Around 20 companies are partnering Women into Manufacturing and Engineering (WIME), which is supported by the Regional Growth Fund. They include local employers Siemens, Airco Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Limited, Vivergo Fuels, Swift Group, Centrica plc, ABP, British Steel, Ideal Boilers, Spencer Group, Level Systems, MB Roche & Sons Ltd, Humber Rewind, Turner Timber Frames and AIG Engineering. In addition, Supporting Women in Industry surrounding the Humber (SWIISH) are involved.
They will all be attending a WiME careers open event, as part of Hull UK City of Culture’s Wow - Women of the World festival on Saturday 11th March, from 10.30am to 3pm (last entry at 2.30pm), at the Guildhall, in Hull. This will be an opportunity for women to meet others already working in the manufacturing and engineering sectors, find out about current vacancies, discover what training and qualifications are needed, and learn about apprenticeship opportunities.
Women can talk directly to representatives from these companies and their female employees about how to get into this exciting and growing sector of the local economy. There will also be an opportunity to get hands-on with engineering equipment, including a Siemens blade mould, and an F-Gas rig from Airco Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Limited.
Tim Rix, Chair of the Green Port Growth Programme Board, commented:
“The fact WiME has support from the area’s largest employers proves there is a need to showcase careers for women in the manufacturing and engineering industries. Not only is the event an opportunity to promote the types of roles companies offer, but it also provides a direct recruitment source for companies. To supplement this, the Green Port Growth Programme has launched business packages, offering advice and funding to enable the employment of more women and ensure a gender-balanced workforce.”
Elaine Lancaster, Chief Technical Officer at Ideal Boilers, said:
“As a large employer investing locally in manufacturing, research and development, Ideal Boilers is pleased to support the WiME event. We recognise the value that a diverse workforce brings to our business and will have some of our female engineers present on the day to share their experiences of working in our sector.”
Jane Spencer, Head of Human Resources for ABP on the Humber, said:
“We are excited to be supporting the WiME event. When women are considering their next career move, we want them to think of ABP, where we have a wide range of exciting and demanding sectors available to all.”
