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Gaining Recognition among the Top 50 Women in Engineering

Wed, 26 June, 2019

As part of the celebrations for International Women in Engineering Day 2019, the Women’s Engineering Society (WES) announced this year’s Top 50 Women in Engineering (WE50). The winners for this fourth year were drawn from current and former apprentices, with a large number of high-quality nominations from a broad range of industries, including professional services, pharmaceutical, aerospace, facilities management and automotive.

We are pleased to announce that one of the winners was TWI Ltd’s Apprentice Corrosion Technician, Catherine Leahy.  Having completed her A-Levels in physics, maths and chemistry, Catherine joined TWI where she works alongside project leaders to help set up and monitor tests as well as analysing results. She is the only female on her course and also the only woman working in her team at TWI. Hoping to one day become a TWI project leader, Catherine said, “I am thrilled to be recognised for my work with this award. I feel honoured to represent not only TWI, but also female apprentices as a whole.”

Catherine was nominated for her award by TWI's Tipper Group, whose mission is to promote and support diversity and inclusion in the scientific disciplines. You can find out more about the ongoing work of The Tipper Group here

Meanwhile, another notable winner was Sellafield Welding Engineer, Jade White MWeldI CEng. Jade, who is a Professional Member and a current member of the professional board at The Welding Institute, uses her skills as a site technical specialist to provide consultancy services on fabrication, welding and materials technology for projects and operating units. This involves assessing and approving contractor weld procedure specifications, being a point of contact for site welding issues and liaising between the Senior Welding Engineer, the relevant welding department, customers and notified bodies, as well as assisting in the delivery of department safety targets.

Each year, the Top 50 Women in Engineering list identifies and showcases amazing women in engineering. This year’s focus on apprenticeships continues the WES mission to highlight female engineers at different stages of their career as well as those who have come to the profession from a variety of paths.

The 50 award winners were judged by a panel of industry experts and the awards ceremony was held at the Royal Academy of Engineering in Westminster, where the attendees were given afternoon tea.

The WE50 awards coincide with International Women in Engineering Day (INWED) on 23 June, which has been endorsed by UNESCO patronage since 2016. INWED celebrates the achievements of women in engineering and related roles and highlights the opportunities available to engineers of the future.

Catherine Leahy
Catherine Leahy
Jade White MWeldI CEng
Jade White MWeldI CEng

For more information please email:


contactus@twi.co.uk