We spoke to commercial heating engineer Becca Weston about her career and why this sector is a great place for women in the trades.
What first attracted you to commercial heating, and what has kept you in the industry?
After years of social housing I worked for a company that did domestic and commercial and I found I much preferred working in the commercial environment. I also trained with some great engineers that helped me progress into the commercial sector which is where I found my passion – wanting to work on bigger systems.
Why do you think commercial heating offers such a strong career opportunity for women?
Firstly there’s the safety aspect of working on commercial sites compared to domestic homes. I know when I’m going to a site there won’t be issues with customers who are drunk or on drugs or have weapons in the homes or even smoking over me whilst I’m working. There also won’t be animals in my work space (like dogs jumping your legs or indoor cats you have to make sure don’t escape). There’s also sexual safety – you don’t have customers making inappropriate comments and making you feel uncomfortable or unsafe.
During my domestic only years there were lots of jobs when they said “oh it’s a woman” when they answered the door, and I’ve been locked in houses by men not wanting me to leave unless I give them my phone number or more. Many times I have had to ring the office and get police out so I can leave. I also had a customer stab themselves in front of me and I’ve had to climb through windows of drunk tenants that have smashed doors that don’t open or work in houses with drugs present.
With the commercial sector, the site are aware before hand that they have a woman attending the job and they’ve been sent proof of all your qualifications in advance. Plus, the sites are easier to access and most have parking ready for your attendance. It’s a more professional working atmosphere
What misconceptions might put women off the sector, and what would you say to challenge them?
Women are not seen to be working in the commercial sector and for sites that haven’t ever had a female engineer visit before there can be stereotypical perceptions of “is she going to be as good as a man” but these are short lived. Women in the industry prove themselves on sites so the perception is very quickly changed and can even have sites request from your employer that you return next time they have an issue to fix
What skills and qualities do women bring to commercial heating, particularly when working on larger or more complex projects?
One thing I’ve noticed that stands out is that men and women approach fault finding differently – we get the same results but have a different approach to men. I also find it’s important where there’s the stereotypical perceptions that I naturally give good handovers to clients and ensure sites are always left tidy and I follow good housekeeping rules when working, which doesn’t go unnoticed by clients.
What practical advice would you give to a woman considering an apprenticeship or career change into commercial heating?
The first is the question I get asked most being am I strong enough to do the “BIG” stuff…. Yes you are! There’s physics and leverage that can be applied to move things that get jobs done. I encourage more women to progress into the commercial sector because in a world where safety is important, you get a lot more of it working in the commercial sector! Working in commercial is a lot more rewarding as I’m not just fixing one household at a time I’m fixing massive buildings, office blocks, schools, hospitals and critical sites that thousands of people are working in and using daily. I work alone but also I work alongside top tier engineers on projects where we have a great team.
The industrial sector is no dinosaur, it’s the backbone of the industry and is often overlooked or deemed outdated especially when it comes to renewable options, but we have more renewable energy in place such as hydrogen fuel powered systems. There are many systems in the uk that use multiple renewable fuels such as biogas, ethanol, HVO, biodiesel, FAME – there are a lot of burners that have been retrofitted to renewable fuels. With higher rates of pay and more technical work and greater job satisfaction we need more people in the sector, especially women!
