she ensures that our products are delivered on time and to the highest quality standards.

Background

Coming from a family of engineers, I was always fascinated by my father’s work and naturally followed in his footsteps. I pursued a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering at Sunderland University, graduating with First Class Honours in 2017. During my studies, I served as the Team Leader for Formula Student, a prestigious competition involving over 100 European universities to prototype a single-seat race car for autocross or sprint racing. Although our team faced challenges and barely passed the scrutineering stage, we were selected to participate at Silverstone, marking an amazing start to my engineering career.

Key projects

I started my first job at Nissan’s casting plant in Washington, producing cylinder head components for various Daimler Group customers. There, I led metallurgical projects that were key in developing the plant as an International Centre of Excellence, including the development of a patented high-strength alloy. Although casting was an interesting science, I sought more applicable engineering experience and moved to Grundfos, where I designed bespoke Engineer-to-Order pumphouses for Water Utility/Commercial services. My favourite project involved upgrading the cooling system for Britvic Drinks in Rugby, which saved Britvic over £350,000 a year in energy costs by delivering optimally chilled water to production lines.

Since joining Dyer, I’ve been learning a lot on the job. This is my first role covering a large customer base in various sectors, and I’m particularly fascinated by the Defence and Subsea contracts. Currently, I’m engineering in-line inspection technology for deep-sea pipework for one of the world’s largest oil field services companies – a truly interesting project!

Overcoming challenges 

The nature of engineering involves facing daily challenges, and it’s all about how you approach these issues—primarily understanding the root of the problem, analysing its effects on the business, and implementing tried-and-tested countermeasures. Some of the biggest challenges I faced were within myself. Over time, with experience and wisdom gained, I was able to overcome my confidence issues and finally place value in myself and my abilities, believing that my experience is just as valid as that of the next engineer.

Advice for girls and women

I would implore younger women to always celebrate their personal achievements. We live in a fast-paced world, and social media will have us believe we should always strive for the next best thing. But there is no shame in taking a pause, being proud of your accomplishments and wearing them like a badge of honour. Engineering is a high-pressure environment which can be stressful, so it’s important to know your worth in those moments! Plus, there is only one version of you.

Industry improvements are still needed

Companies invested in a better DEI culture should support women through all stages of life, promoting work-life balance wherever possible. It’s no secret that women often take on the lion’s share of running a household and family, usually while holding a full-time position. Understanding that women face some of the most drastic changes in their lifetimes and finding ways to raise awareness and support them through these stages will provide them with more time and energy to focus on excelling in their careers.

Find out more about INWED here: International Women in Engineering Day #INWED24