Q&A
“There is an international shortage of engineers who are needed to solve a lot of big problems - including climate change.”
Grousemount Wind Farm, operated by ESB subsidiary, Kerry Wind Farm. Once fully completed, Grousemount will be ESB’s largest onshore wind farm, providing 114MW of power from the 38 wind turbines at the site.
research in Ireland. We’re regarded as a centre for excellence - and there is an immense amount of world-leading pharmaceutical work happening here. Right across the Irish engineering sphere there’s an awful lot going on that’s bit-by- bit moving the world ahead. Sometimes it’s a component of research from Ireland that feeds into a bigger global advancement. Have there been improvements in the sector in terms of gender equality, do you think? Overall, the proportion of female graduates from all engineering courses is remaining stubbornly low, at about 13%. That’s why I, and other female engineers are so keen to go out to schools and open the eyes of female students to the possibilities and dispel some of those stereotypes that are out there. Once they hear from qualified female engineers about their positive career experiences, many indicate that they will also seriously consider STEM careers. The irony is that female students are the most likely to say they want a career that makes a difference. Their automatic choice is medicine and science, both valid careers. Engineering isn’t at the forefront
of their decision making process and yet it’s one of those careers that really does help to advance mankind and move things forward – it really delivers for society. Many solutions that engineers provide are going to be used by the whole population. If you’re not getting ideas from the female perspective to represent that diverse spectrum, then there is an issue. How does Ireland’s electrical industry benefit from engineering innovation? There are major opportunities in renewables for electrical contractors. One that I think is huge for Ireland Inc. is retrofitting heating into the housing stock. We’ve done an awful lot in terms of reducing carbon in electricity generation but the two other areas that we need to focus on are transport and domestic heating. To be in a position where you can provide a design for a retrofit home which involves everything from windows to insulation, solar PV on the roof, a heat exchanger maybe, a storage battery and a heat pump, that’s a game changer. It does two things: improves air quality and addresses climate change but also improves comfort within the home. Lower income households are putting a lot of money into heating their homes; if they
had a better quality BER rating they wouldn’t have to put the same costs or effort in. The Government’s climate action plan mark II is targeting the retrofit of a quarter of Ireland’s homes by 2030 – that offers a massive opportunity for electrical contractors.
Step up
Ireland’s engineering community is currently being called upon to adopt a school in advance of STEPS Engineers Week 2021 to deliver presentations and workshops virtually. Taking place across Ireland from Saturday, February 27 – Friday, March 5, Engineers Week encourages primary and post-primary students, their teachers and parents to explore the world of engineering as well as highlighting the diverse career opportunities engineering offers. The Engineers Ireland STEPS programme team have created a number of free resources to assist engineers with classroom visits. Visit www.engineersweek.ie to get involved in Ireland’s largest celebration of engineering.
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IRELAND’S ELECTRICAL MAGAZINE | 59
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