To mark International Women’s Day, we invited the women of Pressure Dynamics and United Fluid Power to share their experiences, insights and reflections on working within our industry. In an industry traditionally seen as male-dominated, their perspectives are invaluable. This year, we wanted to pause, listen and highlight the voices of the women who help drive our projects, our culture and our future forward. Read on to see what our female employees had to say –
What International Women’s Day Means to the Women of Pressure Dynamics
Why Recognition Matters:
Why do you think it is important to recognise and celebrate International Women’s Day?
For many of our team, International Women’s Day is about more than recognition — it’s about visibility, progress and opportunity.
Quote 1: To celebrate and recognise Women’s achievements, to empower women and inspire the future generation.
Quote 2: To acknowledge the work that all women do in this company, especially since we work in a male-dominated field. And to acknowledge the skills that we bring to the table that our male colleagues might not.
Quote 3: Women’s contributions in business and life are not always recognised to the same degree that their male counterparts’ are, so it is important to take a day to reflect and acknowledge where we’ve been, where we are and where we’re going as well as celebrate successes.
Career Journeys & Inspiration:
What inspired you to pursue a career in your field?
Career paths into engineering, operations and corporate roles are rarely linear. For many, inspiration came from unexpected places, from hands-on problem solving to strong female role models.
Quote 1: My passion with engineering and curiosity is to learn more about various engineering principles.
Quote 2: A love of people and a desire to improve the working lives of others.
Quote 3: I’ve always been creative and loved seeing marketing/advertising and wondering ‘how on earth did they come up with that’. I knew I wanted to be involved in the business industry and finding my way into Marketing and Advertising was the perfect path to explore my creative side and incorporate a psychology side to my work in trying to understand how our brains work when it comes to buying habits.
Challenges & Breaking Barriers:
Have you experienced any challenges or barriers in your career? If so, how did you overcome them?
Several women reflected on the challenges of building careers in a traditionally male-dominated industry. From proving technical capability to navigating assumptions, resilience has played a key role in their journeys.
Quote 1: I’m still an undergraduate at the moment, so it is understandable to an extent, but I feel that occasionally I am not listened to as much as my male colleagues, especially regarding safety concerns. But that has not happened at PD, just in other areas of my field.
Quote 2: Being a girl on a mostly-male repair team when working in IT, then leading that team. I had male colleagues treat me differently after I was promoted, which was a shame but to be expected. Persevering through discomfort is what got me through.
Pride & Progress:
What has been your proudest achievement in your career so far?
When asked about their proudest achievements, the responses were both personal and professional, from leading major projects to earning qualifications and stepping into leadership roles.
Quote 1: My proudest achievement so far has been successfully coordinating and submitting a complex tender under tight deadlines, bringing multiple stakeholders together and helping the company secure an important contract.
Quote 2: When i worked for the Retail company, I was responsible for all of the printed marketing and advertising in 1000 stores across the UK and Ireland. Going into my local store which I’ve visited since a child and seeing all my designs printed on posters, leaflets and catalogues at the age of 20 was a really big achievement.
Quote 3: I am still early in my career and already proud of the experiences I’ve had. Securing an internship only a year into my degree and stepping into a department where I was the sole resource challenged me in the best way. I’m proud to have identified the need for new initiatives and recognised the importance of building a growing team to support our business.
Quote 4: I have managed a few technically complex projects, often stepping in at short notice and taking responsibility for all end to end project management requirements. Through this work, I gained strong capability in coordinating multiple stakeholders and large organisations across the mining and oil and gas sectors, this gave me a lot of job satisfaction and confidence at these times.
Mentorship:
Have you had any mentors, role models or support networks that have influenced your career journey?
Their advice to women considering a career in our industry is clear: back yourself.
Quote 1: Yes, I’ve been influenced by supportive managers in my earlier roles, but now I’m mainly driven by my own motivation and determination to keep growing in my career.
Quote 2: Every manager I’ve ever had has had some kind of impact on me whether that’s positive or negative, and I learned from it all. In my current role I cannot speak highly enough of my manager, he not only believes in me and stands beside me but always makes time to provide me guidance and help me learn.
Quote 3: I have had many teachers throughout my studies who have been incredibly inspiring and supportive. I have also had great managers and role models who have shown me respect and encouraged me to grow, back myself and step confidently into new challenges. I feel incredibly fortunate to be surrounded by positive and supportive people who have helped shape me into the person I am today.
Conclusion:
International Women’s Day provides an opportunity to reflect on progress made, but also on the work still to be done. At Pressure Dynamics and United Fluid Power, we remain committed to fostering an environment where talent, capability and ambition are recognised — and where more women feel empowered to build long-term careers in our industry.