Helen Cavill in the running to become IET Young Woman Engineer of the Year

Helen Cavill CEng, an Institution member and STEM ambassador, is among five engineers shortlisted for the IET Young Woman Engineer of the Year Awards 2015.

These prestigious engineering industry awards aim to find female role models to help address the UK science and engineering skills crisis. The YWE winner will be revealed at an awards ceremony on 3 December at the newly refurbished IET London: Savoy Place.

Helen began her studies in engineering with a Year in Industry placement at an iron foundry in her home town of Lincoln. She has been involved with the Institution since being awarded an Undergraduate Scholarship in 2005 and graduated from the University of Cambridge with a Masters in Manufacturing Engineering in 2009. She became a Chartered Engineer in 2014.

Helen has been working hard for many years to raise the profile of STEM subjects among children in creative and innovative ways. She has already received recognition for her commitment, reaching the final of the 2013 STEMNET Most Dedicated Ambassador Award. She has also been identified as a Female Engineering Role Model (FERM) by EDT, which featured the story of her route to engineering on its website.

She currently sits on the Institution's Educational Awards Committee, helping to support the education and professional development of members throughout the Institution, and is Secretary/Treasurer for the Norfolk and Waveney area.

Helen says she particularly enjoys taking part in activities where her creativity and design skills can be exercised to devise novel educational resources. In addition to running Saturday Science Masterclasses, Helen is on the organising committee of the Lowestoft Interschool Maths Challenge, designing and building three-dimensional practical maths games suitable for teams consisting of a wide range of ages.

She describes her role as a Process Improvement Manager at M&H Plastics in Suffolk as being akin to an ‘engineering detective’. It involves investigating and resolving complex technical issues, often spanning several production departments as well as leading long-term improvement projects. Currently, Helen is working on optimisation of UV ink curing and automated dimensional measuring of plastic components.

She said: “It is a great honour to reach the final of this award and have the opportunity to be a more prominent female engineering role model. If every child was exposed to what engineering was really like by the age of 11 or 12 – ideally through a practical activity and positive role models – I think many more children would consider engineering as a career. This would improve the gender imbalance, but more importantly allow many more people to embark on this exciting career path.

“I am also really pleased to be able to raise the profile of manufacturing engineering. Efficient manufacturing is crucial to everything from aeroplanes to plastic bottles, but it is an area of engineering that the wider public are not particularly aware of as a career choice.”

Find out more about the IET YWE Awards.
Watch the video.