Gender pay gap, hydrogen cars and 3DP for oil & gas: most-read stories of 2018, Apr – June

Change is the most exciting aspect of engineering, the constant innovation that transforms how we live and work.

With another year coming towards its end, we've looked back at what happened by taking stock of our most-read stories from each month.

Read part one here.

April: REVEALED – 10 of the biggest gender pay gaps in UK engineering

For every pound earned by men, women make 65p or less at more than 70 engineering-related firms in the UK. That was the information revealed in April, after the government published gender pay gap data from more than 10,000 companies with 250 or more employees.

It should have been shocking. But with persistent low levels of women in the engineering workforce – about 11%, one of the lowest rates in Europe – it is clear that UK engineering still has a lot to do to promote equality and diversity. Perhaps 2019 will be the year things change for the better...

May: Hydrogen cars - a lot of hot air?

Although purchase rates have gradually increased, the electric car revolution hasn't quite taken off in the UK. Could hydrogen cars step up?

With climate change concerns becoming ever-more pressing, we are likely to hear more about hydrogen in the coming years.

June: The power of 3D printing for the oil and gas industry

Oil and gas is under pressure, fighting falling demand and lower prices. Turbine manufacturers need to rethink designs and speed up production – enter additive manufacturing.

This piece by Rich McEachran saw science fiction quickly becoming reality in a previously sluggish industry.