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The Institution of Mechanical Engineers has nominated a renewable energy innovator and passionate engineer, Eleanor van der Heijden, for the Women’s Engineering Society Karen Burt Memorial Award 2013 – which recognises excellence and potential in newly elected female chartered engineers.
Van der Heijden was determined from a young age to become an engineer. Now a 29-year-old chartered engineer working for renewable energy firm Ecotricity in Gloucestershire, she feels honoured to be nominated for the prestigious award.
“Winning this would give me the opportunity to show other women pursuing professional status that engineering provides an excellent toolkit of skills for a diverse and interesting career working on the big challenges in society,” she said.
“I am keen to show people who are considering a career in engineering that it is varied and adaptable. I’ve worked as a design engineer in medical engineering, and now I’m project-managing for an environmental company. The common theme is that my skills as an engineer have been invaluable in each position along the way. I hope that I’m showing other women that engineering is not simply one career path, but that the principles are wonderfully transferable.”
After gaining a first-class honours degree in sports engineering at the University of Bath, Van der Heijden began her first job at Renishaw in the company’s medical engineering department. She specialised in precision neurological devices used to treat brain conditions such as Parkinson’s disease. “At Renishaw, two of the designs I produced were filed for international patents, and I was listed on both as the inventor,” she said.
But Van der Heijden’s passion was the environmental field. In her final year at university, she had studied environmental management systems and had become increasingly aware of environmental issues. “I thought deeply about where I wanted to be working in the future. I wanted to follow my passion, which is pursuing positive environmental solutions to energy and climate-change issues. It was a hard decision to leave Renishaw, as I enjoyed my time there and learned so much,” she said.
Five years ago, Van der Heijden joined Ecotricity as technical analyst in the development team.
“I started as a technician and now, having worked in many roles in my department, I am emerging technologies and projects manager. I feel lucky to have experienced every part of a renewable energy project over the past few years. I was particularly proud to project-manage the completion of the pioneering Fen Farm Solar Park in Lincolnshire, which was the company’s first non-wind renewable energy project and won Ecotricity the 2011 Renewable Energy Association Award for best developer,” she said.
Van der Heijden understands and supports the important work of the engineering community in sharing its enthusiasm and practical knowledge to encourage others to enter the profession. She has also gained experience of mentoring a colleague.
Having taken part in Stem activities for schoolchildren while she was a student, Van der Heijden is now again helping to inspire children. “I’m supporting a fellow engineer who is running workshops for home-schooled children, which is a fun way of engaging kids with engineering. At Ecotricity, we invite the public to exhibitions, and I enjoy explaining our ideas of renewable energy and the technical developments we are making to harness and store energy.” She added: “I have also had the opportunity to assist my local community in developing renewable energy projects, and it’s one of the best things I’ve done in my spare time.”
Recently Van der Heijden was elected a chartered engineer. This had been her aim since she was a teenager, and it remains one of the most significant steps in her life: “It’s a professional seal of approval: a quality check by one’s peers,” she said. “It’s valuable to distinguish oneself as a professional engineer, and belong to and engage with an organisation such as the IMechE.”
As for the future, she said: “My ambition is to become an expert in my field. I want to look back and say that I’ve been instrumental in building a number of renewable energy projects, and that I’ve made a difference. I’d like to work towards a leadership position in a company dedicated to creating a sustainable future for society.”
Now that she is a chartered engineer, Van der Heijden aims to become a chartered environmentalist. She feels she holds a responsibility: “Engineers are well placed to tackle the complex challenges of sustainability, energy security and climate change,” she said. “However, it will take inspiration and dedication to encourage society to step away from ‘business as usual’ and towards a bolder and brighter future. Engineers should lead the way.”
The award
The annual Karen Burt Memorial Award for newly elected female chartered engineers was launched by the Women’s Engineering Society (WES) in 1998. The award “recognises the candidate’s excellence and potential in the practice of engineering and highlights the importance of chartered status, as well as offering recognition to contributions made by the candidate to the promotion of the engineering profession”. This year’s award will be presented at the WES conference Harnessing the Energy on 4 October in London.