In the week that marked International Women in Engineering Day nijobfinder spoke to Tracy O’Kane about her role as a Senior Technical Systems Engineer at CDE and why she would encourage more females to consider a career in the industry.
Read how she became a Senior Technical Systems Engineer at CDE
Give a brief outline of your career to date.
I was lucky enough to get a place on a graduate training scheme with a large engineering, construction and project management company when I graduated. I worked predominantly in its oil, gas and chemicals sector.
After completing my graduate training, I spent a number of years working as a freelance consultant in the same industry before relocating from England to Northern Ireland and taking up a post at CDE in 2018.
I had heard about CDE as quite a prominent company in the natural processing and waste recycling processing sectors before the role came up, so I was keen to apply.
What was your favourite subject at school?
I always enjoyed the sciences and maths at school. Engineering is the use of scientific principles to solve a problem, so it was a natural progression for me.
Did you go on to further/ higher education, if so what did you study and where?
I studied a four-year master’s degree in chemical engineering at Nottingham University.
How did you get into your area of work?
I went into a graduate training program in an engineering company where I gained insight and experience in engineering projects.
Is this what you always wanted to do?
Yes, I have an aunt who studied chemical engineering at university and has a successful career in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry. She introduced me to engineering from an early age.
Were there any particular essential qualifications or experience needed?
It depends on what level you come into the business at. Graduate engineers require a degree qualification but do not require any specific experience. Starting out as a Technical Engineer, I needed a similar level of experience in another industry as well as my degree qualification. We also offer placement opportunities for undergraduates and apprenticeships, so there are lots of different ways to become part of the CDE team.
Are there alternative routes into the job?
I took the university degree route to get where I am. However, that won’t be the right approach for everyone wanting to pursue a career in engineering. Apprenticeships are an excellent option too and one that we offer at CDE. Engineering is also a very broad word and there are so many different types of engineers, industries and opportunities. The key is first researching the various disciplines within engineering to find a version of it that matches your interests and then exploring the different pathways.
What are the main personal skills your job requires?
Technical problem-solving skills and flexibility as things change often. Communication is essential too. We work on project teams and if we don’t communicate effectively then key changes in the projects will get missed.
What does a typical day entail?
My role covers two key areas: technical pre-sales and live projects. For prospective customers in the pre-sales stage of the pipeline I field incoming technical enquiries. This involves devising a suitable technical solution that would address the specific needs of the customer and the type of material they process. If things go well, and the customer is happy with the solution we are offering, then they place an order and that project is then live.
At this stage of the customer journey, I would be assigned the technical lead position on the project, specifying and ordering equipment to ensure the project is executed successfully. I might also be handling queries around the build of the plant on the factory floor, assisting with the install/commissioning phase or dealing with snag items that need to be resolved urgently.
There is no typical day. It’s definitely varied, from initial concept and project realisation to detailed design, commissioning and installation. It’s not predictable, but it’s exciting and challenging.
What are the best and most challenging aspects of the job?
The best is working with the project teams and CDE people in general. The most challenging is having to re-evaluate work priorities on a daily, if not hourly, basis. It’s a fast-paced, delivery-driven environment which keeps you on your feet.
Why is what you do important?
Our purpose at CDE is to create our best world a ton at a time. We engineer solutions that transform waste materials into valuable recycled products. In the natural processing and waste recycling sectors our wet processing plants are recovering every grain of sand and aggregates from our customer’s feed material, ensuring valuable material is being diverted from landfill.
How has Covid-19 impacted your business/role?
Like every business we’ve had to adapt. For example, restricted travel has impacted how we normally demonstrate our process knowledge and proven experience to prospective customers, but these challenges also presented opportunities for us to utilise technology to continue to build relationships and engage with our customers.
What adjustments have you had to make?
In October last year we delivered CDE’s first-ever global virtual symposium, a two-day conference which featured keynote speeches and over 80 seminars by around 100 industry experts.
We also enabled fully virtual inward visit meetings with prospective customers which included virtual site demos of our HQ and manufacturing facilities using 360-degree technology and virtual reality, virtual design workshops with technical, design, and electrical engineers, and facilities demos.
CDE has always been ahead of the curve in terms of IT and its business systems in place, meaning our workforce was equipped for remote working with laptops, remote access and IP phones well before the pandemic so I was able to go about my day-to-day role without any major adjustments.
What advice would you give anyone looking to follow a similar career path?
Engineering is varied, so don’t resign to the conclusion that it’s not a suitable career path for you before researching the various strands. It’s all about aligning with your own personal interests. The fundamentals you learn in engineering are very transferable to other industries and careers too. It provides an excellent foundation and offers great opportunity to transition into other roles and sectors.
On June 23 we marked International Women in Engineering Day 2021. To any females who may have reservations about taking up a career in engineering which would tend to attract more men than women, my advice would be to put those reservations aside, have faith in your abilities and work at your very best, and you will be valued equally.
If you weren’t doing this what would you like to do?
I like what I do because it combines my love of working with others and solving technical problems. If there was suddenly an extra eight hours in a day, I would like to do something that also involved working with people – but helping them – like counselling or voluntary work.
What is the one piece of advice you would give to yourself on your first day?
Approach things with an open mind, adopt a ‘can do’ attitude, and get to know your team as these are the ones who you will need to lean on to get up to speed.
Describe your ideal day off.
Spending time with my family doing something outdoors followed by going out and eating copious amounts of tasty food. Anything that involves eating good food and hanging out with my family is always an ideal day for me.
And finally, what’s the key to any successful job search?
Believe it’s possible. I’m quite vocal in getting young people into engineering and I know many of my colleagues at CDE share a similar passion for nurturing and elevating future engineering talent in Northern Ireland. I would encourage anyone setting out on a job search in this sector to speak to other engineers and get their advice and input. We’re always encouraged by young people approaching us wanting to learn about what we do and how they can follow a similar path.
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